According to this 2013 article, which is very vague too. Had mentioned that up until 2010. The solar panel making manufacturing had consumed more energy than its products produced. And that’s with the lower watt per meter surface area. Example, an 1 square meter panel in 2010 on average produced 120 to 150 watts. Fast forward to 2017, that same 1 square meter panel can produce 250 to 320 watts.

Not only are they producing more watts per sq meter, but they are using less material to build. And as stated in the article, probably different material too.

I don’t have the figures when a PV panel will produce enough electricity that it had basically “zeroed” its manufacturing process to be a “green” product. But I can tell you this... it will reach that point. Where as coal will never reach that point. Once coal is burned, it’s gone. It can never be reproduced to be burned again.

All the nay sayers about how the PV panels are just as bad as coal. Do not look at the schem of things. PV panels will produce power for a couple of decades before losing 10 to 15% of its ability to produce. Coal, well it lost its ability to produce once its burned.

Soooo back to this article. By 2020, the solar panel manufacturing will not only reached the “zeroed” mark of using more electricity that its products produced. But it would be paying it back... again, something that coal will never be able to do.

[Link: popsci.com]

KOT