NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.

Solar PV Manufacturing Cost Analysis: 

U.S. Competitiveness in a Global Industry

Stanford University: Precourt Institute for Energy

Alan Goodrich†, Ted James†, and Michael Woodhouse

October 10, 2011

†Corresponding authors: alan.goodrich@nrel.gov, ted.james@nrel.gov

NREL/PR-6A20-53938
2 

Analysis Disclaimer

DISCLAIMER AGREEMENT

 

These manufacturing cost model results (“Data”) are provided by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (“NREL”), which is 

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It is recognized that disclosure of these Data is provided under the following conditions and warnings: (1) these Data have 

been prepared for reference purposes only; (2) these Data consist of forecasts, estimates or assumptions made on a bestefforts basis, based upon present expectations; and (3) these Data were prepared with existing information and are subject to

change without notice.

 

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2
3 

Si Solar Manufacturing Supply Chain

Also...

• Capital equipment

• Raw materials

• Intermediate products

Poly Si Ingot Wafer Cell Module System
4 

US-China Solar Energy-Related Trade Flows

Source: GTM Research and International Trade Commission. (2011). “U.S. International Trade Assessment 2011: Trade Flows and 

Domestic Content for Solar energy-related Goods in the United States.”
5 

PV Module Trade Flows

Source: GTM Research and International Trade Commission. (2011). “U.S. International Trade Assessment 2011: Trade Flows and 

Domestic Content for Solar energy-related Goods in the United States.”
Solar PV Market Developments
7 

Global U.S. Position Ceded to China & Taiwan

• Between 2000 and 2010 global shipments grew 53% (CAGR)

• U.S. market share slipped from 30% to 7% (30% CAGR)

• China/Taiwan grew from <2% to 54% (115% CAGR)

Sources: NREL chart using data from Mints, P.; Donnelly, J. (2011). “Photovoltaic Manufacturer Shipments, Capacity and Competitive Analysis 2010/2011.” 

Report NPS-Supply 6, Navigant Solar Services Program. Palo Alto, CA.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

16000

18000

20000

1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Market Share 

PV Cell/Module Shipments (MWp DC)

U.S. and China & Taiwan Market Share of 

Global Shipments of PV Cells/Modules 

Rest of World

China & Taiwan

Japan

Europe

U.S.

U.S. Marketshare

China & Taiwan Marketshare
8 

China Solar PV: Export Driven

• Meager domestic demand belies China’s dominant production

• 9.3 GWP DC shipments vs. 0.5 GWP DC installed

Sources: NREL chart using data from European Photovoltaics Industry Association (EPIA). “Global Market Outlook for PV until 2015.” http://www.epia.org 

Trina Solar (August 23, 2011). “Q2 2011 Supplemental Earnings Presentation.”
9 

China’s Focused Growth: (4) Key Players, All Si

Growth enabled by access to low cost debt, technology diffusion

Sources: Mints, P.; Donnelly, J. (2011). “Photovoltaic Manufacturer Shipments, Capacity and Competitive Analysis 2010/2011.” 

Report NPS-Supply 6, Navigant Solar Services Program. Palo Alto, CA. 

de la Tour et al. (2011). “Innovation and international technology transfer: The case of the Chinese PV industry,” Energy Policy 39 

(2011) 761-770.
10

U.S. Diversity vs. China Manufacturing Scale

Sources: Mints, P.; Donnelly, J. (2011). “Photovoltaic Manufacturer Shipments, Capacity and Competitive Analysis 2010/2011.” Navigant Solar 

Services Program. Palo Alto, CA.

