Sustainability Targets for SolarCity - Case Study Example

The paper "Sustainability Targets for SolarCity" is a perfect example of a macro & microeconomics case study. The energy industry is considered a pivotal industry around which most other industries of a country revolve. The reason for this assertion is that most other industries that operate in a country for the economic fulfilment of the country depend on effective energy generation to become operational (Ramana, 2011). In the United States (US), the energy industry is often referred to as the backbone of the industrial revolution and the cornerstone on which industrialisation has strived for decades (Daintith & Hancher, 2014).

The aim of the report is to have a thorough industry analysis that makes it possible to find the current market factors that affect organisations and companies operating in the energy generation industry, with particular emphasis on solar energy generation. This aim is necessitated against the backdrop of the growing national demand for energy in the US to serve various domestic and commercial purposes (Kieltyka, 2009). With a critical analysis of the industry, therefore, it will be possible to ascertain the current strengths and opportunities of the industry that helps it fulfil this demand, as well as weaknesses and threats that must be overcome in making the industry a result-oriented one.

In order to achieve the aim of this report, the energy generation industry for the US will be analysed by focusing on the structure of the industry, its current and future market structure, the effect of the structure on strategy decisions, the contribution of the industry to national economic development, as well as the sustainability targets of SolarCity as a major player in the solar energy generation sector.Analysis of the structure of the solar energy generation industry of US Current market structure of the industry Van Cayseele (1998) defines the market structure of an industry as the number of firms that produce identical products which are considered homogeneous.

In this, there are several firms in the US that are recognised by the Energy Information Administration as service providers of solar energy in the country. Some of the major listed solar energy companies in the US include Applied Solar, BP Solar, EIQ Energy, Inc., Global Solar Energy, Sharp Solar, and SolarCity (Ramana, 2011).