From-Knut-Erik-Helle_solar

Problem Statement

While prices of solar panels have been falling and the efficiency has been increasing for decades, in the last few years, there has been an acceleration in rate of improvements. As a result, solar power systems will become a viable alternative to conventional fossil-fired power generation in the next three to five years. The fact that solar technology is scalable from a small, single family home all the way to large installations producing hundreds of megawatts makes it more attractive for distributed and decentralized energy solutions. Finally, it reduces dependence on large, government funded projects, including problems with transmission lines suffering from poor maintenance and illegal connections to tap electricity. The purpose of this project is to perform a study of current use of solar panels in Pakistan exploring market, pricing, performance, supply chain and manufacturing.

Deliverables

The output of this project is a report covering the following areas:

  1. How are solar panels currently used e.g. standalone applications, off-grid homes, businesses etc.
  2. What form of deployment of solar panels will make the most sense for Pakistan
  3. Current installed base in Pakistan, as a function of region
  4. Price trends of solar panels in Pakistan from major retailers. Aftermarket and resale pricing and quality.
  5. Wholesale pricing of new panels, as well as price quoted by the manufacturers, as a function of volume
  6. Major retailer offering solar products
  7. Key brands that are in use and their performance characteristics, reliability, quality and pricing.
  8. Government regulations and tariffs related to importation and resale of solar panels.
  9. Feedback from people currently using solar panels regarding performance and maintainability.
  10. Opportunities for local manufacturing and assembly of panels.
  11. Status and focus of organizations – government-based, universities and private – working to advance solar panel technology and deployment in Pakistan.
  12. Share of various technologies e.g. monocrystalline, poly-crystalline, amorphous silicon. Other materials such as Gallium Arsenide
  13. Opportunity and challenges related to repair, disposal and recycling
  14. Other global factors regarding manufacturing, supply and technology that may be relevant to Pakistan

Timelines

This project is intended to run for about four months from early September to end December 2015. The will be a status update provided every two weeks, an intermediate report in early November, and final report at the end of the year. A summarized version of the report will be published on this website, and the full document posted for downloading.

Responsible Director at Sawayra: Naveed Nazir (naveed@sawayra.org)

Students and Faculty Mentor: TBD

 

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