China eating our lunch in solar-panel marketplace

Over the past year, President Barack Obama has suggested that adopting solar power and other green technologies not only could help the United States improve the environment but also revitalize our manufacturing sector, which has been hard hit by competition from abroad.

“We can remain the world's leading importer of foreign oil or we can become the world's leading exporter of renewable energy,” Obama said in the spring. “We can hand over the jobs of the 21st century to our competitors, or we can create those jobs right here in America.”

The administration's move toward renewable energy – backed by billions of dollars in stimulus spending – was viewed as particularly good news in sunny San Diego County. Thanks to our long days of sunshine – earning us a ranking in the top 40 sunniest cities in the nation – we've been one of the country's hottest markets for solar technology.

But the idea that we can re-industrialize the country through solar panels has a hurdle that should have been foreseen: China.

With its low labor costs, relatively low environmental standards and – more recently – stimulus spending, China is shaping up to be the “world's leading exporter of renewable energy,” continuing its prowess as the globe's chief manufacturing center.

“I've seen quite a lot more Chinese manufacturers coming into the marketplace,” said Dan Sullivan, head of Sullivan Solar Panels in Mira Mesa. “It's somewhat disconcerting, since we've had a profound opportunity to capture this market and create more American manufacturing jobs.”

Although there are a number of strong solar-panel makers in the United States, Japan and Europe, China is taking center stage.

Within the past few months, China's Suntech has nearly overtaken Q-Cells of Germany as the world's second-largest producer of photovoltaic cells, putting it behind Arizona's First Solar, a partner in many of Sempra Energy's solar projects. A number of smaller Chinese companies also are taking a chunk of the solar business.

“The Chinese are flooding the market,” said Junaid Qazi, chief executive of Clary Solar in Sorrento Valley.

The speed with which China has gained a lead position in the market begs the question of whether the United States can ever regain its manufacturing edge. The moment we make a stab at producing a new technology – whether it's microchips, computers, electronic toys or, now, solar panels – it's only a matter of time before production shifts overseas.

Longtime China critic Peter Morici, an economist at the University of Maryland and former chief economist of the U.S. International Trade Commission, pins the blame on the Obama administration, which he says has failed to push China to reform its trade practices.

“It's absolutely disgraceful that Obama is going around the world saying we will not resort to protectionist measures against China when they're stealing the solar-panel business out from under us,” Morici said.

Morici noted that China's protectionist measures include a requirement that 75 percent of the content of government-purchased solar panels be Chinese-made. The United States has no such requirement.

Of course, China has long been able to capture U.S. market share, partly because of the artificially low value of its currency, which allows it to undercut U.S. and European labor and production costs, as well as its relatively low environmental standards. Its solar-panel makers don't need to go to the same lengths to dispose of their toxic waste – and a lot of toxins are used in photovoltaic construction.

In addition to those cost advantages, the Chinese drive toward dominance in solar has recently followed the U.S. playbook. As in the United States, the Chinese economy suffered badly in the recession. Large numbers of factories closed, pushing unemployment higher. To rev up the economy, the Chinese have devoted the equivalent of 3 percent of their gross domestic product to stimulus spending, compared with 2 percent in the United States.

As with our stimulus program, much of Beijing's money has been spent on heavy-duty infrastructure projects, such as roads and dams. But a large portion is being spent on alternative energy. Like the United States, China sees solar power as a way of cutting its reliance on fossil fuels and creating a new manufacturing base.

“China has a lot of government policies to protect solar power, both through direct financing by the state as well as encouraging to install solar panels in national and provincial government buildings,” said Nathaniel Bullard, a solar analyst for New Energy Finance, an international venture-capital fund.

The most lucrative market is overseas, where China's exports of solar panels are making up for recent declines in its foreign sales of other consumer goods. At Suntech, almost 98 percent of production is sold overseas.

Some San Diego County solar panel installers say there are drawbacks to buying from China.

“I've tried a few Chinese products, but I've moved away from them,” Qazi said. “Quality is one question, and they don't seem to have an emphasis on building strong customer relationships. Right now, I'm getting most of my panels from U.S. manufacturers instead.”

But Bullard said there's no difference between a major Chinese company like Suntech and its competitors abroad.

The low cost of Chinese solar panels makes it easier for Americans to buy them. That creates more business for solar installers. Sullivan estimates that around 1,000 installers are working in San Diego County.

Although the recession has cut into some solar-panel sales, business is rebounding because of federal stimulus spending. Some of the federal jobs up for bid are for solar panels at the Navy facilities in Coronado and Point Loma.

The White House and Congress have inserted some protections for the solar industry into their stimulus packages. For instance, stimulus money is barred from being used to buy certain construction materials, including solar panels, from countries that haven't signed a World Trade Organization pact requiring governments to open up their procurement procedures. China hasn't signed the pact.

That requirement has led at least two of China's solar-panel producers – Suntech and Yingli Solar – to contemplate opening U.S. assembly plants, according to The New York Times.

If they pursue that path, it would be similar to what Japanese companies such as Sony and Sanyo solar panel did in San Diego and other cities in the 1990s, establishing U.S. plants at a time when Japan was being criticized over its trade policies.

But even if Chinese factory openings in the United States assuage some ruffled feathers, it would do little to even the playing field between America and other low-cost areas, whether China, Mexico, Malaysia or the Philippines. If Obama really wants to build a 21st-century work force, he has to find ways of solving the pernicious effects of artificially low currencies, weak labor standards and lax environmental laws.

