The Cold Hard Truth About Solar Energy

The cold hard truth about solar energy is that it is not economically viable, except in specialized, limited and usually subsidized applications.  This is despite having Billions of tax-payer dollars fed into the bottomless pit of corrupt science (man-caused global warming) incompetent governments and crony capitalism (Solyndra).  So now British Petroleum (BP) has seen the light, figuratively speaking and they're pulling the plug on their solar energy efforts.  I could say I told you so.
Peter

BP shutting solar unit as industry struggles


3:13 pm ET 12/21/2011 - MarketWatch Databased News

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- After prominently featuring solar panels in its brand advertisements and at some of its gas stations, BP PLC is planning to shutter its BP Solar operation, according to reports on Wednesday.



BP PLC said global economic challenges have impacted the solar industry, making it difficult to sustain long term returns, according to an internal BP email cited by press reports. The move will affect 100 jobs.



BP, which has been in the solar business for decades, had featured solar panels prominently in its Beyond Petroleum advertising campaign.





BP said the solar business, which has been flooded by excess supply from China, has become commoditized.



A phone call and email to BP by MarketWatch was not immediately returned. BP will hold on to other alternative energy businesses, including wind.



BP inked a supply contract with JA Solar in 2010 as it started scaling back its own solar panel factories and trimming jobs.



Sam Wilkinson, senior market analyst of IMS Research said BP's decision comes as global photovoltaic module manufacturing capacity reaches 50 gigawatts, while demand is expected to total only 24 gigawatts this year. Average prices are now 44% lower than they were one year ago.



"Rapid manufacturing expansions have coincided with a slowdown in the growth of global demand," Wilkinson said in a statement emailed to MarketWatch. "The result has been intense competition and a fierce price war, and not enough demand to support all of the industry's hundreds of suppliers."



The move comes just days after First Solar, the only pure-play solar panel maker in the S&P 500 , issued a profit warning for 2012 and said it'll refocus its business toward large-scale utility projects, rather than residential solar panels. See: First Solar falls to lowest level since 2007.

The Vultures Begin To Gather

They say sharks can sense blood in the water at great distances, indicating probable crippled and easy prey. It seems lawyers and law firms react the same way to oil in the water. The following response to the recent oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico is illustrative of the motivation behind the legal action......money. The name of the game is make all you can, as fast as you can, economy be damned. Please don't tell us it will help the "environment" in any meaningful way.
Pete

Wednesday, May 5, 2010, 1:04pm CDT

Dallas lawyers prep for oil spill cases

Dallas Business Journal - by Kerri Panchuk Web Reporter

Law firm Baron & Budd said Wednesday it is pulling together an experienced environmental legal team to prep for lawsuits tied to the Gulf Coast oil spill.

One of their first priorities is getting Congress to review a previously passed legislative act that caps punitive damages in offshore pollution cases to $75 million, according to attorney Burton LeBlanc, a Baron & Budd attorney working the oil spill cases.

LeBlanc said lawsuits have already been filed on behalf of a marina and a group of commercial fishermen working off the Gulf Coast. Attorneys are already looking for ways to push the damages cap above $75 million. LeBlanc said a bill was introduced on the House floor this week to try to lift the damages cap to $10 billion.

The Dallas firm has a three-decade track record that includes claims against one of the chief parties in the Gulf Oil spill case: BP.

LeBlanc said Wednesday, “We are evaluating the spill itself, and the potential damages and economic loss to various constituencies.”

The damages could extend beyond clients who make their living on the water, he said. In addition to fisherman and marinas, he said the firm has also been talking to condo owners, hotels and hospitality outlets.

At this point, he said damage estimates are impossible to assess.

“I am hopeful this cap they are trying to put on the well tomorrow will be effective,” he said. “But right now, it’s spilling oil. I think potentially this could be the most dramatic case in the history of the United States.”

kerripanchuk@bizjournals.com