Why Solar Power Should Be Considered Only a Supplemental Energy Source

1. Energy-Intensive and Petrochemical-Dependent Production

Solar panels are marketed as “clean energy,” but their production is anything but clean:

High energy input: Manufacturing crystalline silicon panels requires heating quartz to over 2,000°C, a process powered almost exclusively by coal and natural gas in countries like China[^1].

Petrochemicals in manufacturing: Panels rely heavily on plastics, resins, and solvents derived from oil and gas[^2].

Toxic byproducts: Hydrofluoric acid, lead, cadmium, and other hazardous chemicals are used in panel production, creating waste streams that must be managed—often poorly—in overseas factories[^3].

Implication: Solar energy is not truly renewable; it is a fossil-fuel-intensive technology front-loaded with emissions.

2. Low Efficiency and Seasonal Dependence

Solar panel efficiency remains inherently limited by physics:

Theoretical cap: Silicon-based photovoltaics max out at ~33% theoretical efficiency (the Shockley–Queisser limit)[^4]. Commercial panels rarely exceed 24% under ideal conditions[^5].

Real-world conditions: In the Northern Hemisphere, where seasonal daylight is short and skies are cloudy, actual output averages just 10–12% of installed capacity[^6].

Mismatch with demand: Solar produces most at midday in summer—precisely when demand is lowest. In winter evenings, when demand is highest, solar output is near zero[^7].


Implication: Solar cannot provide baseload power; it is a time-shifted and unreliable source requiring backup.

3. Economic Reality – Long Payback and Declining Performance

High capital cost: Solar requires significant upfront investment in panels, inverters, and installation[^8].

Energy payback time: Independent studies suggest it takes 15–20 years for a panel in Northern Europe to recoup the energy and cost invested in its production[^9].

Degradation: Panels lose ~0.5% of efficiency each year, meaning after 20 years, their output is down 10% or more[^10].

Hidden subsidies: Solar often looks cheap only because it is subsidised through feed-in tariffs, tax credits, and consumer levies. Remove subsidies, and the economics collapse[^11].


Implication: Solar is financially viable only under heavy government intervention, shifting costs to taxpayers and bill payers.

4. Environmental and Land-Use Impact

Land-hungry technology: Utility-scale solar requires ~5–10 acres per MW[^12]. Replacing a large coal or nuclear station would take tens of thousands of acres of farmland[^13].

Soil and biodiversity loss: Ground-mounted solar displaces agriculture, damages soils, increases runoff, and fragments habitats[^14].

End-of-life waste: Panels are difficult and expensive to recycle due to layered composites. By 2050, the world faces 78 million tonnes of solar waste, much of it hazardous[^15].


Implication: Far from being “green,” large-scale solar risks creating future waste crises and ecological damage.

5. Grid Instability and the Storage Illusion

Intermittency problem: Solar cannot be dispatched on demand. Grid operators must constantly balance supply and demand, and solar’s fluctuations destabilise the system[^16].

Storage limits: Current lithium-ion batteries provide 2–4 hours of backup at best, insufficient to cover night-time or seasonal gaps[^17]. Scaling battery storage to cover days or weeks would require materials and costs far beyond current feasibility[^18].

Curtailment costs: On sunny days, excess solar must often be curtailed (switched off) because the grid cannot absorb it, wasting both energy and money[^19].


Implication: Without reliable backup from nuclear, gas, or hydro, solar undermines grid stability.

6. Geopolitical Dependence

China’s dominance: Over 80% of global solar panel production comes from China, often in provinces powered by coal[^20].

Supply chain risks: Critical minerals such as polysilicon, rare earths, and silver are concentrated in politically unstable or adversarial nations[^21].

Strategic vulnerability: Relying on solar imports compromises energy sovereignty—swapping dependence on Middle Eastern oil for Chinese panels and materials[^22].


Implication: Far from guaranteeing independence, solar ties nations to fragile, foreign-controlled supply chains.

7. Conclusion – The Case for Solar as Supplemental Only

Solar power can play a role—but only as a supplemental, distributed source of electricity:

Best use case: Rooftop solar on homes, warehouses, and car parks, where it reduces local demand and offsets daytime consumption.

Wrong use case: Utility-scale fields covering farmland, promoted as replacements for baseload generation.


True energy security requires dispatchable, high-density sources like nuclear, gas, and hydro. Solar should remain at the margins—helpful in niche applications, but wholly unsuitable as the foundation of a reliable grid.

References

[^1]: International Energy Agency (IEA), Solar PV Manufacturing and Supply Chains, 2022.
[^2]: U.S. Department of Energy, Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Solar Photovoltaics, 2021.
[^3]: Fraunhofer ISE, Photovoltaics Report, 2023.
[^4]: Shockley, W., & Queisser, H. J., Detailed Balance Limit of Efficiency of p–n Junction Solar Cells, Journal of Applied Physics, 1961.
[^5]: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Best Research-Cell Efficiency Chart, 2024.
[^6]: UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES), 2022.
[^7]: National Grid ESO, Future Energy Scenarios, 2023.
[^8]: Lazard, Levelized Cost of Energy Analysis – Version 15.0, 2022.
[^9]: European Commission Joint Research Centre, PV Status Report, 2021.
[^10]: Jordan, D.C. & Kurtz, S.R., Photovoltaic Degradation Rates, Progress in Photovoltaics, 2013.
[^11]: Helm, D., Energy, the State, and the Market: British Energy Policy Since 1979, Oxford University Press, 2017.
[^12]: U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Land-Use Requirements for Solar Power Plants, 2013.
[^13]: Smil, V., Power Density: A Key to Understanding Energy Sources and Uses, MIT Press, 2015.
[^14]: Natural England, Solar Farm Development and Agricultural Land, 2020.
[^15]: International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), End-of-Life Management of Solar PV Panels, 2016.
[^16]: National Grid ESO, Winter Outlook Report, 2023.
[^17]: International Energy Agency (IEA), Global Energy Storage Outlook, 2022.
[^18]: BloombergNEF, Battery Storage Market Outlook, 2023.
[^19]: UK Parliament, Solar Power Curtailment in the UK, Briefing Paper, 2021.
[^20]: International Energy Agency (IEA), Renewable Energy Market Update, 2023.
[^21]: World Bank, Minerals for Climate Action: The Mineral Intensity of the Clean Energy Transition, 2020.
[^22]: U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, China’s Solar Industry and Global Supply Chains, 2021.