Solar Energy for Home

On a worldwide scale global warming is largely caused by the pollutants and emissions released by the burning of fossil fuels. This includes all the traditional sources of energy like wood, coal and oil. Each individual person contributes to this effect and is known as your carbon footprint. Making good use of renewable solar power energy will go a long way towards reducing the size and impact of your carbon footprint and of course the environment benefits from each individual that installs home solar energy in their homes with huge benefits.

Reducing the demand for this electricity will save the home owners money and the initial costs are not that massive if you employ a do it yourself approach. The costs involved with using solar electricity are the costs of the technology needed to harness this energy in a usable form. After the initial investment, a home solar energy system is relatively maintenance free another bonus for the home owner which means more money is saved. The sun is pretty much guaranteed to be with us for a long time so solar power energy is going to be a free renewable source of power.

The price can run into the thousands if you plan on a professional to install and even the most environmentally friendly individual the costs could be too high and requires good funding. Consequently, many home owners are benefiting by building do it yourself solar power panels and electrical generating systems for their home. These days, it's simple to find the information you require to make a small solar panel yourself.

You cannot depend on one small solar panel for powering your entire home, but it will supply enough power for smaller appliances. To reduce or even eliminate your dependence on the power company you simply make and add more solar panels until your household load demand is meet and there after the excess power is bought back from you by the power company. The home owners now find themselves in a position whether to engage professionals to install solar power panels [solar array] or do it yourself method which of course is a massive savings and looks and performs the same as the professional installation.

Yes, you may slash or even eliminate your electricity's bill by using the free solar and wind energy around us to generate your own solar power. Save thousands by using an easy step-by-step guide to build your own solar and wind powered generators. It is absolutely amazing how simple it really is to design and build a residential solar power system on your own. Thanks to the production of many solar components by larger electronics companies, it is now cheaper to buy and build your own solar panels, rather than purchasing professionally designed and installed solar panel systems

There are many packages and kits on the market that gives the do it yourself person the required information. Care has to taken when you choosing which solar package to purchase as some dish out rubbish and has no value at all but give you local data that cannot help you to install the solar panels. The package should give information, blue prints with full illustrated easy to follow step by step instructions on where and how to find the material to make a small solar panel and explain the best places to purchase cheap batteries [deep cycle] for storing the solar electricity.

You are going to be guided in such a manner that you will find things very clear, easy to understand. Affordable $200 price tag would easy cover the purchase of the solar package and material to make a small solar panel and have change left over for dinner. Within a couple of weeks you will have create your own renewable energy power system by designing and building you own homemade solar power panels.

Be careful when selecting which package or guides to purchase and make sure which one contains the information you require to make your solar panels and build your own wind powered generators.

Suntech To Lead Solar Panel Production

Suntech To Lead Solar Panel Production


According to iSuppli's PV Cell and Module Production Tracker report, Suntech will topple Q-Cells to become the world's leading producer of crystalline cells for solar panels in 2009.

iSuppli also predicts Sharp, Yingli and JA Solar will retain their top 5 slots positions during 2009 by not reducing their solar-cell production.

While production may be increased by the big players, another challenge for the industry is emerging - a solar panel glut. While this could be good news for consumers in terms of cheaper prices, some of the smaller solar panel makers may be forced out of the market.

iSuppli says that solar panel production in 2009 will grow by 14.3 percent to 7.5 Gigawatts (GW), an increase of 1GW in 2008. However, only 3.9 GW in installations will take place this year, meaning nearly half of all solar panels produced in 2009 will remain in inventory.

The report states solar panels are set to remain in a state of oversupply until 2012, but from that point onwards, rapidly growing demand for PV-based installations will be able to absorb global panel production and inventory.

iSuppli's outlook is quite different to another report recently released. Navigant Consulting's analysis of worldwide PV markets and five-year application forecast says solar panel inventory levels may ease towards the end of 2009 and the market see the beginning of recovery.

Solar-Panel Thieves Hit Home, Business

Please mind your solar panel at home

Solar-Panel Thieves Hit Home, Business
Granite Bay Couple Loses 16 Of 20 Panels To Thieves

ROCKLIN, Calif. -- If you hear someone on your roof, don't think it's Santa visiting for Christmas in July: Police warn that thieves are stealing solar panels right off some buildings, including homes.

Helma Hofmeister of Granite Bay woke up a week ago to find someone had taken 16 of her 20 solar panels from her yard while she and her husband slept not 80 feet away.

"The lowest piece of scum to do that to people, it is. I'm sorry if it sounds rude," Hofmeister said. "You have no business stealing what other people work for."

The couple, on a fixed income, was still paying off the $25,000 bill for the panels.

Thefts have spread to an office complex in Rocklin, specifically, the dental office. The loss was estimated at about $60,000.

Investigators believe the cases are linked.

"About the only thing we can think of is that they're using the solar panels to use in their own businesses, their own residence or to actually sell them online, or possibly mixing them in with new solar panels that are being sold," Rocklin police Lt. Lon Milka said.

Police are planning to scour sites such as Craigslist and eBay for solar panels for sale -- all panels have serial numbers.

Investigators said it's a narrow group of people who might be stealing them.

"You have to know what to do with solar panels -- how to hook them up, how to hook up the converter box. I think there is a certain amount of expertise that has to be followed," Milka said.

Police warn potential buyers, meanwhile, to only purchase solar panels from licensed dealers.