Solar energy<\/strong> has left its image of a niche energy source far behind and is becoming the number one or number two contributor to new electricity capacity additions in the USA and the other major developed countries. Though China<\/strong> added the most amount of electric capacity in 2013 with solar energy adding a massive 12 GW<\/strong>, it still remained far behind coal<\/a>, gas and other sources. The reason is that China is adding electric capacity like crazy and is using all sources of energy.<\/p>\n USA<\/strong> added around 13 GW of total electric capacity in 2013, with around 22% being contributed by solar energy<\/em> alone. We except that the 2.2 GW of solar energy will continue to grow rapidly and it will soon overtake natural gas, as the leading contributor of electric generating capacity in the USA. Natural gas prices are no longer super cheap as they were earlier at $2\/mmbtu and have more than doubled in the last couple of years.<\/p>\n A lot of the thermal capacity was being replaced by natural gas. This trend will slow down if not stop, as thermal power becomes more competitive in prices with natural gas. Solar Energy prices are falling drastically. Per watt installed prices have fallen by half in the last 5 years. The fixed 25 year pricing, the positive green effect and government subsidies<\/em><\/strong> are all pushing solar energy forward.<\/p>\n