4 ms·
The idea that solar panels take more energy to produce than they are able to output would make solar panels economically unviable as the energy cost must be rec
by hetman 8y ago
The idea that solar panels take more energy to produce than they are able to output would make solar panels economically unviable as the energy cost must be recovered to at least break even. That may have been true several decades ago but the solar panels of today are competing economically just fine.
- technicalbard 8y agoBut deployment is slowing in jurisdictions that have decided they can't afford the subsidies and what it does to power prices.
- toomuchtodo 8y agoSolar and wind are cheaper than coal without subsidies.
- gitgud 8y agoIs there any data on this? It takes huge furnaces running at thousands of degrees to melt and process the silicon for the panels, not to mention all the electronics needed to be manufactured. I just can't see how a panel can recover that amount of energy, but maybe I should go and crunch the numbers