sand : solar farm :: iron ore : lawnmower That said, if you increase production scale you can expect module costs to fall significantly. That's what Chinese ma

sand : solar farm :: iron ore : lawnmower That said, if you increase production scale you can expect module costs to fall significantly. That's what Chinese manufacturers have actually done: http://pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/ArticleLanding/2013/EE/c3ee40701b#!divAbstract http://pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/ArticleLanding/2013/EE/c3ee40... A lot of talk about solar trade has highlighted "unfair" competition from cheap, low-quality Chinese modules. But China also has companies making high-quality modules (LONGi, Jinko Solar, Yingli, and Trina Solar were identified as top performers in DNV GL's 2017 PV Module Reliability Scorecard, along with longer-established Japanese, Korean, European, and American manufacturers) and still making them cheaper than European/American/Japanese producers. The greatest difference is scale. Recently-bankrupt American solar manufacturer Suniva is trying to get the US International Trade Commission to impose a minimum $0.78/watt price on imported solar modules: https://www.eenews.net/stories/1060057180 https://www.eenews.net/stories/1060057180 https://www.pv-tech.org/news/breaking-suniva-asks-trump-for-78-cents-price-floor-on-imported-modules https://www.pv-tech.org/news/breaking-suniva-asks-trump-for-... Suniva made good modules. But it was manufacturing only 200 megawatts of modules per year. And its modules were not more efficient or durable than good imports. The large, high-quality South Korean manufacturer Hanwha Q CELLS is guiding 5500-5700 megawatts of shipments this year. The large, high-quality Chinese manufacturer Jinko Solar is guiding 8500-9000 megawatts this year. American solar manufacturers can't turn a profit so they don't scale up. And they don't scale up so they can't turn a profit. Jinko Solar and Hanwha can stay in the black at price levels that will bankrupt small producers lacking the same economies of scale.