Wafer silicon is >85% of the 

global market

582 MWP DC

487 MWP DC

9,269 MWP DC

50 MWP DC

• U.S. private investors encourage technology differentiation – opportunities 

for producers of innovative Thin Film PV technologies

• China’s government-backed investors fund more mature technologies – 

opportunities for w-Si technologies (quick scale-up; wages, exports)
11

Capital Sources Drive Solar Technology Mix

Sources: Graphic – Bloomberg NEF (4/9/10, 4/16/10, 11/8/10, & 3/16/11); J. Silver Testimony before the Subcommittee on Oversight and 

Investigations Committee on Energy and Commerce, U.S. House of Representatives (September 14, 2011)

2009 ARRA Manufacturing Tax Credit (section 48C): 

• "...have the greatest potential for technological innovation and commercial deployment.“

Energy Policy Act of 2005 (§1703 – Innovative Technology LG Program):

• "...employ new or significantly improved technologies as compared to commercial technologies.“

Recovery Act of 2009 (§1705 – Temporary LG Program for Deployment of Renewable Energy)

• Amended EPAct §1703; Expired September 30, 2011.

“The (Loan Guarantee) program was designed to provide support to these cutting edge industries, which 

have great potential to create jobs in whatever country wins the clean energy race, but also involve 

technology and market risks that private sector lenders often cannot or will not underwrite.” 

– Jonathan Silver, Executive Director LPO, U.S. DOE
12

Best Research (Laboratory) Cell Efficiencies

• Single junction wafer Si approaching practical performance limit

• Challenge facing thin films: closing the gap between laboratory and production devices
13

Private Investors Value Thin Film PV Potential

Thin Film PV technologies seek to close the gap: innovative, disruptive

• Startups raise capital based on defensible, disruptive IP position

η = 12%; Leading commercial Thin Film PV module (2011)

η = 20%; Leading commercial wafer Si PV module (2011)

Sources: Goodrich, A.; James, T.; Woodhouse, M. (2011). “Drivers of Residential and Utility Scale Solar Photovoltaic (PV) System Price. 

in the U.S.” NREL Technical Report. Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

Lab CIGS cell: >20% Lab Si cell: ~25%
International Investment Risk
15

Other Investment Risk Considerations

Country Political and economic stability

Status, procedures, and maturity of legal system

Transparency of business dealings

Economic Expected inflation

Local regulation

Currency High cost and reliability of derivatives and other hedging instruments, 

particularly in emerging markets

Security IP protection

Property ownership, including the ability of creditors to repossess assets

Financial Interest rates

Insurance (business interruption)

Only Economic, Financial risks quantified in this analysis

Other factors partially considered by Global KE approach 

• Security risk factors related to IP, property ownership particularly important 

(innovative startup); binary considerations

• Access to subsidized China debt generally limits foreign ownership to 

minority stake, e.g., Evergreen-Jiawei JV
16

Expected Inflation by Country

• Delta between U.S. and China as high as 470 bps

• China labor rates rose nearly 50% in 2010. Some expect 2011 Chinainflation 20%.

Impact of Inflation on 

capital budgeting 

decisions [2]:

• Revenues

• Costs (non-depreciation)

• Cost of debt 

capital (KD Nominal) 

• Increased demand

 Investments in 

 non-financial assets.

• Decreased supply

 Regulators seek to limit

 growth

Sources: www.tradingeconomics.com 

Gregory T. Mills, “The Impact of Inflation on Capital Budgeting and Working Capital,” Journal of Financial And Strategic Decisions, 1996

NREL private conversations with agent from leading Chinese Si PV manufacturer, January 2011
17

Inflation and Chinese Wages

Jiangsu province (Suntech) +5%, Jiangxi province (LDK) -26%

Source: National Bureau of Statistics of China, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
18

Market Volatility in the Global Equity Market

Specific market volatility measured as βCountry

o Covariance of target country index & ACWI, divided by variance of ACWI

βU.S. = 0.90

βChina = 1.34

Source: Goodrich, A.; Woodhouse, M.; Hsu, D. (2011) Si Solar Manufacturing Cost Models. In preparation. Golden, CO: NREL 

MSCI website (www.mscibarra.com). Accessed September 9, 2011.
19

Global CAPM Overview

W.A.C.C. = [(D/V) * KD * (1 – τC)] + [(E/V) * KE ] 

