For attendees at last week’s MEPTEC Semiconductor to Solar Conference (www.meptec.org), there were numerous opportunities for new companies, start-ups and semiconductor companies looking to make the leap into the solar-PV industry. Pitfalls exist in this market (nothing new there), but the consumer demand for new energy sources make PV-solar technology rich with opportunities and opportunities that can make your company rich.
There’s a Mary Engelbreit illustration captioned with a saying that goes something like, “Opportunity doesn’t knock; it’s waiting when you open the door.” The concept behind the saying is golden for those with the mind of an innovator and the heart of an entrepreneur. Opportunity doesn’t only knock, sometimes it sits and waits for someone to grab it.
For attendees at last week’s MEPTEC Semiconductor to Solar Conference (www.meptec.org), there were numerous opportunities for new companies, start-ups and semiconductor companies looking to make the leap into the solar-PV industry. Every speaker on the agenda outlined opportunities based on industry needs as they’ve experienced them. It wasn’t pie-in-the-sky hype, but thoughtful, objective insight into a market that Kyocera keynote speaker Steve Hill termed, “the oldest newest market around.” The bottom line to each presentation was this: Pitfalls exist in this market (nothing new there), but the consumer demand for new energy sources make PV-solar technology rich with opportunities and opportunities that can make your company rich.
Showing a graph taken from National Geographic Magazine (www.nationalgeographic.com) [although I couldn’t find this chart in my issue], David Hochschild of Solaria pointed out the sun’s potential to dominate power generation with an estimated 470,278 TWh, but it only accounts for 0.02% of energy sources today.
Keynote speaker, Steve Hill, president of Kyocera Solar Inc., framed the day’s discussion by addressing key factors for market growth:
- Cell/module efficiency gains
- Manufacturing cost reduction
- Installed cost reduction
- Test/certification
- Next-generation technology
Mr. Hill noted that companies are consistently pulling in costs and improving efficiencies as part of their business model; that the semiconductor industry has the knowhow to help the solar-PV market improve test/certification standards; and that the recession took a bite out of venture capital infusions, but that this scenario will change because people essentially want renewable energy sources. Mr. Hill pointed out opportunities for solar technology, such as the new Toyota Prius with their solar panel roofs. He also noted that Kyocera is the sole supplier of the technology, but that this was just the start of integrating solar technology into consumer applications.
Although the solar industry is “immature” from a technology perspective, Mr. Hill stated that there are immense business opportunities for people who can accomplish tasks in a structured, disciplined manner; that system quality, reliability and efficiency must be improved; and that test and certification methods needed to be addressed to help products become certified and enter the market more quickly than today’s pace. The semiconductor industry has 40-plus years of experience in every one of those areas, and expertise in implementing those requirements probably better than any other industry I know of.
Besides showing solar technologies utilized in buildings today, Mr. Hill showed many off-grid applications where solar is the only means of bringing electricity to some poorer countries. The most novel one was a solar-powered refrigerator being transported by a camel. Shaded by a solar panel that was suspended above the camel’s head, the animal marched stolidly across the arid landscape with the powered refrigerator bobbing off its side. Contents? Medicines for a traveling physician.
Some soundbites that I thought were most intriguing from the day-long event:
1) INCENTIVES ARE NECESSARY. USA federal incentives have been key in jumpstarting the solar industry and will remain important if the industry is to grow. The incentives help innovative companies reduce the cost of PV energy and enable them to improve efficiencies of the technology.
2) SUPPLY CHAIN EFFICIENCY. Efficiency must be improved throughout the entire supply chain, production, standards, etc. Here’s where the semiconductor industry shines.
3) LEARNING = SUCCESS. The PV learning curve must be accelerated in order for PV-solar to become a competitive renewable energy source.
4) COLLABORATION NECESSARY. SEMI (www.semi.org) spokesperson, Bettina Weiss, highlighted the need for collaboration and SEMI’s accomplishments in building an international infrastructure. IMEC mirrored the collaboration concept in terms of R&D.
5) FRAGMENTED MARKETS. Jim Hines of Gartner research (www.gartner.com) reminded attendees that the USA is not one market, but rather a nation of state markets, each running at its own pace.
6) POLICY OVERRULES SUNSHINE. Building on Jim’s point, David Hochschild of Solaria (www.solaria.com) said that leadership in the US solar market is not relative to the amount of sunshine in a state but by the policies of the state; thus, the reason for New Jersey’s second place in this country’s solar market.
7) DEFINE “GREEN”. Mike Silverman of Ops a La Carte (www.opsalacarte.com) told the audience to define “green” if we want clean technologies to succeed. Don’t get bogged down debating global warming. Instead, focus on filling the need for energy and fill it.
There’s not enough space here to list all the business opportunities for semiconductor veterans and/or their companies, but the opportunities are there. The USA can lead in this area. The only question is whether the USA will open the door and grab them or leave them on the doorstep for someone else to claim.
You can get more information from MEPTEC president Bette Cooper at info@meptec.org, or by phoning +1 650 714 1570.--
Barbara Kalkis, Maestro Marketing & PR (sm). -ends-
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