Solarpunk is happening in Africa • Hacker News Board

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#251

Post by stickfigure » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:08 AM UTC

mensetmanusman wrote: post #241

epolanski wrote: post #203

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At this point this is a cliche. There's tons of countries with much cheaper labor. The reasons we build in china are not related to cheap labor, this hasn't been the case from quite some time.

The older generation made huge sacrifices with no wage growth because the CCP kept the currency low. This allowed for China to choose industries it would dominate outside of economic forces. It chose to dominate solar and was allowed to sell panels below raw materials cost in order to kill competition. In one hand it’s good for world solar, on the other hand this has helped cause the rise of the far right all over th…

> The older generation made huge sacrifices with no wage growth

...and poured their savings into the sole investment available, real estate, creating the largest bubble the world has ever seen...

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#252

Post by discordance » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:08 AM UTC

pfdietz wrote: post #144

noosphr wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It absolutely does not. But having electricity 13 days every two weeks is much better than not having it at all. This isn't about China building out their grid with an over capacity factor of 200% so they can keep everything running even if rain, sun and wind all fail for months on end. This is a developing county getting to the point they can charge mobile phones consistently.

When I go to https://model.energy/ and ask it to solve for providing steady output in China from 100% renewable energy (wind/solar/battery/hydrogen) at minimum cost using 2030 cost assumptions and 2011 weather data, the solar curtailment is just 7.3% (and most of the energy is coming from solar, not wind). If I remove hydrogen and solve again, solar curtailment increases to 16.7%. "200% overcapacity" is completely bo…

Try that again with 99% renewable and it becomes much more reasonable with regards to over overcapacity. 1% non-renewable would be a very good outcome.

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#253

Post by bergie » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:10 AM UTC

epistasis wrote: post #25

interstice wrote: post #12

Every time I see $/watt charts like this I just want a single link to buy something at that price. 20c/watt? Yes please, _where_.

These prices are outside of the US, because the US has massive tariffs. But prices like $0.28/W are quite achievable, here's a random link: https://signaturesolar.com/waaree-405w-pallet-mono-31-panels... The global average price for solar panels is $0.09/W in 2025. I think India, which also has tariffs to stimulate local factories, is around $0.18/W. Though at these prices you're likely going to be paying nearly as m…

Here in Colombia we noticed that a lot of bars and such have awnings built out of solar panels. Cheap, durable, and makes power.

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#254

Post by bdangubic » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:15 AM UTC

nandomrumber wrote: post #198

epistasis wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Talking about degrees of slavery is decidedly not cool. If you have documentation of iPhone supply chain using forced labor like I linked to, please do share rather than trying to be morally ambiguous.

You linked to a four and a half year old news article from a highly politicised source. I wouldn’t call that “documentation”.

buuuut his source is bold enough to fake trump speeches - that takes balls

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/11/03/bbc-report-revea...

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#255

Post by petesergeant » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:16 AM UTC

mensetmanusman wrote: post #244

w10-1 wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Thanks to all the entrepreneurs and engineers over the past decades Hat tip also to China's ideological commitment to independence from external oil supplies, as nicely coupled to reducing pollution and greenwashing their image. It's their citizens who sacrifice to make solar power cheap enough.

[flagged]

Right, but you can switch an EV to a clean source of energy in the future, which you can't do with a petrol car (until carbon-capture fuel becomes viable)

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#256

Post by nandomrumber » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:16 AM UTC

pantalaimon wrote: post #232

nandomrumber wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any way that is more fair for the end user. Why should a solar generator, who has virtually zero inputs, demand the same rate as a gas or coal generator who’s costs are dominated by inputs? Where’s the promised savings to the end user? That’s right, there aren’t any. And people bang on about solar being cheaper. No it isn’t. Solar electricity is the same price as gas peaker-plant electricity. Everywhere I’ve looked,…

If you can make a great profit from solar, you are incentivised to build more of it for an even greater profit. Soon there is so much solar that you don't need the expensive gas most of the time.

Isn’t that a self defeating loop.

Great profit to be had from solar because of expensive gas.

Let’s put aside that this isn’t good for the end user, as it openly admits the whole point of solar is great profit, rather than savings for the end user.

Soon there’s no need for the expensive gas.

Where’s your profit margin not?

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#257

Post by Loughla » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:17 AM UTC

epistasis wrote: post #9

The grid is HUGELY expensive, an absolutely massive cost for our electricity. And it would still be expensive in a well-regulated environment where you can quickly and easily get permission to build, without, say, voter ballot propositions illegally blocking a transmission line for years [1]. Here in the US we have a very very poorly regulated environment for adding to our grid, it moves slower than molasses and ther…

>The advent of a new transmission route in the US these days is pretty much a miracle event.

Having had three major transmission lines for energy (two electric one gas) come through the area I live in the last 8 years, this is just false.

In the US it's not hard to get it done as long as you have mountains of cash and a state willing to imminent domain people.

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#258

Post by mothballed » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:17 AM UTC

_ea1k wrote: post #226

mothballed wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Rural AZ >"my power company wouldn't let me use grid-tied solar without it being permitted." ? Nah they didn't give a shit what I connected it to. I literally stubbed a 200 amp service entrance on vacant land then just went wild connecting it to whatever I like. I shot the shit with their engineer when they ran secondary off the power pole and that was it, I've never seen them again. > no government inspectors are co…

What law governs this? I'm familiar with a lot of restrictions on grid-tie systems, but I've never heard of it being this strict for something that could (presumably) be done without a back feed. I mean, are you saying that someone sticking up a few panels+batteries to run an electric fence, gate, and camera system has to have permits? This all seems strange.

For example, here is the one that to install certain PV you need permit with roof and building plan, which is impossible on my house because I have none (literally built my roof off the cuff after thumbing IRC).

https://www.azleg.gov/ars/11/00323.htm

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#259

Post by bdangubic » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:18 AM UTC

vkou wrote: post #161

bdangubic wrote: post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I think it's a bit different nice to discuss the degrees of slavery, little slavery is cool, little more perhaps not as much…

Here in the US, the thirteenth amendment seems to think that a little slavery is cool. As I understand it, much of the rest of the world has similar views, but I'm sure this varies a bit from country to country. It's just that in the 21st century, we prefer to use some less-upsetting euphemism to refer to the practice domestically.

fascinating reading here on HN every now again someone taking a moral high ground on some random shit while actively using products and services of some of the most evil corporations in the history of mankind

Re: Solarpunk is happening in Africa

#260

Post by chrismsimpson » Thu, Nov 06, 2025, 1:27 AM UTC

stickfigure wrote: post #251

mensetmanusman wrote: post #241

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The older generation made huge sacrifices with no wage growth because the CCP kept the currency low. This allowed for China to choose industries it would dominate outside of economic forces. It chose to dominate solar and was allowed to sell panels below raw materials cost in order to kill competition. In one hand it’s good for world solar, on the other hand this has helped cause the rise of the far right all over th…

> The older generation made huge sacrifices with no wage growth ...and poured their savings into the sole investment available, real estate, creating the largest bubble the world has ever seen...

AI: hold my beer