“Innovation, on the other hand, will come down to the speed at which businesses realize that zero-carbon electrons are becoming ever more abundant and less expensive. As I wrote last week, we already have moments in some grids when solar power supply exceeds total demand. That’s a challenge, but it’s also an opportunity, which I hope entrepreneurs and big enterprises alike are ready to capitalize on.
The next order of magnitude takes us from 10% to 100%, when the entirety of U.S. power generation comes from panels and turbines.
Wind and solar are now playing for the remaining 90% of the U.S. power mix. They won’t ever reach 100%, but they will force every other energy source—including natural gas—into whatever corner of the market they haven’t filled. In doing so, wind and solar will also compete with each other. That will create a country-sized opportunity to experiment with innovative ways to use all those new electrons.”
So why does this matter in the grand scheme of things? When wind and solar are competing and working together to power big industry, then innovation must occur. This is why we will continue to see battery storage and coupling solutions, AI and blockchain technologies, and startups with innovative monitoring and management systems of these power grids gain momentum and investment. Recently, a prominent investor told me he saw the future for solar in big wattage in bulk at low cost from foreign module makers. Already, we at Power Guru, are using these very modules! As a solar installer, we expect to get word on a new module with higher wattage every other month. This innovation will only grow and become more and more efficient, to continue to bring down the cost of solar and increase the demand.
