Kiplinger's 5 Pillars of Renewable Energy +1- Distributed Efficiency Technology

SOLAR

• Size of industry:Worldwide: $29.6 billion U.S.: $3 billion, accounting for 0.4% of the nation's electricity
• Major players: First Solar, SunPower, China Sunergy (China), Suntech Power (China)
• Potential: Could provide 10% of the nation's electricity by 2025. Worldwide sales could grow to $81 billion by 2018.
• Problems: Solar energy wonÕt be cost-competitive with other forms of energy until 2015Ñtoday it relies heavily on subsidies. Also, growth depends heavily on the development of nationwide power grids.
  

WIND

• Size of industry:Worldwide: $51 billion- U.S.: $17 billion, accounting for 1.3% of the nation's electricity
• Major players: General Electric, Vestas (Denmark), Gamesa (Spain), Siemens (Germany), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (Japan)
• Potential: The industry seeks to produce 20% of U.S. electricity by 2030. Sales could hit $35 billion a year in a few years. Worldwide: $139 billion by 2018.
• Problems: Getting the electricity to major cities from remote wind farms will require billions for expanding the electrical grid.
  

GEOTHERMAL

• Size of industry:U.S.: $3 billion, accounting for 0.4% of the nation's electricity
• Major players: Ormat Technologies, Calpine, Siemens (Germany), Sierra Geothermal Power (Canada)
• Potential: The industry says it will double capacity in the U.S. in the next few years, perhaps aided by $440 million set aside for geothermal projects in the Obama administration's stimulus plan.
• Problems: Discovering heat sources is expensive, and industry infrastructure is still in development.
  

SOLID WASTE

• Size of industry:U.S.: 0.3% of power generation
• Major players: VeoliaEnvironnement (France), Waste Management, Covanta
• Potential: The industry, with 89 facilities in the U.S., is mature. Growth will be slow.
• Problems: Businesses -- which burn trash and generate methane gas from landfills -- must contend with "not in my backyard" resistance to new plants.
  

BIOFUELS

• Size of industry:Worldwide: $40 billionU.S.: $14 billion
• Major players: Poet,* Archer Daniels Midland, Cargill,* Valero Energy, Cosan (Brazil)
• Potential: Some analysts estimate that the industry will grow to more than $80 billion worldwide by 2017. The industry is on the verge of breakthroughs that will allow the use of many other biofuel sources beyond corn and sugar.
• Problems: Critics say biofuels put too much demand on food sources and do little or nothing to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases.
  

Note: Figures are for 2008. *Privately held. Sources: American Wind Energy Association, Clean Edge, Kiplinger's Biofuels Market Alert, Geothermal Energy Association, Integrated Waste Services Association.

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I want to add a Sixth Pillar:

DETech

Distributed Efficiency Technology ( DETech)

DETech - is the reduction of power demand for doing the same things we are doing now. There are a number of Energy Service Companies ( ESCOs ) that take existing commercial enrterprises, which use more than a third of US energy requirements, and implementing technology that reduces demand, including distributed power generation, which saves power lost in transmitting power from producer to user. It can be solar or Cleatech generation.

-Editor