Let the sun shine in

As temperatures rise, so do our electricity bills. With El Niño domination this summer the sun has been shining its brightest, with temperatures in Metro Manila reaching a record high of 37.5°C last Wednesday. It was considered the hottest day to date this year. State weather forecasters warned that there will be more scorching days ahead, as rains are not likely to fall in the next two weeks. Meanwhile, electricity rates have also peaked recently. In April alone, the generation charge component of electricity bills from the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) went up by almost a peso per kilowatt-hour (kwh) to P6.7699/kwh. This jacked up electricity bills, with many customers up in arms after they had to pay double the cost for the same kilowatt hours consumed. No wonder, people are thinking of ways to cope, and many have considered taking advantage of the abundant sunlight in order to harness it to reduce their electricity bills. The idea has occurred to many, as proven by the number of inquiries about solar panels in the electronics shop of Carlos de Guzman, located in Gonzalo Puyat St. (formerly Raon) in Quiapo, Manila. "There are a lot of inquiries for solar panels, solar chargers, and solar-powered batteries... about three to four times more this year compared to last year," Mr. De Guzman told BusinessWorld in Filipino. Mr. De Guzman has been selling electronic supplies and other electrical products for the past three decades, and began selling solar panels three years ago after seeing an influx of such products from China. He said Chinese solar panels are the cheapest on the market, with small solar chargers priced at P900. "These chargers can be used to charge cellphones and small radios," he said. The biggest solar panels that he sells cost about P18,000 -- a 24-inch by 44-inch panel that can generate enough electricity to power water pumps, traffic lights, and road lights for eight hours on a full charge. Asked if a typical household (which requires about 150 to 200 kilowatts of electricity per month) can get off the Meralco grid, and survive solely on solar power, Mr. De Guzman quickly retorted: "Are you crazy? That would cost you a lot." Based on his rough computations, one household would require at least three sets (with an eight-hour run for each set) of 200 pieces of the 24" x 44" panels to generate enough power. He quickly grabbed his calculator and pressed the digits. "It will cost you P10.8 million for the solar panels alone, that is aside from the cables, and other installation costs." Sunshine industry From ancient Greek homes built to face the warm winter sun, to the French monarch’s solar powered motors in 1860s, people have always used the sun’s rays to meet their needs. "This makes perfect sense, given that the sun showers the earth every hour with enough energy to meet world demand for a year," said Lourdes A. Habilan, renewable energy advocate, and head of the non-governmental organization Solar Power Initiative in Mindanao. "And the best part about it is that this energy is pollution free, inexhaustible and accessible to many." She said solar power is usually divided into two categories: solar thermal and photo-voltaics or solar electricity. Solar thermal uses the heat from the sun to make heat. photo-voltaics uses the light energy (photons) to make electricity. The term photo-voltaics comes from two words: photo meaning light and volt taken from the name of the scientist Alessandro Volta. "Since the Philippines is a tropical country, and there is no need to provide heat for homes compared to countries which experience winter, so photo-voltaics is the most common form of solar power here," she said. Ms. Habilan said there are two types of photo-voltaic solar panels commercially available based on the semiconductor that generates direct current electricity -- the amorphous silicon and crystalline silicon. Amorphous or thin film panels are about 6% efficient in converting the sun’s rays to electricity, and crystalline silicon is about 14% efficient. A solar cell, or photo-voltaic cell (PV), is a device that converts light into electric current using the photo-electric effect. This is based on the discovery by Alexandre-Edmond Becquerel who noticed that some materials release electrons when hit with photons from light, which produces an electrical current. The first solar cell was constructed by Charles Fritts in the 1880s. Although the prototype selenium cells converted less than 1% of incident light into electricity, both Ernst Werner von Siemens and James Clerk Maxwell recognized the importance of this discovery. Following the work of Russell Ohl in the 1940s, researchers Gerald Pearson, Calvin Fuller and Daryl Chapin created the silicon solar cell in 1954. "During those times, solar photo-voltaic cells were far from being economically practical. Electricity from solar cells ran about $300 per watt. Compare than to current market rates in the US, which hover around $5 per watt," Ms. Habilan said in an interview. She said solar power leaped to prominence in energy research in the 1970s following the Arab Oil Embargo in 1973, which demonstrated the degree to which the Western economy depended upon a cheap and reliable flow of oil. "As oil prices nearly doubled overnight, leaders became desperate to find a means of reducing this dependence. In addition to increasing automobile fuel economy standards and diversifying energy sources, the US government invested heavily in solar electric cells," Ms. Habilan explained. "The hope in the 1970s was that through massive investment in subsidies and research, solar photo-voltaic costs could drop precipitously and eventually become competitive with fossil fuels," she added. By the 1990s, the reality was that the costs of solar energy had dropped as predicted, driven by the huge photo-voltaic solar cell market growth in Japan, and Germany. "In 2002 alone, Japan installed 25,000 solar rooftops. Such large photo-voltaics orders are creating economies of scale, thus steadily lowering costs," Ms. Habilan said. In the Philippines, the solar cell market has seen a re-emergence, driven by the steady, inexpensive available supply from China. "Newer solar power technologies available in the country are less expensive, with price ranging from P150 to P250 per watt output of solar cells. There are a variety of choices, from suppliers from