Levered, Nominal Cost of Debt (KD):

KD = [(1 + Rf) * (1 + i) – 1] + levered corporate bond spread

Levered Cost of Equity (KE):

KE = KE Unlevered + [(D/E) * (KE Unlevered – KD)]

Where, unlevered KE is determined by unlevering RE: 

 RE = (KD & CRP) + (βEquity * EMRPGlobal) 

Country Risk Premium (CRP):

 CRP = RF Country – RF Global

Equity Market Risk Premium (EMRP):

 EMRP Global = EMRP Country / βCountry

• Levered corporate bond spread estimated based on current (Q3 2011) U.S. bond spreads, estimate 

of best (unlevered) Solar PV bond rating (B for established player, low gearing)

• βEquity estimated based on private conversations wit hVCs, PE firms, banks. Solar PV industry: 2.0. 

Startup, e.g., company profiled in the following case study: 3.5

Source: Ogier, T.; Rugman, J.; Spicer, L. (2004). “The Real Cost of Capital.” Prentice Hall, Financial Times. Pearson Education Limited, 2004. Edinburgh

Gate, U.K.
20

Manufacturing Subsidies by Country

 

U.S. 

Loan Guarantee, 

Manufacturing Tax 

Credit

U.S. 

State Subsidies China

Domestic proprietorship required? Yes

Sales/Value Added Tax waiver? Yes Yes 

Property tax credits 100% 100% N/A

Subsidized cost of debt 4.0% 3.0% 3.0-4.5%

Subsidized debt limit (D/ D+E) 60% 60% 80%

delay in processing subsidized debt 2 years <1 year <1 year

Facilities grant 100% 100%

Land grant 

Discount purchase 

(land use rights)

Training grant (millions USD) $0.5-4.5 $0.5-4.5 

Effective Corporate income tax rate 28% 28% 21%

Income tax credits

30% MTC

Cash Grant in lieu State: 5-7 year holiday 20 year holiday

Sources: Private conversations with solar PV manufacturers who are investigating potential production sites in U.S. and non-U.S. locations.

United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011

U.S. Energy Information Administration

The World Bank. International Finance Corporation. (www.doingbusiness.org) 
21

Solar PV Module Technologies

Poly Si 

feedstock Ingot/Wafer Cell Finish Module

Many flavors of TF PV

• Many opportunities for tech. 

differentiation

• Monolithically integrated

• Single factory: glass & gas in,

modules out

• No intermediate products 

(shipping costs)

• Automation does not vary, regionally

Raw materials Raw Materials Deposit Films, 

Finish Module

Disaggregate supply chain

• Multiple players, some vertically 

integrated

• Intermediate products are 

relatively cheap to ship

• Wide range of automation levels

• Relatively mature, less tech. 

differentiation than TF PV

Photos left to right: NREL/PIX 19248; NREL/PIX 15377; NREL/PIX 13859; NREL/PIX 13569
The Case for Foreign Direct Investment

China based c-Si PV manufacturer, 

U.S. customer (end market)
23

Silicon Cell & Module Manufacturing

500 MWP DC c-Si Cell & Module Facility US China

Cells Modules Total Cells Modules Total

No. of Direct Laborers (all shifts) 296 104 400 1492 508 2,000

Unskilled Labor rate ($ per hour) $13.33 $2.13

Manufacturing Engineer ($ per year) $75,110 $8,171

Total facility Capex ($/Wp) $0.49 $0.19 $0.68 $0.35 $0.16 $0.51

Illustration of a silicon cell line from the SCHMID Group | Gebr. SCHMID GmbH

Sources: Goodrich, A.; Woodhouse, M.; Hsu, D. (2011) Si Solar Manufacturing Cost Models. In preparation. Golden, CO: NREL

Wenham, S. (2011) “Multigigawatt Manufacturing in China.” IEEE PV Specialists Conference. Seattle, WA. June 20,2011

Bullis, K. (2011) “Chinese Solar Companies Thrive on Manufacturing Innovations.” Technology Review published by MIT. July 6, 2011.

