Three little charts and the coming solar revolution.

Solar energy is getting cheaper. It is becoming more efficient. These trends are accelerating. And that’s leading to rapidly growing numbers of new installations.

Look:

Source: Bloomberg

The price of solar energy has collapsed. That’s led to an explosion of new installations.

The reason those trends appear so dramatic is because the numbers go back forty years. But narrow your focus to the last few years and the trend is the same. Look:

The price per watt of electricity generated by solar has more than halved in the last decade. Installations have increased six fold since 2010. 

The chart tells the story. Falling prices allow increasing numbers of people to use solar energy as a viable energy source. 

And that’s exactly what they’ve been doing:

These figures are from 2014 (the latest data set available through the Solar Energy Industry Association). What the above chart shows is the percentage of new energy installations coming on stream broken down by sector. Solar energy outstripped every other new supply.

All three charts tell the same story. The trends at work in the solar industry right now are driving it towards a moment of critical mass. In fact, some would say we’ve already hit that point. Consider:

• Since 2010, Italy has increased its solar capacity by over 410%.
• In 2014, Germany acquired 6.9% of its entire energy needs from solar.
• But that’s nothing compared to the USA. Between 2004 and 2014, American capacity increased 40 times over as the chart below proves.

Source: Data from US Energy Information Administration’s Monthly Energy Review 

And the trend is accelerating. By the end of this year, US capacity is expected todouble again. 

That’s an increase of 7,900% in just 12 years. 

We’re at a critical point. Rapidly improving technology and funding from governments and tech firms worldwide are combining to create the kind of opportunity you have to consider. 

How best to take it?