Eco-nomics and Newspaper Economics: Solar Manufacturing

This is a post with two themes.  Both are based on the interesting article from the New York Times, which appears on the front page of the Oregonian's Business section today, on the bankruptcies of US solar manufacturers and the growth of the industry in China.  

The first is a theme that I have sounded on before:  I am worried about the future of solar manufacturing in the US and thus I am pretty pessimistic when I hear the rah-rah talk of local politicians about local manufacturers. Don't get me wrong, I rejoice when I hear about big investments by companies like SolarWorld and the jobs they bring, but I am not sure there is much of a future in their presence here unless it is in innovation and R&D and away from pure manufacturing. Perhaps this transition is already happening. I have no idea.  But I know about comparative advantage and right now in solar, China has it.

The second is a theme from this week - the troubling economics of daily newspapers.  I mention this here because of the fact that the Oregonian republished a NYTimes story with huge local implications - which is why, I am sure, they chose it for the front page.  But I can image a time not too long ago when the O would have assigned a business reporter to work the local angle on this.  Go to SolarWorld and get a response, talk to local politicians and get their take, etc.  But today what we get is the NYTimes piece verbatim without any mention of local impact.  

And why I bother talking about newspapers all the time is that these things matter a lot.  Many local politicians, many government development dollars, many state tax breaks have gone into bringing solar manufacturing here.  It is important that the public understand the implications of these decisions and are able to evaluate the decisions on their merits.  I can mention it all here and ponder what this may mean to our local economy, but I am not a reporter and I can't really give you any answers.

Eco-nomics: Affordable, Easy Solar-Power

Dow Chemical has just announced a new product that may speed the adoption of household solar energy: solar shingles that can be installed with nails by a roofer just like (and along side of) asphalt shingles. This is a product of Dow's Solar Solutions unit and is an example of the kind of green technology that may just fuel our next big growth episode: a substantial investment that has potentially led to a low cost solution that could become widely adopted, making the American economy more efficient.

No word on pricing, longevity, etc., but the potential is enormous. The catch (you knew there had to be one) is that the thin-film photovoltaic cells used in the shingles are relatively inefficient compared to traditional solar panels. But the point is if this turns out to be as easy to adopt as choosing the color of your new shingles when you get a new roof, think of the aggregate energy savings especially in places like Phoenix and Las Vegas. Cool! (or Hot! perhaps?)