Why China Is Crushing the U.S. in Solar Energy
By any objective measure, China is crushing the U.S. in the business of solar energy. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China had installed 78 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity by the end of 2016, and after a torrid installation pace in 2017 it may exit this year with around 123 GW, or enough to power the consumption of 20.2 million U.S. homes. The U.S. ended 2016 with 40 GW of solar installed and is expected to install about 12 GW this year for around 52 GW by year-end.
On the manufacturing side, there's no question China has a massive lead over the U.S., particularly after Suniva and SolarWorld, two of the biggest solar manufacturers in the U.S., went bankrupt earlier this year. The problem for the U.S. is, it may be hard to ever catch up to China's solar domination.
Image source: Getty Images.
Source: Fool.com
