Solar power to become competitive sans subsidies, says First Solar’s Johan Cilliers

This year solar energy would begin to "stand on its own feet, without government subsidies" as it could now compete globally with conventional power on capital cost alone, S African daily Business Day reported quoting Johan Cilliers, regional director of global photovoltaic solar system provider First Solar, based in Tempe, Arizona.

The share of energy from renewable sources in South Africa's energy mix was increasing, and the government had given the green light to projects from the first "window" of the Department of Energy's Independent Power Producer (IPP) procurement programme, which was expected to supply the country with 3,725MW of power by 2016, the newspaper reports.

Last year more than 1,000 solar companies went bankrupt, but we need more and more energy, Cilliers said yesterday, according to the newspaper.

He added this would be a watershed year, (for solar energy worldwide) in which accounts and projects would be consolidated.

He said this year would be the first year solar (energy) would stand on its own feet without government subsidies because the price had come down heavily with continuous technological improvement.

According to Cilliers, First Solar would submit proposals in the department's third IPP ''window''. The deadline for submitting proposals would be in August.