Renewable Energy by: Guest Writer J. Peter Lynch
January 15, 2004

In last months article “Photovoltaics: A Key to Safe, Secure & Reliable Electricity Generation” I wrote an overview of a technology called Photovoltaics….What are Photovoltaics?

Photovoltaics (PV) or Solar Electric Cells as its name implies, is a technology that converts sunlight directly into electricity: photo = light and voltaic = electricity.

Photovoltaics or solar cells are beginning to show up in many places. The power source for emergency phones on highways (PV is the little module on the top of the pole), wristwatches, portable calculators, yard lights and increasingly on the rooftops of homes and buildings all around the world.

But why should you be interested in Photovoltaics? Why would you want to purchase Photovoltaics? Below are some reasons why Photovoltaics technology might not be a bad investment for you and for America and also why Photovoltaics may soon be a part of your future.

1. Energy Security. Increased energy security for you, your family, and the country as a whole. The more we utilize solar and other renewable energy sources, the less dependent we are on our local utility and foreign supplied nonrenewable fossil fuels, such as oil from the volatile mideast. Photovoltaics can be used to power your house or charge an electric vehicle. All of which will reduce your electric bill, reduce air pollution and decrease our need for foreign oil. In addition, Photovoltaics produce the “highest value” power - peak electricity.

2. Protection against future price increases. Electricity prices across the country are increasing. In California a combination of deregulation, population growth, increased consumer demand and construction of fewer new power plants caused electricity costs to skyrocket. All other states are watching similar trends and prices can be expected to increase in the coming years. Once you install Photovoltaics your electricity costs will NEVER increase.

With nuclear power plants being decommissioned or phased out because of the high costs and high risks related to nuclear waste disposal, new sources of electricity are needed. Even though many new gas-fired power plants have been constructed, many analysts see natural gas shortages emerging that will require expensive drilling and pipeline construction and will cause increased short term price volatility and periodic gas shortages.

3. Government Rebates. Many states are finally getting serious about supporting renewable energy options. Government rebates, tax credits and grants can cut the cost of your solar roof by up to 50 to 60 percent in some areas.

To learn what's available in your state, go to the Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE), www.DSIREUSA.org.

4. Selling back peak power to the grid via net metering. Net-metering rules and regulations are in place in 38 states, allowing homeowners to run their electrical meters backward when they send electricity to the grid from a solar-electric rooftop. When the homeowner uses electricity from the grid at night or on cloudy days, the meter runs forward. The monthly bill is based on the net difference. This is called “distributed energy generation” where the energy is generated as close as possible to the point of end use.

Distributed electrical generation provides more security for homeowners and for the electrical network (the grid). It generates cleaner, locally produced electricity and reduces the load on the grid, thereby helping to prevent brown outs and blackouts like the massive August 2003 blackout in the Northeast.

5. Global Warming reductions. Global warming is a very serious and growing problem for the United States and for the entire world. If we do not take strong positive steps to halt the spread of global warming the entire world may be faced with chaotic and destructive climate changes and the resultant natural disasters around the world.

According to the Department of Energy (DOE), electric power plants emitted 42 percent of all carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the United States in 2001, making them the largest single-source contributor to global warming. In addition, coal-fired plants (the dirtiest of all fossil fuel plants) produced 53 percent of all electricity in the United States in 2001. These plants produced 80 percent of all the CO2 emissions resulting from electricity power generation. DOE also reports one-quarter of all types of air pollution emissions nationwide are caused by burning fossil fuels (coal, natural gas and oil) to generate electricity.

Photovoltaics are pollution free, silent, have no moving parts and have virtually no negative environmental impact. We must accelerate the transition from polluting power sources to “clean” sources of power, such as Photovoltaics, if we are to stem the tide of Global Warming.

6. Greater Flexibility and Less Financial Risk. Conventional power plants and transmission lines take years to plan, site and build-and most people do not want them in their back yards. As a result, the financial risk of a longer-term project is far greater and could cost taxpayers far more than a technology like Photovoltaics that can be implemented incrementally and quickly.

As we all know, and have seem recently, power distribution systems feeding metropolitan areas are operating near capacity during peak demand periods. Onsite power production via home solar-electric installations, part of a "distributed generation" scenario, offers a positive solution for elected officials seeking to prevent blackouts and brownouts, improve air quality and enhance the economy by producing jobs.

7. Support the future of Solar Power and American Energy Independence. The PV market is approximately $3.5 billion worldwide today, and is expected to grow to over $20 billion by 2012 to 2015. The rate of growth of PV products has increased by 25 percent annually over the last 5 years and is expected to continue at this rate or greater for the next few decades.

This would make Photovoltaics the fastest growing industry in the world and the industry that will have the greatest positive benefit to the most people worldwide. Approximately 1/3 of the world’s population (2 billion people) has NO access to electricity and another 1/3 have electrical service that is far inferior to the “normal” service here in the U.S. With widespread adoption of PV technology it would dramatically improve the well-being of billions of people worldwide and enhance their communities and their economies.

This growth should spur additional investment, contribute to economies of scale in the industry and help make systems even more affordable and make a significant contribution to a better world for all of us to live and work in.

Mr. Lynch has worked, for 26 years as an independent securities analyst and investor in small emerging technology companies. He has been actively involved in following developments in the renewable energy sector since 1977 and is regarded as an expert in this field. He was the contributing editor for the past 17 years to the Photovoltaic Insider Report, the leading publication in PV that was directed at industrial subscribers, such as major energy companies, utilities and governments around the world. He is currently a consultant to a number of companies, among them DayStar Technologies (www.daystartech.com), a company developing the next generation of Photovoltaics. He can be reached via e-mail at: solarjpl@aol.com. 

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