US solar power sector small but growing: Solar Thermal growing at 3.6% per year

US President Barack Obama speaks on his energy policies following a tour of the Copper Mountain Solar Project, the largest photovoltaic plant operating in the country in Boulder City, Nevada on March 21, 2012US President Barack Obama speaks on his energy policies following a tour of the Copper Mountain Solar Project in Boulder City, Nevada on March 21, 2012.  Solar panels cover the roof of a Sam's Club store in Glendora, California that was toured by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Wal-Mart officials before their press conference on Earth Day, April 22, 2009Solar panels cover the roof of a Sam's Club store in Glendora, California that was toured by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Wal-Mart officials before their press conference on Earth Day, April 22, 2009

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger speaks at the installation the last of 1,727 solar panels on the rooftop of the Staples Center sports complex in Los Angeles, California on October 28, 2008 California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger speaks at the installation the last of 1,727 solar panels on the rooftop of the Staples Center sports complex in Los Angeles on October 28, 2008  Solar power, only a minuscule part of the energy mix in the United States, is getting a boost from cheap panels, growing acceptance by large companies and chances for homeowners to rent solar systems.  Analysts expect a phenomenal growth for renewable solar power over the next two decades, after huge gains in the past two years: 60 percent growth in 2012 and 30 percent on top of that this year.  Heavily reliant on oil, natural gas, coal and nuclear, the United States only gets 12 percent of its power from renewables, of which solar is the smallest part, less than one percent.   But the sector is expanding faster than any. There's no question, says Charles Ebinger of the Brookings Institution, that solar energy "will continue to grow quite dramatically."   The US Energy Information Administration predicts that photovoltaics -- the semiconductor technology that converts sunlight into electricity -- will grow 11.6 percent a year through 2040. On top of that, it also predicts 3.6 percent annual growth for solar thermal energy, which uses vapor from water heated by the sun to drive turbines.

See rest of original article