News about Solar, Wind and alternative green power technologies

In the street of San Francisco, Ron Kenedi sees great prospect. The vice president of Sharp Solar says that demand keeps on expanding and Japanese are also taking renewable energy seriously. Kenedi says that the remarkable thing is that demand is exponentially increasing worldwide and not only locally.

Going back some years, solar energy wasn’t at vogue. In the time when Ronald Reagan removed the solar panels setup on the White House by Jimmy Carter, no one saw solar energy as a key for the future. Nowadays, everyone is eager to have one on their business or home.

It is an energy boom that is felt across the globe. The growth is in what is called distributed generation capacity. Solar panels can be placed wherever energy is needed. Earlier, small-scale solar panels had to compete with large solar thermal plants usually erected in the desert but technology has brought solar energy nearer to the customers.

‘Concentrated solar panels’ set up by eSolar, Solar Millennium and BrightSource Energy made typical photovoltaic panels unattractive. The mirror solar panels used to steam a generator was much more effective in changing electrons into pure electricity.

Nowadays, solar thermal projects are viewed differently. They have many drawbacks such as having high transmission cost and being distanced from large cities. Moreover, solar thermal project may harm the ecosystem of desert, according to Dianne Feinstein, California’s powerful Democratic senator. New legislations has even been introduced to prevent renewable projects on million of Acres at the Mojave Desert.

The price of conventional photovoltaic panels has also drastically decreased during the recent years. This has been mainly due to oversupply and thanks to low-cost poly-silicon from Chinese manufactures. Some solar modules can be made available for less than a dollar a watt. This is what has really made solar energy competitive. Cheaply available thin film solar cells and crystalline solar modules have even given birth to photovoltaic power plants.

Distributive solar projects are going from large-scale to small-scale production. There is already massive expansion of solar energy projects underway and in some regions solar energy will provide as much energy as huge nuclear power plant

California is certainly the most innovative state in the field of renewable energy. For instance, Southern California Edison is undergoing a five year project to install up to 500 MW of solar arrays at commercial rooftops. Moreover, PG&E might also expand with 500 MW distribution solar panels on nearby substations to the Northern California utility. On small-scales solar energy are being plugged directly to the electricity grid.

Sharp Solar is experiencing its highest demand from utility companies. The effect is not simply a California happening. Recently, the New York Power Authority announced its plan to install 100 MW photovoltaic panels. Moreover, Sacramento Municipal Utility District is going for a 100 megawatt project.

Renewable energy projects are unfolding rapidly to address climate pressure. Yet, solar alone is unable to cope with increasing demands. All alternative sources of energy will be required. These include geothermal, waves, wind, solar panels and thermal solar projects.

Source: Grist