Cheap Solar Power?

Interesting story over at the World Changing blog on a new plastic solar cell that holds out hope of being much cheaper than the current silicon photovoltaic panels ($15/square metre as compared to $800/square metre).

 

However, before we all get too excited, there’s a couple of downsides to be considered – the power generating effiiciency of the new material is much lower (of the order of 0.2% – 5%, as compared to 12% – 15% of conventional panels), and the operational lifetime of the new material is much less (2 years as opposed to 25 years).

 

Nonetheless, it’s a development worth keeping an eye on. For more info on the solar panel industry, the Solarbuzz site is worth looking at, and I can’t resist putting in a plug for my old employer as well.