Solar thermal energy showing bright prospects in China, says report
Jackie Chang, DIGITIMES, Taipei [Wednesday 14 December 2011] 
As the solar PV industry faces increasing challenges, China is looking at alternatives from solar thermal technologies. According to China media outlet Newenergy, technologies of solar thermal energy have been maturing quite rapidly. The expansion of the solar thermal energy sector has been relying on the commercialization of water heating systems in rural villages in China. Currently, the commercialization rate has been low meaning there is still room for growth. Also, the government has been promoting installations of solar thermal energy heating systems in places such as schools, hospitals, and hotels.
The report further states that compared with the solar thermal energy sector, the solar PV industry has been facing challenges such as the relatively high cost of generating electricity compared to the traditional ways of electricity generation. Hence, the industry needs subsidies from governments for the market to expand. The subsidies are easily swayed by the global economy causing large fluctuations in the solar market. Currently, the oversupply problem in China's solar PV industry is severe. And the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy probe taken up by the US government against China-based solar firms means the challenges will continue to hit China's solar PV industry.
According to Digitimes Research, as China's demand for energy increases due to economic developments, concerns about lack of energy and over-reliance on fossil fuels has been growing. Hence in the 12th Five-Year Plan, China hopes to increase the percentage of energy generated from non-fossil fuel sources to 11.4% in 2015. The eagerness for China to explore renewable energy sources is quite apparent. This eagerness is likely to help the expansion of the solar thermal market while the solar PV industry faces international pressures. |