• Direct labor content varies from <1.0 job/MWP DC to 4.0 jobs/MWP DC

– Suntech automation strategy (~1.4 jobs/MWP DC) reflects inflation risk, not cost benefits

• Relative to low cost labor regions, automation requires:

– 80% less direct labor content, 33% additional investment (automation)
24

China: 18-20% core cost advantage

China’s Comparative Advantage: Si Cells

Sources: Goodrich, A.; Woodhouse, M.; Hsu, D. (2011) Si Solar Manufacturing Cost Models. In preparation. Golden, CO: NREL

National average labor rates assumed for U.S., China scenarios. “Discount materials”: 10%. 

“Discount equipment”: 50% for wet benches, screen printer lines, co-firing furnace operations only.

“Core Costs” include direct labor, materials, energy, depreciation expenses, but exclude: shipping costs, cost of capital, taxes. 

Is China’s comparative advantage sustainable?
25

Si Module Shipping Costs

• Costs including fees, insurance are significant, 

total: ~$0.05/WP DC

• Cost of capital excluded (Shanghai to Los 

Angeles: 30 day transit time)

• Cost of breakage excluded

• Shanghai to Hamburg, Newark to Hamburg costs 

roughly the same

Sources: (504) 27 kg modules/40 HC, STP280-24/Vd module datasheet. Suntech. EN-NA-STD-Vd-NO1.01-Rev 2010.

Maersk online shipping calculator, NREL private conversation with Maersk sales representatives. 2011

Bunker Adjustment Factor as of (March 31, 2011)

Fuel surcharge based on $3.96-$3.99/gallon gas price. Average DOE diesel fuel surcharge. (March 2011)

Photos by Maersk Line and 

SolarPanels-China.com
26

Regional Benchmarking Analysis: 

Direct Si PV Module Core Costs

• China-direct (module) manufacturing cost benefits, excluding shipping: 1-2%

• Including shipping to U.S., China suffers a 5% cost disadvantage

o Above Direct Costs analysis excludes other regional factors: direct government subsidies, income taxes, global 

economic instability (inflation), and investment risk factors

Note 1:

Cost structures that are

heavily comprised of 

variable costs, including

shipping costs are more

sensitive to inflation.

Expected inflation:

• China: 6.5%

• U.S.: 3.6%

Sources: Goodrich, A.; Woodhouse, M.; Hsu, D. (2011) Si Solar Manufacturing Cost Models. In preparation. Golden, CO: NREL

Maersk online cost estimating tool (accessed March 2011). NREL internal shipping cost model.

Note 2:

Based on one global wafer

and cell prices (e.g. Chinese 

tier 1 module manufacturer 

can ship cells to U.S. moduleassembly location for little cost).
27

Cost of Capital (Global CAPM): Tier 1 Si company

Facility location

Subsidy program, if any.

U.S. 

U.S. Loan Guarantee 

(LG)

U.S. 

LG, 

30% MTC 

grant2 

U.S. 

State

Subsidies China

China 

Subsidized

Debt percent (book D / book V)1 60% 60% 60% 60% 60% 60%

Nominal Cost of Debt (KD Nominal)6 6.4%13 4.0% 4.0% 3.0% 10.2% 4.5%13

Loan Terms4 2 year delay, 

$2.5 million 

application costs

2 year delay, 

$2.5 million 

application 

costs

Foreign 

ownership 

limited to 

minority stake

Expected Inflation (i)5 3.6% 6.5%

Real Cost of Debt (KD Real)3 2.7% 0.4% 0.4% -0.6% 3.8% -1.9%

Expected Market Return(Rm) 10.8%7 18.1%8 

Country Beta (βcountry)

9 0.91 1.34

Nominal EMRPGlobal

10 11.0% 10.1%

Country Risk Premium (CRP) 0% 3.8%

Company’s Equity Beta (βE Company) 3.411

Levered (Global) Cost of Equity (KE Levered)12 38.1% 42.7%

Effective Corporate Tax Rate (TC)15 28% 21% 0%14

Global CAPM (WACC) or Hurdle Rate:16 16.4% 15.4% 15.4% 15.0% 22.0% 19.8%

See next slide for footnotes
28

Cost of Capital (Global CAPM): Tier 1 Si company

Footnotes

1. Based on Suntech Corporation book value of total debt divided by book value of total assets (as of 10/06/11).

2. 30% Manufacturing Tax Credit (MTC) monetized in year 1, effectively reducing depreciation expenses.

