The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently released its “Solar Photovoltaic Cell/Module Manufacturing Activities 2009” report, and the results demonstrate the rapidly evolving landscape of the U.S. solar PV manufacturing industry. In 2009, the industry reached a record high 1.3 peak gigawatts of shipments, the sixth-consecutive year of growth and a 30% increase from 2008. According to EIA, an influx of stimulus spending and a decrease in manufacturing costs largely contributed to this increase.
Domestic shipments increased 15% over the course of 2009 to 601,133 peak kilowatts, 47% of which went to commercial electricity generation. Installers, at 36% of the domestic market share, were the largest customer type, followed by wholesale distributors at 23%. The solar photovoltaic module/cell market made shipments to all 50 states, with California and New Jersey combining for 55% of all domestic shipments.
At 57%, imports accounted for more than half of total shipments for the third time in four years. The importation of 743,414 peak kilowatts, 95% of which were crystalline silicon cells and modules, represented a 27% increase from 2008. China (31.75%), Philippines (28.68%), and Mexico (17.83%) were the top importers. Japan had the furthest decline in U.S. imports, falling from 24.85% of total imports in 2008 to 11.32% in 2009.
Although import shipments constituted greater than half of total shipments in 2009, export numbers actually increased 47% from 2008. Buoyed by crystalline silicon cells and modules, exports surpassed domestic shipments for the first time since 2004. Germany dominated the U.S. solar industry export market in 2009 with 45.37% of total exports, followed by Italy (15.88%) and France (6.94%).
The focus on innovation in Obama’s State of the Union marks a new high point for clean energy R&D advocacy. In the coming months, politicians and policy makers will likely align around proposals to encourage everything from basic research to putting solar panels on our roofs and hybrids in our garages. It is easy, in such an environment, to forget the barren stretch of time between the oil crisis induced renewable energy craze of the 1970s and the present day. During this time, funding dried up, programs were cut, and renewable energy research and deployment was forced to go abroad or wither in an apathetic United States.
Community solar is a concept that has lots of cheerleaders. And what’s not to love? At it’s best, this market-based deployment strategy can expand access to clean energy, create jobs, spur local investment, and help drive down the cost of solar panels.
For proponents of clean energy technology, the holy grail is to reach price parity with conventional power sources such as coal. For photovoltaics, this tipping point is generally regarded as a dollar per watt ($1/Wp), a measure that indicates the generation capacity of a cell in peak sunlight. At this point the stage will be set for a massive explosion in the number of solar panels being installed and sold – a situation eagerly anticipated by the PV industry and environmentalists alike.
