Solar Power Cost Reduction

While the hardcore opponents of solar power can be considered generally suspect as far as their motivations, there are several issues that are still under development which will bring solar power production methods more into the mainstream.  There is been a far more widespread adoption of solar power as the primary production method in Europe than in the United States, probably because of more cultural aspects and a personal feeling of connection to the environment by the population. In the United States, we have found that public support for solar power generally falls into the hands of those who are environmentally conscious, with all others making their decisions based on mere  monetary concerns in mind.  Simply put, the general population in America does not want to pay more for a product that can be produced in a cheaper manner.  Even if evidence mounts that there is damage being done to the environment as a result of burning fossil fuels, the public still does not see this as a good enough reason to switch over to a more expensive method of production.  For this reason, the advancement of the solar power industry falls to the private sector, and the development of technology which will ultimately drive the costs down below that of fossil fuel production.  By making solar power both cleaner and cheaper, we will see the call for more widespread adoption and replacement of existing systems with solar power production.

The main issues with regard to cost are solved through production volume and the protection of equipment from damaging events like power surges.  Solar panels are generally isolated in regions that do not have taller structures, thus making them primary targets for lightning strikes.  The replacement of the solar panels that have been struck by lightning has grown easier and cheaper with the development of better panels and more efficient field replacement techniques.  But the subsequent power surge that is produced by the lightning strike also brings with it damage to the control equipment in the process.  These electrical surges travel on the power or connectivity lines that connect the solar panels to the control equipment and can easily overwhelm and damage it at the circuitry level.  Once this equipment is damaged and systems are offline, the expenses associated with this type of production begins to mount.  Each hour that the sun is available that a solar panel and its equipment is not producing electricity will factor into the capacities that can be relied upon by the public.  The restoration of that system to functionality will involve repair and replacement to the equipment and panel, as well as the restoration to functionality of any surge protection equipment along those lines.  Through the development of more technologically advanced PV surge protection equipment, and primarily because of the development of an “always on” Strikesorb SPD by Raycap, we see that production times can be extended and equipment life spans can be lengthened.  Through the integration of these specialized surge protection devices, we can eventually expect the costs of solar power production to be reduced far enough to make them not only viable but more desired.