Solar Power Is Gaining Traction Around the Globe

Solar energy has been a growing market within the U.S. for some time now. In fact, according to SEIA’s U.S. Solar Market Insight for Q1 2015 (released in June), residential installations grew 76% compared to Q1 2014. Additionally, non-residential and utility solar PV installations continue to grow.  Recognizing the need for alternative energies, the United States is well on its way to becoming more energy efficient and the trend is a growing global trend.

China, for example, is now considered to not only be the manufacturing hub for solar photo voltaic panels, but also the fastest growing market for energy over the next five years, according to a Nasdaq article.

As the world’s largest consumer of coal, China is also the world’s largest emitter of carbon. This concentrated effort to become more energy efficient and to consciously reduce of the amount of greenhouse gas emitted as a country is huge. And the amount of investment into renewable energies is also huge. China’s renewable energy market is valued at $89.5 billion, making it the largest in the world.

In their effort to reduce their carbon emissions, China will soon begin construction on — yep you guessed it — the world’s largest solar power plant. Spread across 10 square miles in the Gobi desert, the solar plant will have the capacity to power nearly one million households.

When the solar power plant is commissioned, it will help decreases coal consumption by about 4.26 million tons per year. It will also reduce the amount of carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide emissions by 896,000 tons and 8,080 tons, respectively.

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