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On the surface, solar still looks to be but a drop in the ocean of power generation. Cumulative global capacity for solar by the end of 2010 stood at about 37 GW, a mere 0.78% of the overall total electricity capacity of 4,742 GW. And factor in the lower-than-average capacity factor of 20-25% for photovoltaics (PV), the dominant solar technology by far, and solar's contribution to global electricity generation becomes smaller still.
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Sahil Mehta (2011) studied this question.
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