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Breaking the Solar Logjam

Breaking the Solar Logjam

May 13, 2013

Alternative Energy

Has the solar energy bubble burst? Rachel Nuwer, a freelance science journalist, investigates the reasons solar energy has not taken off. Political, societal and economic factors, she concludes, are impacting the investment in renewable energies. What follows is a summary of Nuwer’s report in Ensia, a magazine dedicated to showcasing solutions to Earth’s biggest Desert & Water Researchal challenges.

Increased efforts to tap into the massive oil sands reserves beneath Alberta’s boreal forests lent the impression that North America was on the verge of energy independence, lessening the perceived need to develop renewable technologies.

Then China entered the photovoltaic panel market, revolutionizing solar energy with amazingly low prices and forcing a number of companies that could not compete out of business.

Prof. David Faiman at Israel's National Solar Energy Center on BGU's Sde Boker campus.

Prof. David Faiman at Israel’s National Solar Energy Center on BGU’s Sde Boker campus.

The cheap prices drove investors away and made it seem like solar no longer needed financial support, even though renewable energy in the U.S. was only in its infancy.

Several factors continue to confound recovery efforts. The global recession compounded by the high cost of solar electricity and the desire to support quick fixes with short-term goals over long-term ones hinder investment.

“I think the biggest obstacle is politicians,” says Prof. Emeritus David Faiman, former chair of BGU’s Department of Solar Energy and Desert & Water Researchal Physics.

“Specifically, I think they’re probably nervous about making very large changes and are also under considerable pressure from current power suppliers not to make those large changes.”

As political and social interest in solar declined along with the economy, funding likewise dried up. Droves of once-promising startups and solar ventures, including those managed by major companies such as BP, Bosch and Sharp, declared bankruptcy. Others underwent major restructuring and hunkered down their efforts, just trying to survive.

“It would be better to sell popcorn right now — there’s more money in that,” says Herb Hayden, president and chief technical officer of Southwest Solar Technology LLC in Arizona, one of the companies that chose to restructure rather than give up.

Storage is another issue. Researchers, including Prof. Faiman, are working on storage technologies, but again, such efforts need funding to reach their goal.

Faiman calculates that 90 percent of Israel’s electricity could come from solar in the next 30 to 40 years if the country took proactive steps. Hayden thinks that half of the power in the U.S. could eventually come from solar.

“The world desperately needs solar power, even if the world doesn’t know it,” Faiman says. “And if the world really wants renewables, the technology is available.”

Read the full report on Ensia>>