Future the sun, future bright, future solar, future is orange

All the solar power industry needs is a few smart incentives.

The country Germany now has over half the world’s installed capacity photovoltaic cells and is the home to some of the largest solar cell manufacturers in short; it is the solar-powered capital of the world.

Germany is a technological powerhouse and has contributed largely to improving the efficiency of solar cells, but that’s only part of the story. The secret is political intervention. In 2004, copying a Japanese idea, the German government brought in the first large-scaled “feed-in” tariff system. This assured all producers of solar farm or home-owner, that they can sell large amount of power back to the grid at a premium which is guaranteed until 2024.

This incentive ignited Germany’s solar industry and pushed the country forward to its world leading position. Solar power made economic sense to consumers. As demand increased, so did manufacturing output. In just two years, Germany installed capacity nearly doubled and about 300,000 small businesses and the public set up photovoltaic systems on their roofs. Germany now has 3 giga-watts of solar capacity, equivalent to the output of at least three large fossil fuelled power stations.

Following behind Germany, 20 countries - and California - have introduced feed tariffs. Those countries left way behind, which include UK and Australia, are missing out on improving the environment, but also a commercial oportunity too. If proof were needed that green technology can be a money – spinner, Germany is living proof of this. Germany has shown with carefully targeted pump-priming money, it can stimulate industrial expansion and vanquish the cost bogeyman. It seems the cost of photovoltaic cells falls by one-fifth every time manufacturing capacity doubles. With the price of oil high, the fossil fuel power destined to ascend as Europe’s carbon-trading scheme begins to bite, and as demand for solar power rises, Germany is set for a bright solar future. This sort of bold, creative thinking is just what the world needs if it is to defeat climate change.