Compare Hong Kong against US situation...(In English)

HK- Solar Energy

The annual mean daily global solar radiation for Hong Kong is 14.46 MJ/m2 but a variety of factors inhibit this resource from being utilised: the density of population and high-rise buildings creates difficulties in siting installations and furthermore, the typhoons the country is subject to raise costs associated with the anchorage of such installations; the comparatively low demand for heating energy; the lack of an indigenous solar equipment manufacturing industry necessitates the importation of high-priced (versus savings achieved) solar equipment; the relatively slow return on investment in solar installations is incompatible with the demand for fast payback terms by the building industry.

However, the findings from a Consultancy Study on the Potential Applications of Renewable Energy in Hong Kong commissioned by HKSAR Government suggested that the resource potential for PV power in Hong Kong is 5 944 GWh/yr. This study report can be found at http://www.emsd.gov.hk/emsd/e_download/ wnew/stage1_report.pdf.
Because Hong Kong is largely urbanised, most of the large solar thermal applications have, to date, been government projects installed in rural areas or new towns. Schemes to heat water either directly or indirectly have been installed in a swimming pool, slaughterhouse, prison, hospital, military camp and public bathhouses.

The country has been successful in deploying PV applications to supply electrical power to the monitoring equipment of automatic weather stations in remote locations and approximately 60% of the battery-operated aids to navigation are now powered by solar PV.

Two universities are currently carrying out research on building-integrated PV (BIPV) systems as the Government believes this concept could be incorporated into the facades, roofs and shading devices of buildings. Two grid-connected building-integrated PV systems with a total capacity of 73 kW have already been installed.
In the coming 3 years planned solar energy projects include (a) a solar hot water supply system with 80 m2 of collector panels and (b) various PV projects with a total installed capacity of 1 800 kW.

There is a hybrid renewable energy system on a remote island that includes a 3.3 kW PV system plus a 400 l solar thermal hot water system (about 1 kW equivalent).