Solar Energy 2009

I am in Anaheim this week for Solar Power International 2009. This is a three day event that has over 900 vendors and 25,000 attendees. It reminds me of a carnival. You have the sideshows, the pithcmen, and the hucksters, the only thing missing is the rides and Disney is just down the street.

This may not be totally true but it is the feeling I get walking around the convention center. I spoke with a fellow Economic Developer and he said that probably less than 20% of the companies showing at the conference will be in business within two years. That is probably not unusual for and emerging industry but it certainly makes my job tougher. Who do you try to recruit? The PV manufacturer? They are running at less than 50% capacity and there will probably be a major consolidation in the offing. A solar farm? This involves huge investment, a partner to buy the power and they are very dependent on tax credits. It is a difficult market to handicap. I have another day tomorrow and we have about 15 appointments, maybe I can at least find a cotton candy vendor.