Jun 4 2009
CEO Stephen Squires of Solterra Renewable Technologies, Inc., (OTC Bulletin Board: HGUE - News), said that Solterra's proprietary process for manufacturing quantum dot semiconductors, which are used in its solar cells to create electricity, positions the company perfectly to fulfill the mandates of the H.R. 2454, "The American Clean Energy and Security Act," approved recently by The House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Squires said, "It is my firm belief that Solterra's technology provides the answer to fulfilling the ambitions of this bill as well as President Obama's plan for energy security. We believe that Solterra's quantum dot solar cell will lead the solar industry in the U.S. and globally in providing sustainable and stable electricity for long term because it has the capacity to meet the huge demand the bill will create while it seems the other renewable resource companies simply cannot expand rapidly enough."
Solterra's powerful technology innovations have the ability to make solar cells cheaper and more efficient in two ways: its proprietary quantum dots are more efficient and cheaper than existing quantum dots and its photovoltaic manufacturing process for making solar cells from quantum dots uses thin film printing and handling rather than expensive and resource-laden silicon processing. Solterra licensed the rights to this revolutionary quantum dot technology from Rice University in Houston.
Moreover, Squires added, that while hydroelectric and biomass power are satisfactory renewable energy sources, and the largest current suppliers of renewable energy, they have huge hurdles that limit their ability to expand to provide the energy needs to meet the bill's requirements in the next 11 years. Large-site hydroelectric expansion is severely restricted by high capital costs, few appropriate installation sites and recently, inconsistent precipitation so desperately needed for actual energy production. Biomass generation, while renewable by definition, is by production method (burning) in conflict with the other goal of ACES to limit global warming pollution. Wind power will be a good contributor to overall goals, but it too is limited by geographically suitable locations.
By 2020, The American Clean Energy and Security Act would require that large U.S. electricity suppliers generate their electricity from renewable resources for between 15%-and-20% of their load. Assuming energy demand grows annually by 2%, the U.S. will consume about 36,000 terawatt-hours of energy per year (a terawatt or TW is equal to one trillion watts), which equals at least 5,400 terawatt-hours required from renewable sources.
For 2007, the U.S. Department of Energy reports that the total energy output from renewable sources was approximately 2,000 terawatt-hours. Therefore, the country must more than double the current total of all installed renewable generation installations to reach its goal for 2020.
Squires said that solar power generation, both in expansion potential and in meeting ACES' goals, is the clean, clear answer.
Moreover, Solterra is better positioned than traditional solar cell makers to reduce the resources needed to ramp up solar cell manufacturing and meet the dramatic solar energy demand inherent in the Energy and Commerce Committee legislation, Squire noted.
Solterra's quantum dot solar cell is designed for high volume conventional printing methods at low capital requirements and manufacturing costs that will compete in price against conventional fossil fuel power generation. On the other hand, traditional silicon solar cell companies, which represent the current bulk of solar photovoltaic generation capacity, are limited by the amount of high-grade silicon that can be manufactured per year.
For example, to fulfill the projected 2020 energy demand, it is estimated that existing solar manufacturers would need more than 1,000 years of current silicon output. Further, if solar is to step up to the challenge of the 2020 targets, at production limits of 100-200 MW per facility, an additional 15,000+ conventional silicon solar cell plants would be needed.
In contrast, the manufacturing and material design for the Solterra solar cell allows for potential output of greater than ten times conventional solar line design, and the facilities and equipment can be duplicated relatively quickly and at a much more modest cost than the typical $100 million per silicon-PV facility.