U S solar industry unveils guidelines to free supply chain of forced labor reuters.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from reuters.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
During President Joe Bidenâs first week in office he signed an executive order directing the federal government to, where possible, procure goods and services within the U.S. before turning abroad. Later, when he announced his $2 trillion American Jobs Plan in Pittsburgh in March, the president called for investing $100 billion in solar and other forms of renewable energy.
These are good ambitions, but there is a conflict.
Polysilicon is a key material in the manufacturing of solar panels. Itâs the substance that generates electricity from sunlight. The global solar sector has concentrated about 40% of its polysilicon production in the Xinjiang province of China, which is under scrutiny for human rights violations including forced labor and âre-education campsâ for its Uighur Muslim population.
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Future looks bright for US solar
Solar PV again made the greatest contribution to new capacity last year, and the probable extension of policy incentives will help the sector thrive
The US solar industry installed over 19GW of capacity in 2020 and is on track to add a further 324GW by 2031 to reach a total of 419GW, according to analysis by the US Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and consultancy Wood Mackenzie.
Solar PV accounted for the greatest contribution to power generation capacity in the US for the second successive year due to falling costs and ongoing policy incentives.
The 2031 forecast is based only on already-announced policies and could therefore be an underestimate. If the Biden administration legislates for more long-term incentives, which would be in line with its prioritisation of the climate agenda, the estimates would increase further.