Supplying Solar PV: The solar photovoltaic (PV) industry is entering a new phase, and needs to innovate and reduce costs.

THE SOLAR industry is maturing and while we hear a lot about solar power generation in all of its various technologies, the truth is, it still has a very long way to go to gain the market share it hopes for.What affects the solar manufacturers should obviously affect the companies that supply them. However, because of the global reach of most materials and equipment suppliers, they are not tied to the foibles that affect any single geography…or any single technology. If the U.S. or EU go into a dive, and China and Africa start booming, it's simply a matter of selling to where the world is buying.“The solar industry is still very young”, says Tracy Anderson, director of 3M's Renewable Energy Division. “It has the smallest market share of all forms of electricity generation globally. [But] it is the one with the brightest future. Every Government is pushing it and there is a lot of room for suppliers to work on ways to help the manufacturers.” 3M supplies PV, CIGS, thin-film and CSP technology manufacturers with materials that can help them increase the power from their products or installations, while addressing cost issues.