One of the obstacles to moving forward with solar energy use for homes, individuals and businesses has been the high cost of solar energy systems, which make them impractical for many.
A new grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to
Dow Solar aims to change that, by giving the Midland-based solar company $12.8 million over the next three years, to fund a program with the goal of reducing the cost of building solar products.
The idea is to make solar power a viable alternate energy source for the nation’s power needs, and help make the adoption of solar energy tech widespread more quickly. The program includes contributions from businesses and leaders working on all different parts of the solar energy industry, like national laboratories, universities, electronics companies, home builders, and solar solutions providers. Together, they aim to reduce installation costs and provide reliable solar energy to residential customers.
"We are confident that the Department of Energy’s support of our proposal to use a holistic approach targeting all key points along the solar energy value chain will enable transformational system cost reduction for (integrated solar systems). This program has the potential to make renewable solar energy much more cost effective and significantly increase adoption rates," says Dave Parrillo, director of R&D for Dow Solar.
Some of the partners Dow Solar will be working with are Alta Devices, Inc., DR Horton, Inc., Purdue University, Underwriters Laboratories, Inc., Phobos Energy, Emerson Network Power, The Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering, ConSol, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, The National Roofing Contractors Association and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
The target goal for the initiative, set by the Department of Energy, is to bring the cost of using solar energy down to $2 per week per customer, without subsidies, which makes solar tech affordable to almost all U.S. residential consumers, who generally pay at least that for their energy bills.
Writer: Sam Eggleston
Source: Dave Parillo, Dow Solar
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.