July 2, 2012: New Research at Stanford University Finds Bright Future for Solar Power
STANFORD, Calif. — There has not been agreement as to whether solar photovoltaic (PV) power makes sense from an economic point of view. According to a new study from Stanford University specifically looking at the economics, grid parity has now been achieved for large commercial-scale installations.
“The Prospects for Cost-Competitive Solar PV Power,” is a new working paper by Stefan Reichelstein, William R. Timken professor of accounting at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and Michael Yorston, graduate student in the Department of Management Science and Engineering at Stanford University. Their paper examines the life-cycle cost of electricity generated by solar PV, paying particular attention to key factors such as location, public subsidies, and the long-term learning effects in manufacturing solar panels.