3. KD real = Rf + Debt Margin; Rf = Global risk free rate (10 year U.S. T-bill), Debt Margin = corporate bond spread estimated 

based on company leverage

4. U.S. LG award delay: 2 years, application cost: $2.5 million); Low cost China debt subsidized based on condition that foreign

ownership is limited to minority stake (≤49%)

5. Average rate of inflation (i) since Jan-2008 for U.S. and China, as reported by “Trading Economics” 

(www.tradingeconomics.com) 

6. Based on Fisher equation: KD nominal = (1 + KD real)*(1 + i) – 1 

7. Expected market return (Rm U.S.): S&P 500. 50 years: 1961 to present (September 2011).

8. Expected market return (Rm China): MSCI AWCI Broad China

9. Country Beta (βCountry) = Covariance (Country Index, MSCI AWCI) / Variance (MSCI AWCI)

10. Nominal Equity Market Risk Premium (EMRP) = (Rm – KD nominal)/BCountry

11. Company’s Equity Beta (BE Company) based on Suntech Corporation, as reported by yahoo.finance.com (10/6/11)

12. KE Levered = KE Unlevered + [(D/E)*(KE Unlevered – KD nominal)]

13. Source: Interest rates on debt, Suntech Corporation, BNEF (2008-2011)

14. 20 year China corporate tax holiday

15. U.S. Mean Effective Tax Rate (ETR): 28%; China 21%: . Markle, S.; Shackelford, D. (2009). “ Do Multinationals of Domestic 

Firms Face Higher Effective Tax Rates?” NBER Working Paper Series. NBER Cambridge, MA.

16. WACC = [(E/V)*KE Levered] + [(D/V)*KD nominal*(1 – TC)]
29

Regional Benchmarking Analysis:

Minimum Sustainable Si PV Module Price

• Chinese Si PV manufacturers should consider regional module production strategy

• Regional module manufacturing facilities located near end markets reduce glass 

shipping costs and mitigate impact of China’s inflation on product costs

Sources: Goodrich, A.; Woodhouse, M.; Hsu, D. (2011) Si Solar Manufacturing Cost Models. In preparation. Golden, CO: NREL

NREL internal DCF (2011), including Global CAPM analysis and country based incentives (private conversations with PV companies) 
Capitalizing on U.S. Innovation

U.S.–based thin film (CIGS) PV startup, U.S. 

customer (end market)
31

CIGS Module Shipping Costs

Photos by Maersk Line and 

SolarPanels-China.com

Sources: (900) 20 kg modules/SF140-L module datasheet. Solar Frontier. 20110722_Datasheet_SF140-155 Letter. 2010.

Maersk online shipping calculator, NREL private conversation with Maersk sales representatives. 2011

Bunker Adjustment Factor as of (March 31, 2011)

Fuel surcharge based on $3.96-$3.99/gallon gas price. Average DOE diesel fuel surcharge. (March 2011)

• Costs including fees, insurance are significant, 

total: ~$0.05/WP DC

• Cost of capital excluded (Shanghai to Los Angeles: 

30 day transit time)

