Can Solar Panels be Produced Economically in the US?

The question of whether the US can compete with foreign manufacturers in the production of cost effective solar equipment must be answered. Surely automation, robotics and other technologies will aid in compensating for cheap labor overseas. But this is exactly why government loans to subsidize startup expenses are so vitally important. A feasibility study will have to be done to further clarify the requirements up front.

High-efficiency Solar Panels

Last year the buzz in the solar industry was the achieving of over 40% efficiency in solar cells. This has been done at MIT and also at Spectrolab. Here is a quote from the article on treehugger.com.

“This solar cell performance is the highest efficiency level any photovoltaic device has ever achieved,” said Dr. David Lillington, president of Spectrolab. “The terrestrial cell we have developed uses the same technology base as our space-based cells. So, once qualified, they can be manufactured in very high volumes with minimal impact to production flow.”

So the technological breakthroughs have been accomplished and the possibility of providing solar panels at high-efficiency and also high volumes is already here.

Connecting to the Grid

In many areas it is already possible to not only run solar while connected to the grid but to actually sell back surplus energy to the utility companies. This form of technology will have to be incorporated across the nation so that utility companies can act as “energy brokers” providing alternate energy during solar downtimes and also converting surplus energy to hydrogen or some other form to be used in areas where solar is not as effective. Again this technology already exists and can be implemented across the country.