Solar Industry paper
Temple University
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Peter Strucks
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Contents
Executive Summary 3
2012-2013 Solar Industry 3
Japan 5
Strategic analysis on the Solar Industry 7
Porter’s 5 forces 7
Threat of entry 7
Bargaining power of suppliers 7
Bargaining power of buyers 7
Threat of substitutes 7
Industry rivalry 7
PEST 8
Political: 8
Economic: 8
Social: 8
Technology: 8
Bibliography 9
Executive Summary
The solar industry poses many lucrative opportunities for companies with a long term horizon. The potential return on investment, if given the economies of scale required , could be lucrative and virtually unlimited. The current social trend in Japan and other developed economies of moving away from nuclear energy, combined with a realization that pollutants generated by more traditional fossil fuel energy sources has a long term detrimental effect on society, make the search for alternative energy sources a must. Potentially harnessing the sun’s energy through photovoltaic technology, despite it still being in its infant stages, presents us with a potentially unlimited energy source and a potential lucrative long term investment opportunity.
2012-2013 Solar Industry
Michelle Thatcher, National Director US-Green Chamber of Commerce on the 2012 Solar industry: "Over 100 solar manufacturers have left the industry since the year began, but those that remain are becoming more consolidated and stronger." (Kaften, 2012)
Over the last few years we have witnessed a drive towards commoditization within the solar industry. Traditional leading companies from Japan and the US have slowly lost their market position due to the steady supply of lower cost products from China.
Table 1: Ranking of Solar manufacturers based on total production. (blog.comparemysolar.co.uk, 2014)
Figure 1: Ranking of solar manufacturers based on total production (blog.comparemysolar.co.uk, 2014)
As shown in graph 1, the rise of the Chinese solar
[Type the document title]
[Type the document subtitle]
Peter Strucks
[Pick the date]
Contents
Executive Summary 3
2012-2013 Solar Industry 3
Japan 5
Strategic analysis on the Solar Industry 7
Porter’s 5 forces 7
Threat of entry 7
Bargaining power of suppliers 7
Bargaining power of buyers 7
Threat of substitutes 7
Industry rivalry 7
PEST 8
Political: 8
Economic: 8
Social: 8
Technology: 8
Bibliography 9
Executive Summary
The solar industry poses many lucrative opportunities for companies with a long term horizon. The potential return on investment, if given the economies of scale required , could be lucrative and virtually unlimited. The current social trend in Japan and other developed economies of moving away from nuclear energy, combined with a realization that pollutants generated by more traditional fossil fuel energy sources has a long term detrimental effect on society, make the search for alternative energy sources a must. Potentially harnessing the sun’s energy through photovoltaic technology, despite it still being in its infant stages, presents us with a potentially unlimited energy source and a potential lucrative long term investment opportunity.
2012-2013 Solar Industry
Michelle Thatcher, National Director US-Green Chamber of Commerce on the 2012 Solar industry: "Over 100 solar manufacturers have left the industry since the year began, but those that remain are becoming more consolidated and stronger." (Kaften, 2012)
Over the last few years we have witnessed a drive towards commoditization within the solar industry. Traditional leading companies from Japan and the US have slowly lost their market position due to the steady supply of lower cost products from China.
Table 1: Ranking of Solar manufacturers based on total production. (blog.comparemysolar.co.uk, 2014)
Figure 1: Ranking of solar manufacturers based on total production (blog.comparemysolar.co.uk, 2014)
As shown in graph 1, the rise of the Chinese solar
Bibliography: Barker, M. (2014, July 2). Solarbuzz. Retrieved from http://www.solarbuzz.com/resources/blog/2014/07/top-5-pv-countries-account-for-80-of-global-pv-demand Beetz, B. (2012, July 3). Japan: Deutsche Bank forecasts falling PV installation costs, but says hurdles remain. Retrieved July 22, 2014, from http://www.pv-magazine.com/news/details/beitrag/japan--deutsche-bank-forecasts-falling-pv-installation-costs--but-says-hurdles-remain_100007588/#axzz386EhNqd9 blog.comparemysolar.co.uk. (2014, May 12). Retrieved from Comparemysolar.co.uk: http://blog.comparemysolar.co.uk/top-10-solar-panel-manufacturers-2008-2013/ International Energy Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved 7 23, 2014, from http://www.eia.gov/cfapps/ipdbproject/IEDIndex3.cfm?tid=6&pid=29&aid=12 Kaften, C. (2012, 12 28). pv-magazine. Retrieved 7 21, 2014, from http://www.pv-magazine.com/news/details/beitrag/the-2012-solar-year-in-review-and-what-lies-ahead-in-2013_100009692/#ixzz386ZkL99V Ogimoto, K., Inst. of Ind. Sci., U. o., Kaizuka, I., Ueda, Y., & Oozeki, T. (2013, April). A Good Fit: Japan 's Solar Power Program and Prospects for the New Power System. (Power and Energy Magazine, IEEE ) Retrieved from http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?reload=true&arnumber=6466543 Ted James, D. F. (2013). Japan’s Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Market: An Analysis of Residential System Prices. U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.