• Cost of breakage excluded

• Shanghai to Hamburg, Newark to Hamburg costs 

roughly the same
32

Regional CIGS Module Costs

• CIGS direct labor content assumed not 

to vary by region: ~0.9 job/MWP DC

600 MWP DC CIGS Module Facility

(near term target module efficiency = 16.6%) US China

No. of Direct Laborers (all shifts) 540 540

Unskilled Labor rate ($ per hour) $13.33 $2.13

Manufacturing Engineer ($ per year) $75,110 $8,171

Total facility Capex ($/Wp) $0.40 $0.33

Sources: Goodrich, A.; Noufi, R.; Woodhouse, M. (2011) “CIGS Solar Manufacturing Cost Models.” In preparation. NREL, Golden, CO

First Solar (Copy SmartTM):

Vietnam (2H 2011) facility

$300MM, 600 jobs / 250 MWP DC capacity

http://compoundsemiconductor.net

Mesa, AZ U.S. (3Q 2012) facility

$300MM, 600 jobs / 250 MWP DC capacity

http://www.brighterenergy.org 

Photo by Rommel Noufi NREL/PIX 20065
33

Regional Benchmarking Analysis: 

Direct CIGS PV Module Core Costs

• China-direct manufacturing cost 

benefits, excluding shipping: 10%

• Including shipping to U.S., China 

advantage reduced to -3%

Direct Costs analysis excludes other 

regional factors: direct government 

subsidies, income taxes, global 

economic instability (inflation), 

investment risk factors

Sources: Goodrich, A.; Noufi, R.; Woodhouse, M.;(2011) CIGS Solar Manufacturing Cost Models. In preparation. Golden, CO: NREL

Maersk online cost estimating too (accessed March 2011). NREL internal shipping cost model.
34

Cost of Capital (Global CAPM): CIGS start-up

Facility location

Subsidy program, if any.

U.S. 

U.S. Loan Guarantee 

(LG)

U.S. 

LG, 

30% MTC 

grant2 

U.S. 

State Subsidies China

China 

Subsidized

Debt percent (book D / book V)1 65% 60% 60% 60% 50% 80%

Nominal Cost of Debt (KD Nominal)6 8.9% 4.0% 4.0% 3.0% 9.5% 3.0%13

Loan Terms4 2-year delay, 

$2.5 million 

application 

costs

2-year delay, 

$2.5 million 

application 

costs

Foreign 

ownership 

limited to 

minority stake

Expected Inflation (i)5 3.6% 6.5%

Real Cost of Debt (KD Real)3 5.1% 0.4% 0.4% -0.6% 3.1% -3.3%

Expected Market Return(Rm) 10.8%7 18.1%8 

Country Beta (βcountry)9 0.91 1.34

Nominal EMRPGlobal

10 11.0% 10.1%

Country Risk Premium (CRP) 0% 3.8%

Company’s Equity Beta (βE Company) 3.511

Levered (Global) Cost of Equity (KE Levered)12 39.2% 37.0% 37.0% 37.0% 43.7% 77.2%

Effective Corporate Tax Rate (TC)15 28% 21% 0%14

Global CAPM (WACC) or Hurdle Rate:16 17.9% 16.6% 16.6% 16.1% 25.6% 17.8%

See next slide for footnotes
35

Cost of Capital (Global CAPM): CIGS start-up

Footnotes

1. Based on Suntech Corporation book value of total debt divided by book value of total assets (as of 10/06/11).

2. 30% Manufacturing Tax Credit (MTC) monetized in year 1, effectively reducing depreciation expenses.

3. KD real = Rf + Debt Margin; Rf = Global risk free rate (10 year U.S. T-bill), Debt Margin = corporate bond spread estimated 

based on company leverage

4. U.S. LG award delay: 2 years, application cost: $2.5 million); Low cost China debt subsidized based on condition that foreign

ownership is limited to minority stake (≤49%)

5. Average rate of inflation (i) since Jan-2008 for U.S. and China, as reported by “Trading Economics” 

(www.tradingeconomics.com) 

