Nanosolar says they can do it.
From
New York Times article...
Quote:
Nanosolar’s founder and chief executive, Martin Roscheisen, claims to be the first solar panel manufacturer to be able to profitably sell solar panels for less than $1 a watt. That is the price at which solar energy becomes less expensive than coal.
“With a $1-per-watt panel,” he said, “it is possible to build $2-per-watt systems.”
According to the Energy Department, building a new coal plant costs about $2.1 a watt, plus the cost of fuel and emissions, he said.
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They've redesigned the entire manufacturing process. No more piecing together individual cells. They're printing the circuitry directly onto the substrate.
Quote:
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The company, which has raised $150 million and built a 200,000-square-foot factory here, is developing a new manufacturing process that “prints” photovoltaic material on aluminum backing, a process the company says will reduce the manufacturing cost of the basic photovoltaic module by more than 80 percent.
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The
Nanosolar website has lots of into on the process. Also says their entire output for the next year is already sold (dammit).
Check em out