INTRODUCTION
Solar power has recently emerged as one of the most rapidly growing renewable energy sources. Solar cells are fabricated from silicon wafers and convert sunlight into electricity through a process known as the photovoltaic
effect. Solar modules, which are an array of interconnected solar cells encased in a weatherproof frame, are mounted in areas with direct exposure to the sun to generate electricity from sunlight. Solar power systems, which are made up of solar modules, related power electronics and other components, are used in residential, commercial and industrial applications in both on-grid and off-grid applications. The market for on-grid applications, where solar power is used to supplement a customer.s electricity purchased from a utility network, represents the largest and fastest growing segment of the market. Off-grid applications, where access to utility
networks is not economical or physically feasible, offer additional opportunities for the use of solar power. Off-grid applications include road signs and call boxes, communications support along remote pipelines and
telecommunications lines and rural residential electricity generation applications. They also include car battery chargers, light emitting diode, or LED, lighting and power generation for a wide range of consumer applications
such as radios, watches and toys. Industry growth has been particularly strong in jurisdictions where
governments offer incentives for solar power installation. Germany, Spain, the United States, China and Japan, among others, offer, or previously offered, substantial incentives through either direct subsidies for solar installation or feed-in tariff subsidies for the electricity delivered to the utility grid from solar power installations. Demand for solar power has also been driven by increasing prices for petroleum and increasing environmental concerns over the use of fossil fuels. There are various technologies used in the solar power industry, including crystalline silicon technology and thin film technologies, such as amorphous silicon and cadmium telluride. Crystalline silicon technology, is the technology on which approximately 94% of solar power products are based.
Crystalline silicon technology is considered to be efficient, stable and low in toxicity. At present, the efficiency of crystalline solar cells ranges from 12% to 19%, half to two-thirds the theoretical maximum. Products based on alternative solar technologies such as thin film photovoltaic materials may have costs similar to, or lower than, the projected costs of products based on crystalline silicon technology. For example, solar modules produced using thin film materials, such as amorphous silicon and cadmium telluride, are generally less efficient, with conversion efficiencies ranging from 5% to 10%, but require significantly less silicon to produce than crystalline silicon solar modules, such as our products, and are less susceptible to increases in silicon costs. For crystalline silicon technology, the solar power industry value chain starts with the processing of quartz sand to produce metallurgical-grade silicon. This material is further purified into high-purity silicon, which along with reclaimable silicon comprises silicon feedstock. This silicon feedstock is then melted and either grown into mono-crystalline ingots or cast into multicrystalline ingots. These silicon ingots are then cut, shaped and sliced into wafers, which are manufactured into solar cells. The solar cells are interconnected to form solar modules, which, together with system components, are distributed by wholesalers and resellers ultimately for on-grid and off-grid systems. Solar modules can also be integrated into other products to power a variety of industrial and consumer applications.
CHALLENGES FACING THE SOLAR POWER INDUSTRY
The solar power industry faces the following key challenges:
• High Cost to Customers. The current cost to implement and operate a solar power system may be economically unattractive to consumers compared to the cost of retail electricity from a utility network. While
government programs and consumer preference have accelerated the use of solar power for on-grid applications, product costs remain one of the impediments to growth. To provide an economically attractive alternative to conventional electricity network power, the solar power industry must continually reduce manufacturing and installation costs and find ways to make the use of solar power cost-efficient over time without government subsidies.
• Broadening Solar Power Usage in Off-Grid Applications. The recent growth of the solar power market has been limited primarily to the ongrid market. Advances in solar power technologies and other consumer electronics technologies that result in the expansion of off-grid applications will be important to promoting market awareness and acceptance of the everyday usefulness of solar power in consumer products. Without increased market awareness and acceptance, sales to end-users may continue to consist substantially of standard solar
modules, which are becoming increasingly commoditized, and the market for specialty solar modules and products, which typically command higher margins, may not expand.
• Intermittent source of power. Photovoltaic systems require sunlight to generate electricity and are less effective in climates of low sunlight and extreme hot and cold temperatures. As a result, photovoltaic systems generally cannot be used as a sole source of electricity and must be combined with a storage solution (such as a battery) or other source of electricity (such as grid electricity or diesel generation) in order to provide a complete solution to the end-user.
