Development, Deployment and Economics of Solar Power

Beginning with the surge in coal use which accompanied the Industrial Revolution, energy consumption has steadily transitioned from wood and biomass to fossil fuels. The early development of solar technologies starting in the 1860s was driven by an expectation that coal would soon become scarce. However development of solar technologies stagnated in the early 20th century in the face of the increasing availability, economy, and utility of coal and petroleum.

The 1973 oil embargo and 1979 energy crisis caused a reorganization of energy policies around the world and brought renewed attention to developing solar technologies. Deployment strategies focused on incentive programs such as the Federal Photovoltaic Utilization Program in the US and the Sunshine Program in Japan. Other efforts included the formation of research facilities in the US (SERI, now NREL), Japan (NEDO), and Germany (Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy SystemsISE).

Between 1970 and 1983 photovoltaic installations grew rapidly, but falling oil prices in the early 1980s moderated the growth of PV from 1984 to 1996. Photovoltaic production growth has averaged 40% per year since 2000 and installed capacity reached 10.6 GW at the end of 2007, and 14.73 GW in 2008. Since 2006 it has been economical for investors to install photovoltaics for free in return for a long term power purchase agreement. 50% of commercial systems were installed in this manner in 2007 and it is expected that 90% will by 2009. NellisAir Force Base is receiving photoelectric power for about 2.2 ¢/kWh and grid power for 9 ¢/kWh.

Commercial concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) plantswere first developed in the 1980s. CSP plants such as SEGS project in the United States have a levelized energy cost (LEC) of 12–14 ¢/kWh. The 11 MW PS10 power tower in Spain, completed in late 2005, is Europe's first commercial CSP system, and a total capacity of 300 MW is expected to be installed in the same area by 2013.

In August 2009, First Solar announced plans to build a 2 GW photovoltaic system in Ordos City, Inner Mongolia, China in four phases consisting of 30 MW in 2010, 970 MW in 2014, and another 1000 MW by 2019. As of June 9, 2009, there is a new solar thermal power station being built in the Banaskantha district in North Gujarat. Once completed, it will be the largest solar power plant in the world.

CAPACITY (MW)	TECHNOLOGY TYPE	NAME	COUNTRY	LOCATION
354	parabolic trough	Solar Energy Generating Systems	$Description: C:\Users\Admin\Desktop\Size Reduced assets\Size reduced\Powerplant Engg\assets\solar_power\8_files\image002.webp$ USA	Mojave desert California
75	parabolic trough	Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center	$Description: C:\Users\Admin\Desktop\Size Reduced assets\Size reduced\Powerplant Engg\assets\solar_power\8_files\image002.webp$ USA	near Indiantown, Florida
64	parabolic trough	Nevada Solar One	$Description: C:\Users\Admin\Desktop\Size Reduced assets\Size reduced\Powerplant Engg\assets\solar_power\8_files\image002.webp$ USA	Las Vegas, Nevada
50	parabolic trough	Andasol 1	$Description: C:\Users\Admin\Desktop\Size Reduced assets\Size reduced\Powerplant Engg\assets\solar_power\8_files\image004.webp$ Spain	Granada
20	solar power tower	PS20 solar power tower	$Description: C:\Users\Admin\Desktop\Size Reduced assets\Size reduced\Powerplant Engg\assets\solar_power\8_files\image004.webp$ Spain	Seville
11	solar power tower	PS10 solar power tower	$Description: C:\Users\Admin\Desktop\Size Reduced assets\Size reduced\Powerplant Engg\assets\solar_power\8_files\image004.webp$ Spain	Seville

Solar power plant installations in recent years have also begun to expand into residential areas, with governments offering incentive programs to make "green" energy a more economically viable option. In Ontario, Canada, the Green Energy Act passed in 2009 created a feed-in-tariff program that pays up to 80.2¢/kWh to solar PV energy producers, guaranteed for 20 years. The amount scales up based on the size of the project, with projects under 10KW receiving the highest rate. (People participating in a previous Ontario program called RESOP (Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program), introduced in 2006, and paying a maximum of 42¢/kWh, were allowed to transfer the balance of their contracts to the new FIT program. The program is designed to help promote the government's green agenda and lower the strain often placed on the energy grid at peak hours. In March, 2009 the proposed FIT was increased to 80¢/kWh for small, roof-top systems (≤10 kW).

NAME OF PV POWER PLANT	COUNTRY	DC PEAK POWER (MW)	GW·H /YEAR	CAPACITY FACTOR
Olmedilla Photovoltaic Park	Spain	60	85	0.16
Strasskirchen Solar Park	Germany	54	57
Lieberose Photovoltaic Park	Germany	53	53	0.11	2009
Puertollano Photovoltaic Park	Spain	50			2008
Moura photovoltaic power station ^[68]	Portugal	46	93	0.16	Completed December 2008
Kothen Solar Park	Germany	45			2009
Finsterwalde Solar Park	Germany	42			2009
Waldpolenz Solar Park^[69][70]	Germany	40	40	0.11	550,000 First Solar thin-film CdTemodules. Completed December 2008
Planta Solar LaMagascona & LaMagasquila	Spain	34.5
Arnedo Solar Plant	Spain	34			Completed October 2008
Planta Solar Dulcinea	Spain	31.8			Completed 2009
Merida/Don Alvaro Solar Park	Spain	30			Completed September 2008
Planta Solar Ose de la Vega	Spain	30
Planta Fotovoltaico Casas de Los Pinos	Spain	28
Planta Solar Fuente Alamo	Spain	26	44
DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center^[71][72]	USA	25	40		SunPower. President Obama visited October 27, 2009. Completed October 2009

Financial incentives supporting installation of solar power generation are aimed at increasing demand for solar photovoltaics such that they can become competitive with conventional methods of energy production. Another innovative way to increase demand is to harness the green purchasing power of academic institutions (universities and colleges). This has been shown to be potentially influential in catalyzing a positive spiral-effect in renewables globally.