66% reduction in cost of wind energy

Wind Power

Change is in the air thanks to significant declines in the cost of wind energy. Recent advances in design mean that today’s wind turbines are converting a higher amount of wind into wind energy. And that has reduced the cost of wind energy by an impressive 66 percent since 2009.*

 

This has led to significant growth in wind capacity across America and the world. For example, fully one-quarter of all new electric-generating capacity added in the US in 2014 came from wind power, bringing the nation’s total installed wind capacity to almost 66 GW. That’s enough energy to power over 17 million homes.*

 

At SunEdison we’re doing our part to lead this important shift to clean, affordable renewable energy, not just in the US but also around the world. The world of energy is on the cusp of major change. People everywhere are seeking an alternative to conventional fossil fuels. Our commitment to solar and wind energy means we are ready to meet those changing needs, whichever way the wind blows.

*US Department of Energy August 2014 Wind Technologies Market Report Highlight

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Go big and stay home

Wind Power

In the sprawling deserts of Utah you will find the state’s largest wind farm. SunEdison’s Milford Wind project generates a staggering 306 MW of clean power. Since its completion in 2011, this facility has generated close to 3 million megawatt hours of clean, renewable electricity. To produce the same amount of energy, a coal-fired plant would have had to burn 1.5 million tons of coal.

 

Pictured here is SunEdison project manager Bill Dent, who is about to scale the inside of one of the 150-foot-tall turbines. There are 168 of them onsite. That’s why Bill and his team of almost 30 full-time employees have made Milford and the surrounding area their home. That way, with the help of SunEdison’s Remote Operations Centers, they can monitor and maintain the facility 24 hours a day, all year round.

 

Because when you build something big enough to supply energy for 60,000 homes, right in your own backyard, you want to make sure it keeps working just the way it was designed to.

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Old ideas, new technology

Wind Power

For thousands of years, human ingenuity has created technologies to harness the power of the wind. But to meet the growing energy needs of a rapidly expanding global population, traditional methods need a little boost from modern technology.

 

At SunEdison we’re committed to bringing the latest technology to the world of renewable energy. That’s why our wind farms utilize the most advanced turbines, capable of transforming even a light breeze into clean electricity.

 

The old windmill pictured here stands only a little ways away from one of our wind farms, the 306 MW project near Milford, Utah. And it serves as a reminder that sometimes the simplest ideas are the best.

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Clean energy on a grand scale

Solar Solutions

This 25 MW utility-scale solar project, built by SunEdison, sits in the sprawling sundrenched Avra Valley northwest of Tucson, Arizona. It generates enough clean energy to power 3,500 homes and will do so for decades to come. And each year that it operates it will save approximately 30 million gallons of water that would otherwise have been needed for fossil fuel generated electricity. In addition, the CO2 reductions achieved by the Avra Valley project are equivalent to taking over 9,000 cars off the road.

 

This is only one of dozens of utility scale projects SunEdison has built or operates around the world, which together generate over 6 gigawatts of energy.

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400 years of community spirit

Solar Solutions

In the early 1600s, when the Pilgrims settled the town of Bourne, Massachusetts, they were looking to create a community of likeminded individuals. Today, that spirit of community is alive and well. Its latest expression can be found in the town’s innovative “community solar” project, part of a growing trend toward shared renewable energy.

 

Rather than installing individual solar systems on homes and businesses, a larger system is built. People in the community can own or lease a portion of the system (similar to a community garden, where individuals work a plot of land in a larger garden). Not only are larger systems highly cost effective, community solar enables those who might not otherwise be able to enjoy the benefits of solar to do so – for example, apartment dwellers, renters, or people whose homes don’t get enough sunlight.

 

SunEdison is proud to have partnered with the residents of Bourne to develop this pioneering approach to solar energy, and to do so in the same spirit of community that the Pilgrims would have recognized.

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$60 million in Utility bill savings

Solar Solutions

Affordable housing demands affordable energy. That’s why 16 public housing authorities across Massachusetts have partnered with SunEdison to purchase solar energy solutions that will deliver an estimated $60 million in savings over the next 20 years.

 

But the benefits are not just economic. CO2 emissions will be reduced by 1 million tons - that’s equivalent to taking some 200,000 cars off the road!

 

All of which means the citizens of Massachusetts can breathe a whole lot easier, knowing that public housing energy costs will be stable and predictable for decades to come, thanks to clean and reliable solar energy.

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Zero white space, higher efficiency

Transformative Technology

When it comes to solar panel efficiency, every square millimeter counts. That’s why SunEdison has developed a zero white space (ZWS) high efficiency solar module. By eliminating the unused areas between solar cells, we’ve boosted each panel’s power output by up to 15%.

 

A solar panel that used to produce 350 watts of peak energy can now produce 400. And greater output means greater efficiency. The result is that this new technology can reduce total system cost by up to 8%.

 

Not only is ZWS technology smart and efficient, it looks good too. It turns out that eliminating the unnecessary white space results in a sleek, seamless black surface, perfect for integrating into residential roofs. Who knew?

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Advanced polysilicon technology at the lowest cost

Transformative Technology

Solar energy is at a tipping point. It’s well on its way to becoming the lowest cost energy solution—not just in comparison to other renewables, but the cost winner over fossil fuels as well.

 

At SunEdison we’re working to bring about this change by developing leading edge technology that will produce the lowest cost polysilicon in the world. Polysilicon is the basic building block of solar cells, and with this step-change in technology, we’re well on the way to producing a 400 watt solar panel at a cost of $0.40 per watt.

 

Our proprietary technology, now in operation at our joint venture facility in Ulsan, Korea, produces ultra pure polysilicon 10 times more efficiently than conventional technologies, using 90% less energy. Low-cost, clean solar energy will transform the way all of us use energy. And it has the power to transform our planet as well.

