Holding a candle to innovation in concentrating solar power technologies: A study drawing on patent data

Improved understanding of the innovative pathways of renewable energy technologies is vital if we are to make the transition to a low carbon economy. This study presents new evidence on innovation and industry dynamics in concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies. Though CSP is undergoing a renaissance, existing innovation studies have explored innovative activity in solar technologies in general, ignoring the major differences between solar photovoltaic and CSP technologies. This study, based on patent data, examines the level and dynamics of innovative activity in CSP between 1978 and 2004. Our unique contribution, based on engineering expertise and detailed datawork, is a classification system mapping CSP technologies to the International Patent Classification (IPC) system. The innovation performance of CSP is found to be surprisingly weak compared to the patent boom in other green technologies. Performance was strong around 1980 before falling dramatically, and has only recently begun to show signs of recovery. Innovation and R&D are concentrated in high-tech countries; the US, Germany and Japan, which do not necessarily have high domestic CSP potential. Large CSP potential is, therefore, not a sufficient condition for innovation. Innovators must possess economic and scientific capabilities. ► We develop a new classification system which allows us to map innovation in CSP technologies to the International Patent Classification System. ► Evidence of innovation patterns in concentrating solar power technologies is presented. ► Innovation performance in CSP is surprisingly weak compared to patenting in other green technologies, despite its strong potential as a low carbon power generation technology.