£5 Million Project Launched To Make Solar PV Cost Effective In Ten Years

31st October 2007

The Carbon Trust has unveiled a new research and development programme worth at least £5 million that aims to unlock the potential of organic photovoltaic (PV) technology to deliver solar energy at radically lower costs.

The programme will be delivered by the Carbon Trust’s preferred partners - the University of Cambridge and The Technology Partnership (TTP) - with the objective of turning solar PV into a cost effective energy source within ten years. The project aims to deploy more than 1GW of organic PV by 2017, which could deliver CO² savings of more than 1 million tonnes per year. It will also build on the UK’s role in the global organic PV market, with the potential to help the UK take a lead in this exciting new area.

The organic PV systems created by the Carbon Trust’s programme will be cheaper and simpler to implement than currently possible, which will help to make PV technology widely available and increase its take up. The sheets of PV film, made from a polymer base, will be able to sit on a wide range of surfaces, including windows or building roofs, to capture solar energy – the largest energy flow in our ecosystem. Simple applications could also include chargers for mobile telephone or laptop computers. The Carbon Trust’s investment will cover the initial three years of a longer development process.

Philip Wolfe, chief executive of the Renewable Energy Association, commented on the launch:

"Photovoltaics offer dramatic potential for cost reductions, with organic cells one of several options for delivering power at grid prices. It will be truly exciting if the Carbon Trust can help make this a world competitive technology from a UK base."

For further information, please visit www.carbontrust.co.uk/directedresearch

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