SOLAR W/O SILICON IS NOT A DAY W/O SUNSHINE

Solar Power 2007, September 24-27, Long Beach, CA.

Solar energy hopes to shine with less silicon
Steve Gelsi, September 6, 2007 (MarketWatch from Dow Jones)

WHO
Cowen and Company, 150 prospective investors

With the market for thin film solar growing like this, the silicon shortage should ease up soon. (click to enlarge)

WHAT
At Cowen and Company’s Clean Tech Conference, 2 cutting edge solar technologies were showcased: thin-film and concentrating solar. Both are less silicon-dependent and both promise to be cost/kilowatt competitive with other electricity-generating fuels.

WHEN
- The Clean Tech Conference was September 6.
- Silicon photovoltaics go back to the 1960s and 70s but remains noncompetitive in the large-scale electricity generating market.
- First Solar claims to have thin-film technology at 8 to 10 cents/kilowatt-hour in sight and cost parity with other electricity-generating methods expected by 2012.

WHERE
- The conference was held at at the Le Parker Meridian Hotel, NYC.
- The presenters reported their technologies are being adopted in Europe but require US markets to achieve the scales they need to be competitive.

Schematic of a photovoltaic cell: The semiconductor is silicon. (click to enlarge)

WHY
- US success for new solar and other New Energy technologies may depend on government action granting long term incentives such as the investment tax credit.
- Thin-film solar panels have different formulations. They are cheaper to manufacture and use less silicon, if any at all, but are less efficient than silicon-based PVs. Manufacturers must get better kilowatt-hour rates by either cutting costs or improving efficiency.
- One presenter at the conference reported that comparisons between 30-year old silicon panels and 20-year old thin-film panels showed equal durability.
- Concentrating solar uses large arrays of parabolic lenses/mirrors to magnify the falling sun and focus it for heating liquid passing through the array which drives a steam generator. The newest systems (Emcore, SolFocus) incorporate advanced magnification optics as well as low-cost reflective materials with light-tracking mechanics, all to maximize light and heat production.

Schematic of thin film: No silicon. (click to enlarge)

QUOTES
- Jens Meyerhoff, cfo, First Solar Inc.: "Demand in the near term is not a big concern…"
- Charles Gay, general manager, Applied Materials: "There are some really big players coming into the space…"Thin film will be as reliable as crystalline silicon…"