Solar could go mainstream as China enters market

Solar power could go mainstream within three to four years as Chinese companies boost production of solar panels and the key ingredient for their function, according a report released yesterday.

Solar accounts for less than 1 percent of the world's electrical capacity, mostly due to the high cost of manufacturing the panels and the scarce availability of their key component, purified polysilicon.

But according to a study by the Worldwatch Institute, the development of advanced technologies and the emergence of China as a low-cost producer could push solar into the mainstream.

Last year, China passed the United States to become the world's third largest producer of solar panels, trailing only Germany and Japan.

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