Pv Cells

PHOTOVOLTAIC SOLAR ENERGY

Development and current research

European Commission

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A great deal of additional information on the European Union is available on the Internet. It can be accessed through the Europa server (http://europa.eu). Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Union, 2009 ISBN 978-92-79-10644-6 doi: 10.2768/38305 © European Communities, 2009 Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. Printed in Belgium PRINTED ON WHITE CHLORINE-FREE PAPER

Foreword

I

t is with great pleasure that we present this synopsis – – Photovoltaic solar energy: development and current research – illustrating the results of various

emissions from energy systems and strengthen its industrial basis, thus also creating new skilled jobs. In this context, photovoltaics offers a key solution due to its unique features. Photovoltaic technology is safe, clean, robust and proven to be efficient and highly scalable. Photovoltaics is easy to introduce and implement all over the world, in both developed and developing countries. In addition, photovoltaics is already associated with

projects carried out under the European Union (EU) Framework Programmes for Research, Technological Development and Demonstration Activities. The impressive progress of the photovoltaic sector in recent years is a clear justification for this publication. The European Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan – proposed by the European Commission in order to accelerate the availability of low-carbon energy technologies – has already established the European Solar Initiative, as one of the industrial initiatives in the six energy sectors most...