China, as well as Korea, Japan, Italy, Germany, US, and Spain," she said. Still in the shadow Despite its advantage -- the "fuel" is completely free -- solar power technology is not gaining the popularity one would expect it to. Fred Marquez, a Makati-based independent distributor of US-made solar panels, said the initial cost discourages consumers from trying out solar power technology. "The initial cost is the main disadvantage of installing a solar energy system, largely because of the high cost of the semiconducting materials used in building one," Mr. Marquez said in an interview last week. He added that solar panels require quite a large area for installation to achieve a good level of efficiency. "The efficiency of the systems also relies on the location of the sun, although this problem can be overcome with the installation of certain components, but that will add more costs in the installation," he explained. Still, he said it is best for people to invest in solar energy. "You can start gradually, You can buy a few solar panels to power a few appliances, then you can add more as you see savings," he said. "Once you recover your initial cost and investment, the energy from the sun is practically free," he added. Ms. Habilan said solar power technology remains expensive because the government has not taken steps to actively encourage the use of renewable energy like solar power among households. "Our government, who should be demonstrating a leadership position in the promotion and use of solar energy, is the primary offender of energy conservation and has no interest in the promotion of a sustainable energy," she said. "The government is too busy dealing with problems of day-to-day survival to be concerned with the headache of a long-range investment like solar energy," she added. Mr. Marquez said solar technology also remains expensive because there is little demand, and the competition among suppliers is minimal. Aside from the cost, prospective customers are also discouraged by the fact that there is no guarantee of quality from among the solar technologies that they can buy in the market, Ms. Habilan said. "These items do not go though tests. If you are not an expert, you might be buying a lemon," she said. She said maintenance of the solar technology is also a chore for most who have tried it. "After sales service is problematic, especially for those who live outside Metro Manila. Spare parts are also not readily available, since not all distributors keep an inventory of the imported parts of these solar technologies," Ms. Habilan said. Seeing the dawn Among Mr. Marquez’s clients are spouses Rhea and Arnel Garcia, who have been using solar panels to power their 50-sq.m., two-storey home in Sta. Rosa Laguna. "We still have Meralco power, but we use solar energy during daytime to power two electric fans, a five-cubic feet refrigerator, and a 14" television," Mrs. Garcia told BusinessWorld in a telephone interview. Mr. Garcia said they are using 10 80"x20" solar panels that they bought two years ago. They spent about P2.5 million for the entire set up, including installation fees, cables, inverters, and labor costs. He said the panels are placed in a 50-square meter vacant lot beside their house. "It really is expensive to buy those solar panels. People thought I was crazy to throw away my savings for solar panels when I could have bought a car, or something else," Mr. Garcia said in Filipino. "But after experiencing nine to 12 hour brownouts before during the 1990s, I really thought it would be best to invest in something like this," he added. He said he "has a long way to go" before he recoups his initial investment for the solar panels. "But it is a worthy investment. If you can afford it, why not buy something that will make you less dependent on these utility companies?," he said. Mrs. Garcia said it would have been more ideal had the government offered incentives to those who opt to spend for solar power technologies in their homes. "In other countries I know -- like in the US -- state governments offer incentives and tax breaks. If we have that, more people will be encouraged to put up solar panels in their houses," she said. For those who cannot afford to spend millions for solar power technologies, Marvin B. Arcega, an architect, said homeowners can take advantage of "passive solar energy" to make their house more energy efficient. "Passive solar power technologies use sunlight for useful energy without the use of active mechanical systems. Instead, such technologies convert sunlight into usable heat, or cause air to move for ventilation with little use of electrical energy," Mr. Arcega told BusinessWorld in an interview. For passive solar energy, he said homes makes the best use of the sun, the wind, construction materials, and the location of the house to ensure that it as comfortable as possible inside all year round. "For example, position doors and windows opposite each other to allow for a cooling breeze to flow through the house when the air cools down in the evening of a hot summer’s day," he said. He added that windows facing where the sun shines should be bigger to allow more natural light to penetrate the house during the day, and save electricity otherwise used for lights and lamps. But, "make sure external shading structures are wide enough to block out the sun in summer," he said. Ms. Habilan said solar power will become more feasible for Filipinos over the medium term as technologies improve and the cost of traditional energy sources rise. "Studies abroad indicate that within three to seven years, unsubsidized solar power could cost no more to end customers in many markets, such as California and Italy, than electricity generated by fossil fuels," she said. For those planning to buy solar power technologies, Mr. Marquez said customers should educate themselves with the variety available in the market. "Read up on solar power on the Internet. After you feel fairly confident that you understand this technology, find a local provider who is experienced in this field," he said. "If you are going to have a system installed for you, get references and make sure your installer is experienced in solar electricity. Even if you are competent to do you own installation, you should have an experienced person, ideally a licensed electrician, to advise you or help you out of a tight spot," he added. - BusinessWorld