The US Department of Energy's (DOE, Washington, DC) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL, Golden, CO) announced 19 universities and 14 companies expected to receive a total of $40.0 million in funding for research and development into thin-film photovoltaic cells.
"Each of these awards makes possible a research and development direction that could significantly cut the cost of solar electricity," said Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham. "With lowered costs, solar energy's potential can be fully realized, increasing its contribution to our national energy security and helping our environment. Developing cutting-edge solar cell technologies also helps the US photovoltaics industry maintain its position against tough foreign competition in this increasingly lucrative world market."
National research teams formed as a result of these awards will perform collaborative research on key research problems. The teams consist of university, industry and NREL researchers.
