More News on Cheaper Solar Electricity

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Yet Cheaper PhotoVoltic Cells from China
90 cent per watt!!!

Suntech Power Holdings, a Chinese manufacturer of photovoltaic cells, recently announced the first phase of the new plant, expected to start production in 2008 and achieve 50MegaWatts worth of thin film solar cell production in 2009.

The new product will use less than 2% of the silicon required to manufacture similar solar cells. Suntech currently projects that the thin film modules will have a solar conversion efficiency of 6% to 9% (this is fairly low efficiency - some companies have achieved up to 45%) and an initial production cost of approximately just $1.20 per watt (based on 6% solar conversion efficiency), this cost is forecasted to decline as production expands and conversion efficiencies increase.

That cost of $1.20 per watt or roughly 90 cent per watt would work out at €1800 for 2Kilo Watts of solar cells, or €4500 for 5 Kilo Watts of cells. Control gear etc would cost more. That is really cheap and the cost is set to drop even more.

The thin film modules will be nearly 6 square meters in size, which would make system installation costs of the Suntech cells much cheaper.

Hang-on in there - this renewable energy stuff is getting cheaper!!!





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