4 IMPROVEMENTS FOR GREENER HOMES
Solar energy is now the cheapest power ever generated
Electricity from new solar cell plants is now cheaper to generate than any other type of power. Significant improvements in solar-cell light sensitivity, layered design and more are improving efficiency all the time.
1 Solar energy is the new king, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). Solar energy now offers the cheapest electricity ever generated, with historically low prices for power from new solar plants. The IEA now expects that solar energy will account for 80% of the total growth in renewable energy over the next 20 years – and that renewable energy will outpace coal to become the world’s primary energy source from 2025.
The low price of solar energy is a combination of increasing numbers of investors realising that solar energy is a good investment, and technological innovation improving efficiency. Back in 1883, the world’s first solar cells made use of only 1-2% of the available solar energy to generate power. The efficiency slowly improved – until about five years
