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Production Assessment

To assess the financial viability of production this study investigates the costs associated with all components to construct the concentrator and the energy required to manufacture each system. Marginal costs will be determined by maximum production efficiency levels, which will be limited by spatial constraints of the production facility. State incentives will be sought to subsidize manufacturing of the Fresnel Solar Photovoltaic Energy System (F-SPES) within the borders of New York State. In state production of this technology could potentially lead to increased subsidation to consumers by virtue of the per-watt rebate program currently offered by the New York State Energy Research and Demonstration Authority (NYSERDA). This program currently subsidizes $4.00 to $4.50 per watt of solar photovoltaic installations costs in NY State.

Subsidation of the F-SPES to consumers would likely make the technology cost-competitive, and possibly more inexpensive than any currently available form of renewable energy for commercial or industrial facilities. A comparable technology comparison study will be performed to specifically identify cost-competitive technologies currently available. Regardless, benefits of this technology will likely far outweigh benefits of existing technologies due to the adaptability of the F-SPES. An example of this adaptability is the dual-energy production capacity of the F-SPES in the sense that depending on particular needs, the system could provide heat, electricity, or both. Another advantage is the fact that a system such as proposed has the characteristic of being over 100 times more efficient than solar arrays of the same dimensions, meaning that they will be inherently less expensive, and will take less space to produce the same amount of energy. Further advantages and characteristics will be examined more closely in proceeding sections.