A recent Greenpeace US publication, ‘Losing the clean energy race: how the US can retake the lead and solve global warming’ by Janet Sawin, presents an intriguing picture of energy sources in which America may be a major player, but is amazingly, not actually dominant. Similar findings in the past, in high technology niche industries, such as compound semiconductor raw materials, authored by bodies such as the US Department of Defense, and combined with some hefty million dollar contracts, would in the space of a few years, suddenly find US companies overtaking the specialist sector leaders. But here, unless such an authority as the Department of Defense can be persuaded to fling its considerable financial muscle behind renewables, solar for one will be an open market for Asian and European companies to play in and dominate.