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When catching the wind, bigger is better.

Transformative Technology

Wind turbine technology is climbing to new heights—quite literally. The average power output of newly installed wind turbines in the US has risen 172% in the past 15 years.*

 

This increased power output has been achieved, in part, by building up. The average hub height of new turbines has grown by almost 50%, now reaching over 269 feet. At the same time, the average rotor diameter has more than doubled. Add it all up and wind turbine blades are reaching higher than ever before.*

 

And if you’ve ever climbed to the top of a tall peak, you’ll know the winds get stronger the higher you go.  For wind turbines this means the taller they are, the more wind there is to capture and transform into clean renewable energy.

*US Department of Energy August 2014 Wind Technologies Market Report Highlights

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From Net Zero to infinity

The Future Of Energy

“Net Zero” refers to homes that generate as much energy as they consume. And the energy they generate typically comes from clean solar power. That means the amount of energy they need to draw from conventional sources is exactly zero.

 

SunEdison’s patented hybrid solar system has allowed users to transform their homes into self-sufficient Net Zero buildings. Our system not only generates electricity but also provides solar water heating, solar home heating and solar home cooling – all under one roof.

 

This is only one of many innovative systems we’re developing to take advantage of the virtually infinite power of the sun. In the future, more and more homes will be Net Zero, freeing homeowners from their dependence on centralized power and from the uncertainties of energy pricing.

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The future is now

The Future Of Energy

The world of solar energy has reached a remarkable moment of transformation, thanks to three converging trends. First, costs have plummeted. And we can confidently predict they will fall even further in the future. We believe that solar will soon become the most cost effective way to produce electricity. In fact, in some parts of the world, it already is.

 

Secondly, the performance of solar panels has risen dramatically – up by 50% in just the last 8 years. And finally, the ability to store the energy produced by solar systems is improving every day, thanks to innovations driven by the automotive industry and electric cars.

 

Taken together, these changes mean that soon more of us will be using the abundant power of the sun to run our homes and our cars. It gives a whole new meaning to the idea that the world revolves around the sun.

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Growing together

The Future Of Energy

Solar energy is rapidly growing to satisfy more and more of our energy needs. And as the industry grows so is the demand for skilled workers. That’s why SunEdison and GRID Alternatives have launched a US based initiative called RISE, to train new workers and ensure a more inclusive workforce.

 

This initiative provides training for women and those in underserved communities. But the benefits don’t stop there. In addition to providing hands-on training this program also makes solar accessible to low-income families, allowing them to lower their energy costs.

 

As our industry grows, our hope is that everyone will rise with it, especially those who need a little extra help.

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From 0 to 100 megawatts in 6 months

The Future Of Energy

As the demand for solar energy grows so does the need for rapid deployment. At SunEdison we take special pride in being able to bring large-scale solar projects online quickly and efficiently.

 

Consider our Amanecer Solar CAP plant located in the Atacama Desert in Chile. This sprawling project consists of 310,000 solar photovoltaic (“PV”) panels spread over 250 acres, and generates 100 MW of power. It took less than 6 months to build. By way of comparison, the average coal-fired plant would take 5 years or more to construct.

 

As the pace at which we transform our energy supply to renewable resources speeds up, increasingly the race will go to the swift. And at SunEdison we aim to be at the head of the pack.

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Malaysian Airports Look to the Sky

Global Impact

It was natural that when Malaysian Airports needed a way to relieve costly energy bills they turned to the sky, or rather, the sun. And with some creative engineering from SunEdison, the country’s first airport solar system was created at Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

 

It was no easy task. With much of the available land dedicated to parking, there was little room for a solar system.

 

A solar parking canopy, which uses solar panels to create covered parking, turned out to be the perfect solution. Today visitors to the airport can park their car in the shade of a canopy that is silently making reliable, economical solar energy. Now that’s what we call practical innovation.

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Middle East sees a future rich in solar.

Global Impact

When you think about oil and fossil fuels, the Middle East probably comes to mind. But now even this oil-centric region is looking to SunEdison and a solar future.

 

In Jordan we’re constructing a 23.8 MW solar power plant that will sell electricity to the Jordanian National Electric Power Company (NEPCO). And in Saudi Arabia, where they’ve announced their intention to become a world leader in solar energy, we’re making our advanced silicon technology available to help make this happen.

 

At a conference in May 2015, the Saudi oil minister shared his vision for the future. He said that one day “…instead of exporting fossil fuels, we will be exporting gigawatts of (solar) electric power.”

 

Wow. Solar power is indeed transforming the world of energy.

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South Africa

Global Impact

How do you provide a rapidly growing population with affordable energy when you have an antiquated and unreliable power system? You turn to SunEdison and solar power.

 

Our solar power plants generate energy that is cost competitive with fossil fuels. We can bring a new utility scale solar power plant on-line in under six months, whereas a conventional fossil fuel fired power plant typically takes years to build. And as an added benefit, our solar power plants are strategically located to strengthen the utility grid, making the entire system more reliable.

 

With 457 MW of solar power operational or planned in South Africa, we’re set to generate enough clean energy to power an estimated 175,000 homes. And we’re just getting started.

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India

Global Impact

In July 2015 we signed an agreement with Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited, one of the largest utilities in India, to provide 180 megawatts of solar power to the people of New Delhi. That’s enough solar to power over 300,000 Indian homes.

 

“Good things happen when you bring two of India’s largest energy brands together,” said Pashupathy Gopalan, SunEdison president of Asia-Pacific and Sub-Sahara Africa. “The people of new Delhi will benefit from clean, reliable and affordable energy as a result of this project, which makes a direct and powerful contribution towards India’s goal of generating 100 gigawatts of solar power by 2022.”

 

Agreed.

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