Doug Korthof

A Rustbelt Revival: From Doom to Boom

Now if the "stupid 3" would just start making plug-in Electric cars to USE the solar power, it would be a real revival.

Instead, they are still stuck on the dead-end of "fuel cells are the future" and the "hydrogen hype". GM is still refusing to allow volunteer engineers from restoring museum-gutted EV1, and GM is still refusing to resume production of plug-in Electric cars.

Three Reasons Solar Sell-off May Be in Early Innings

Curious, because oil and electric have an oblique, almost non-existent relationship.

Almost NONE of our electric is generated by oil! Only on Puerto Rico, Hawaii and Catalina Isl. does oil have anything to do with generating electric.

The only relation is that extraction and refining oil takes a LOT of electric power; but that should only increase the price of electric, and make going solar even more attractive.

Hint: oil drilliing does not result in lower interest in solar, except in the ignorant!

Game Changer in Solar Energy: PG&E Inks Deal

Wayfarer,
Thanks for catching this; we might assume they are talking about some new technology, but on reflection, I think you're right, it's just a misprint.
Sunpower is the most efficient COMMERCIAL panel, at 22%, due to its p-junction technology.

Thin film is much less efficient and operates at much lower voltage, meaning thicker copper wires. Copper is now a significant expense.

Game Changer in Solar Energy: PG&E Inks Deal

The BIG advantage of solar has nothing to do with kWh!

The issue is PEAK power, measured in kW!

Solar lowers the daytime peak -- the only time when we are anywhere near running out of electric. California has 52,000 mW available; our demand has never risen that high (of course), even in blackouts or brownouts.

Solar power is a natural "peaker" unit, coming on when electric is needed most. At night, there's too much electric, big generators are shut down to "warm start", an expensive and dirty process.

So each 1 mW of CAPACITY is worth much more than the off-peak kWh.

Peak electric, according to the latest Cost of Generation Study (COGS) is about 42 cents per kWh, while off-peak is pretty much FREE (excess electric sent to California via the Western States DC Power Grid is used to pump water up Lake Castaic; the next day, during peak periods, the 6 pumps turn into generators. Even with losses, it's much cheaper to "store" this off-peak than it is to produce peak power).