The King of Electricity: Solar Energy Innovations That Will Power Our Future
Last October, the IEA declared that solar power is “the new King of Electricity.” But as it currently produces only 2% of the global electricity, the newly crowned energy royalty has a long way to go before it will reach full dominance. In Taming the Sun, Dr. Varun Sivaram outlines the financial, technological, and systemic innovations that could allow solar power to provide a third of our energy in thirty years and truly claim the mantle of “Electricity King.”
Dr. Sivaram began our discussion by outlining the transformations in solar power that will make it the world’s primary energy source. He hopes that financial markets will make more capital available to fund both small-scale and large-scale solar projects. Solar technology itself also must make a qualitative leap, as incremental improvements in efficiency are replaced by entirely new ways of “taming the Sun.” Perhaps most importantly, energy systems must be revolutionized so solar energy can power transportation, manufacturing, and electric grids at large.
These innovations will help solar power overcome the complex challenges that it still faces, Dr. Sivaram argued. Solar panels can produce energy in unpredictable patterns, and only during certain hours of the day -- a phenomenon known as “the problem of intermittency.” Because grids that rely on solar power will have a large surplus of energy during periods of peak production, solar panels produce electricity when demand is at its lowest. That means solar producers of electricity sell energy at relatively low prices in a pattern known as Solar Value Deflation. Solving these issues could require storing electricity for future use using new battery technologies and hydrogen fuel cells, controlling energy demand so more electricity-consuming activity occurs during peak hours, and expanding the size of the grid to ensure that there is demand for solar electricity whenever it is produced.
Dr. Sivaram is particularly excited about a more speculative model for solar power from Taming the Sun: modular microgrids. He imagines distinct regional microgrids across the country that are linked through High-Voltage Direct Current power lines. Each locality or city would primarily use its own grid, but could “import” or “export” electricity to neighboring grids when solar panels are over- or under-producing. Each microgrid could separate from the national system, so dysfunction in one part of the grid could be easily contained. Dr. Sivaram added that technology that aggregates electricity being produced by individual solar panel owners and distributes it to where it’s needed could be instrumental in such a system.
Innovation of all types, however, is useless until it is applied to major power grids. India is one major electricity market with high potential for solar consumption, which makes it a source of hope for Dr. Sivaram. As India hurtles through stages of development, its energy demands will grow dramatically, and Dr. Sivaram is confident that current enthusiasm about renewables will continue. If he’s right, India will avoid becoming the world’s biggest emitter and move to the forefront of solar power. Though reform is urgently needed in India’s distribution utility systems, solar panel construction is cheaper in India than anywhere else, which is a promising sign for proponents of solar power there.
Global energy markets are at a crossroads, and Dr. Sivaram is leading the effort to put the world on the path away from fossil fuels and towards solar power. But he says that if the world is going to truly tame the sun, “we need new scientific solutions and we need public policymakers who understand what needs to be done.” For anyone interested in cutting-edge scientific solutions and the ideas that will shape the next generation of solar policymakers, this week’s discussion is a must-listen.
Varun Sivaram