Thursday, May 17, 2012

The Spanish Solar Crisis -- Actions Have Consequences -- Absolutely Nothing To Do With The Bakken

Tomorrow we are going to start hearing that the Greek banking run has moved to Spain. Some time ago there were stories that Spain got into financial trouble because of its bet on solar energy. My hunch is this: that little inconvenient truth won't be mentioned even once on CNBC tomorrow in the discussion on Spain. 

Three solar dots to connect:
1. This week the US places heavy tariffs on solar panels coming from China -- week of May 17, 2012
2. Banking crisis in Spain rocks Europe -- Thursday, May 17, 2012 (today)
3. Flashback: bankrupt Spanish solar program -- 2010 -- to what extent is this related to the Spanish banking crisis? The failed solar program cost the Spanish government a whopping 126 billion Euros....
From the Spanish solar program linked article, the second linked article:
Spain stands as a lesson to other aspiring green-energy nations, including China and the U.S., by showing how difficult it is to build an alternative energy industry even with billions of euros in subsidies, ....

“The government totally overshot with the tariff,” de la Sota says. “Now they have a huge bill to pay --

U.S. President Barack Obama highlighted solar energy as part of his plan to create green jobs this month with a decision to install photovoltaic panels on the roof of the White House....
From the same linked article:
Power from the most-efficient photovoltaic plants costs utilities about $275 per megawatt-hour to produce compared with about $60 for a coal-fired plant, according to Bloomberg. 

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4 comments:

  1. AnonymousMay 18, 2012 at 7:49 AM

    Apple is going "fully renewable" at their main data center by the end of the year:

    http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-57436553-37/apples-main-data-center-to-go-fully-renewable-this-year/

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    Replies
    1. Bruce OksolMay 18, 2012 at 7:53 AM

      That's great, isn't it?

      There are some niches where solar energy is a perfect fit. Data centers are huge users of electricity and building these data centers where solar energy works is a great idea.

      But as Spain found out, you have to let free market principles work. And there's no question Apple is going with solar for the financial benefits (the good "PR" is just another added benefit). Apple remains my favorite company (I own no shares in Apple).

      Delete
  2. AnonymousMay 18, 2012 at 2:44 PM

    It is great. Apple is brilliant on using technology where it fits. I think it's a prime example of the fact that the energy issue isn't black and white. There's nuance in everything.

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    1. Bruce OksolMay 18, 2012 at 2:45 PM

      But it's going to cost Apple significantly more now that the president has hit China with heavy tariffs on solar panels.

      Delete

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