6. Based on Fisher equation: KD nominal = (1 + KD real)*(1 + i) – 1 

7. Expected market return (Rm U.S.): S&P 500. 50 years: 1961 to present (September 2011).

8. Expected market return (Rm China): MSCI AWCI Broad China

9. Country Beta (βCountry) = Covariance (Country Index, MSCI AWCI) / Variance (MSCI AWCI)

10. Nominal Equity Market Risk Premium (EMRP) = (Rm – KD nominal)/BCountry

11. Hypothetical company beta based on conversations with firms that have experience investing in solar PV start-ups.

12. KE Levered = KE Unlevered + [(D/E)*(KE Unlevered – KD nominal)]

13. As reported by PV start-ups investigating potential facility locations (2010).

14. 20 year China corporate tax holiday

15. U.S. Mean Effective Tax Rate (ETR): 28%; China 21%: . Markle, S.; Shackelford, D. (2009). “ Do Multinationals of Domestic 

Firms Face Higher Effective Tax Rates?” NBER Working Paper Series. NBER Cambridge, MA.

16. WACC = [(E/V)*KE Levered] + [(D/V)*KD nominal*(1 – TC)]
36

Regional Benchmarking Analysis

Minimum Sustainable CIGS PV Module Price

• The cost of China’s subsidies (domestic proprietorship requirement, impact of significant 

government ownership on cost of equity) is largely left un-quantified in this analysis.

• Over past 2-3 years, the “U.S.” (unsubsidized) case has largely been unavailable to innovative thin 

film startups. Unsubsidized access to capital in United States has been limited.

Sources: Goodrich, A.; Noufi, R.; Woodhouse, M. (2011). “CIGS Solar Manufacturing Cost Models.” In preparation. NREL, Golden, CO

NREL internal DCF (2011), including Global CAPM analysis and country based incentives (private conversations with PV companies) 
37

Summary

• China is the world’s leader in global production (55% 

market share)

• 95% of production is exported; no domestic demand

• The U.S. is a leader in early stage technology 

investments that have disruptive potential

• Shipping costs offset China’s core cost advantage

• c-Si module advantage reduced from 1% to -5%

• CIGS advantage reduced from 10% to -3%

• Access to low cost capital is needed to offset 

investment risk in emerging markets

• Cost of capital: China (26%) with subsidy (18%), vs. U.S. (18%)

• Inflation and changes in value of currency are significant
38

Conclusions

• China advantage may not be sustainable

• Inflation

• Growing importance of shipping costs 

• Reliance on massive government subsidies

• Lack of technology diversification 

• Risk of being supplanted by disruptive non-Si technology

• U.S. incentives can level the playing field

• The scale of Chinese incentives dwarf U.S. efforts

• Access to capital is a critical compliment to the United 

States’ capacity to innovate
39

U.S. Solar PV Opportunities and Challenges

Comparative advantages

o Low cost electricity (hydro power and poly Si)

o Complimentary industries

– Specialty chemicals, non-woven films (Dow, DuPont, 3m, 

Eastman Chemical, etc.)

o Institutional capacity for R&D (innovation)

o Private capital

o Demand potential

Risk factors

o Material resource availability

o Policy uncertainty (R&D funding, industrial incentives)

o Inflation
40

Acknowledgements

Colleagues at NREL who have contributed through both 

formal and informal discussions. Special thanks to David 

Feldman, Robert Margolis, and Rommel Noufi.

Many industrial collaborators for their willingness to 

share data and provide invaluable external review.
APPENDIX
42

c-Si Wafer Costs: 2011 Benchmark

• China’s ingot and wafering advantage (~$0.14/WP DC)

• Labor intensive, and difficult to fully automate.
43

Regional Wafer Manufacturing
44

c-Si Cell Costs: 2011 Benchmark

• Little difference in regional costs, but negligible shipping costs and manufacturing 

scale benefits (regional supply chain)

• Low cost Chinese equipment vendors (wet-benches, screen-printers, firing)

• Regional-differences in automation
45

$U.S. 1/WP DC Chinese w-Si Panels: Unsustainable

• Recent module price reductions driven by poly price, manufacturer 

scale, and level of vertical integration

• Can U.S. w-Si manufacturers survive latest price wars?