SEAI: Irish Organisations Could Significantly Benefit From Solar Sector
Irish organisations could capture over €200 million annually of the solar PV market, due to research and industry strengths which can be deployed in the sector, according to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) which published the "Ireland's Solar Value Chain Opportunity" report.
Solar PV is set to become one of the most important and fastest growing energy technologies. The cost of solar panels has dropped by 80 percent since 2009. In the same period, solar PV has become the fastest growing power generation technology worldwide.
Commenting on the analysis at the opening of the Energy Show in the RDS, SEAI Chief Executive Jim Gannon said:
"The market is beginning to grow in Ireland with over 4,000 homes already opting for solar PV as the most cost effective way to meet building regulations. As system costs have come down, Ireland has also seen an increase in the uptake of solar PV on commercial and public sector rooftops as a means of lowering energy bills. Against the backdrop of the recently published draft "˜National Mitigation Plan', renewable technologies such as solar PV have an important role in reducing our reliance on imported fossil fuels, and PV is one of the technologies being examined in the context of a future renewable electricity support scheme."
Gannon concluded: "Rather than being a "˜technology taker' Ireland can actually exploit its existing strengths in energy research and industry to capture greater value as this market grows. There are already great examples of successful Irish companies in the global solar value chain. We need to build on this and grow our export potential. For example we can target research funding into materials; process engineering; building materials with integrated solar PV; and smart grid products."
The full report "Ireland's Solar Value Chain Opportunity" builds on a previous publication from SEAI "˜Ireland's Sustainable Energy Supply Chain Opportunity'.
