Dow Chemical has done a 180 on its hesitance to invest in solar panel research and development. Where a few years ago the Chief Executive stated that they had no intention of entering the solar power industry, now they are investing in solar cells.

The new concept that has intrigued Dow is the use of thin-film solar cells as roofing shingles. Dow sees the thin-film solar panels, which are called Powerhouse and look like ordinary shingles, as something that will be accepted by the mass market.

Dow Chemical’s Chief Technology Officier, William Banholzer, is so confident in the future of Powerhouse solar panels that he expects the market for this sort of technology to be $5 billion by 2015 and stated that “someday Dow would be a solar company that happens to make chemicals.”