paraphrased from: Have a Nice Day By T.L. Friedman S.
Applied Materials makes the machines that make the microchips that go inside your computer. They added a new business line to take advantage of the company’s
nanotechnology capabilities — making the machines that make solar panels.
They have not sold or installed a single plant in America but 14 are in production overseas: five in Germany, four in China, one in Spain, one in India, one is Italy, one in Taiwan and one in Abu Dhabi.
These countries are building solar-panel industries today because they have put in place the three prerequisites for creating a renewable energy industry:
1) any business or homeowner can generate solar energy;
2) the power utility has to connect them to the grid; and
3) the utility has to buy the power for a predictable period at a preset economic price to the family or business putting the solar panels on their rooftop.
The three prerequisites: freedom to generate electricity, access to the grid and longterm price certainty, are not available broadly accross the U.S. Consumer need help and assurances to make the investment in panels attractive thus,encouraging domestic manufacturing of panels to satisfy an increasing demsand. Ironically, foreign made panels are being sold to consumers in America and subsidized by federal and state tax breaks. But too few buyers and not enough incentive to build a domestic manufacturing industry. Just purvetors of foreign made products.
Germany now generates almost half the solar power in the world today and, as a byproduct, is making itself the world-center for solar research, engineering, manufacturing and installation. Germany has more than 50,000 new jobs in the renewable energy industry. In Germany renewable energy is now second only to its auto industry.
Although consumer demand for solar power has incrementally increased in America, it has not been enough for anyone to build a new factory in America yet. Meaning federal and state subsidies for installing solar systems are largely paying for the cost of importing solar panels made in China, by Chinese workers, using hi-tech manufacturing equipment invented in America.
Applied sells its solar-panel factories for $200 million each. Solar panels can be made from many different semiconductors, including thin film coated onto glass with nanotechnology and from crystalline silicon. Making these complex machines requires America’s best, high-paid talent — people who can work at the intersection of chemistry, physics and nanotechnology.
China is now creating a massive domestic market for solar and wind, which will give it a great export platform.
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