Forecasting the Future Solar Energy Market

Intersolar North America, the premier solar industry exhibition and conference in North America for solar professionals to exchange information and develop business opportunities in the U.S. solar market, present three full days of paper presentations, panel discussions, and information on cutting edge technological advancements from leading industry executives, scientists and professors during its fourth annual conference in San Francisco. With registered exhibition visitors representing 62 countries and exhibiting companies from 30 countries, Intersolar North America provides a true global perspective of the solar industry, while focusing on the momentum and challenges facing the North American market.

Forecasting the Future Solar Market

As the solar market matures and focuses on maintaining its impressive growth, Intersolar North America cements its reputation as the place to gain valuable market insight from those on the front lines of the industry. Once again, Intersolar North America has secured a speaking line-up of distinguished leaders from across the globe.

This year spotlights technical trends that are shaping the solar industry. Several conference tracks focus on the development of high efficiency cells, advances in concentrating photovoltaics, and further improvements in thin film applications as well as organic cell research within the global PV industry. Feature panelists Dr. Ramesh from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Prof. Dr. Weber of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE join leading solar CEOs and discuss what’s next for the North American solar market during "The Future Of PV – A Market And Technology Outlook & CEO Panel" on Thursday, July 14 at 9:00 am PT.

Additionally, Intersolar North America provides insight on best practices and financing models for solar systems, critical components in ensuring the North American market continues to grow at a record-setting pace, en route to becoming the world’s largest solar market by 2015, as many experts forecast. An outline for the business and market environment of utility-scale PV in selected countries around the world are discussed in "PV Power Plants – Technology, Projects, Development & Financing" on Wednesday, July 13 at 9:00 am PT.

Diving Deep into the Technology

As companies vie for increased market share, technology developments are occurring at an ever-accelerating rate. These advancements in technology largely focus on products that boost energy harvest and decrease cost. With the expansion of the utility-scale solar market, concentrating photovoltaic and concentrating solar power technologies have emerged as attractive solar solutions in the United States. The latest technology is being discussed by the experts at "Concentrating Solar Technologies & Markets – CPV & CSP" on Thursday, July 14 at 9:00 am PT.

Cost reduction continues to be a topic of great importance. More efficient technology and manufacturing practices are critical to lowering cost for end users, thus ensuring that the solar industry’s strong growth trend continues. Gains in the Balance of Systems (BoS) segment are being discussed in "Balance of Systems-Concepts & Applications" on Tuesday, July 12 at 9:00 am PT. Another segment of particular interest is Crystalline Silicon, which represents the largest market share of PV technology. The latest information is being discussed in "Crystalline Silicon-Technological Advancements" on Tuesday, July 12 at 2:00 pm PT.

Focus on Forums

Intersolar North America offers a broad array of activities for visitors, from panels to podium presentations to the exhibition hall with more than 800 solar exhibitors from around the world taking place next door at the Moscone Center with the co-located SEMICON West. Additionally, this year’s conference features several forum discussions that include solar industry leaders offering their insight into the latest trends in the North American solar market.

The forums draw on the experiences of both established companies and companies now in their growth stage. During the "Utilities Forum" on Wednesday, July 13 at 2:00 pm PT, several utility companies are presenting their plans for increasing power generation from renewables and highlight what’s needed to bring more utility-scale solar projects online. Executives from upcoming companies in the solar industry will share the experiences, challenges and success stories with other business professionals on the current state and future direction of PV technology, solar thermal power plants as it pertains to these younger companies, during the "Growth Stage Companies Forum" on Thursday, July 14 at 2:00 pm PT.

Everything Under the Sun

Practical workshops and seminars, networking receptions and technology deep dives accompany the full conference program for Intersolar North America and offer the opportunity for visitors to take these industry conversations beyond the scope of the conference program.

Intersolar North America takes place annually in San Francisco’s Moscone Center. Since its establishment in 2008, the exhibition and conference have developed into the premier platform for the solar industry in North America. Intersolar North America focuses on photovoltaics and solar thermal technology and has quickly established itself among manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and service providers as an international industry meeting point. More than 800 exhibitors and over 22,000 trade visitors are expected in 2011 with the co-located SEMICON West. The conference and accompanying programs are catering to an expected 2,500 attendees.

Intersolar’s global event series spans three continents and features over 3,000 exhibitors and 100,000 visitors in 2011. With 20 years of experience, Intersolar uses its unparalleled knowledge to drive the development of solar markets around the world. Intersolar’s events in North America, Europe, India and China form a global network that uniquely brings together the most influential solar markets around the world.

www.intersolar.us/