Australia is in a “global race” to stake a claim in the booming solar manufacture market – a supply chain spanning polysilicon, wafers, cells and modules that in 2021 was valued in excess of $US40 billion, an increase of more than 70% from 2020.

At the moment, China has an iron grip on the market, with a share in all of the manufacturing stages of solar panels exceeding 80%. According to the China Photovoltaic Industry Association, the nation’s annual export of solar PV products surpassed $US51 billion in 2022 – a year-on-year increase of 80.3%.

But can Australia muscle its way in?

Wyatt Roy, a former member of the federal Coalition government – and minister for innovation under Malcolm Turnbull – believes it can. And in his current role of strategic advisor to Sydney-based PV innovator and manufacturing start-up SunDrive Solar, Roy is doing his bit to bring some of those global solar billions home.

“You know, Australians love to talk ourselves down. But we literally invented modern solar technology,” Roy told One Step Off The Grid’s Solar Insiders Podcast this week.

“I think last year, globally, there was about $50 billion of revenue in the solar industry, essentially using IP from Australia.

“Unfortunately, very little value of that today is captured in Australia. As we know, 85 to 90% of the world’s solar panels are now manufactured in China. We’re very determined to change that.”