Often, we hear talking heads and political thespians, activist mouthpieces, and the usual parade of media 'talkers' explaining why solar power just isn't 'economically viable.' When asked why, they almost always resort to the 'quote' high cost of solar 'unquote.'
But this answer is not only completely illogical, it is also patently incorrect.
Finally, an actual survey of the available information surfaces that gives us a real idea of why the US can't seem to get it's solar act together.... and - as any cynic such as myself could have told you... it's about profit - revenue streams - and the massively damaging paradigm that business aims should be to prefer "making a killing" instead of being content with "making a living."
In true 'establishment' style, the attached report from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory was massaged into a less of a criticism of the 'business paradigm' than it really is... but when facts are presented, we can see the narrative change for what it is.
In the end it is the perennial presence of allowing business to explain their 'price' as if it had anything to do with the cost.... as if their ridiculous 'profit margin' were somehow 'an entitlement.'
German installers spend seven cents per watt of installed capacity on things like marketing and designing systems for specific customers. U.S. installers spend 10 times that amount.
The first 'layer' of added "cost" - paying a middlemen to "market" the product.
Costs for permitting, connecting the systems to the grid, and having them inspected are also far higher in the United States. The Germans spent only three cents a watt on these things, while U.S. installers spend 20 cents, in part because of larger amounts of paperwork and the fact that U.S. installers have to pay permitting fees.
And of course, wherever there are opportunities for the government to influence the price... the US and State governments demand at least six (6) times as much to "connect to the grid." Why would that be so? Why would "paperwork" be deemed an adequate excuse to hamstring the most logical alternative to maintaining the energy cartel's monopoly on "metered" energy?
One (such as myself) might wonder if the influence of the energy cartel doesn't have some input into this... but then, since most of the relevant government policy-makers come from the industry itself (and eventually return there) - perhaps that's not such a remote possibility.
U.S. installers also spend more on labor during actual installation (in some cases, higher winds force more expensive installations). They pay more in sales tax (German installers are exempt). And they pay more for overhead (which is closely related to economies of scale).
Hmmm.... well, interestingly, they mention labor costs in the accompanying article ..... but not the specifics.... I sense another political idea entrenched herein... but let's leave that for another conversation.... Obviously - however, it must be no dis-incentive to be exempt from sales tax for this kind of initiative... here in the US that cost is just massaged through and passed on to the consumer... go figure.
The author of this article cites the "cost" (ahem) of solar panels to be around $1.35 per watt - which the "u.S. market" translates to $6.21 per watt..... better than quadrupling the price - for all the middlemen who must be "served."
www.technologyreview.com
(visit the link for the full news article)
edit on 26-12-2012 by Maxmars because: (no reason given)
edit on 26-12-2012 by
Maxmars because: (no reason given)
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