As building material, how are you going to waterproof or even join solar panels together to actually be useful as a roof or wall covering?
Also FYI - The cheapest siding you can get at your box hardware store is ~$1.30/sf (LP Smartside)
Also FYI - The cheapest siding you can get at your box hardware store is ~$1.30/sf (LP Smartside)
Siding would require a different style of mounting, but it's certainly not impossible. Nobody is really looking to do this at the moment, but give it 5-10 years and we may see more. Solar roofs have been mostly a boondoggle so far, but nobody has seriously tried them. Tesla/Musk don't count for "serious" on that axis of development.
Similarly, I saw one a few weeks ago about solar fences becoming very popular in Germany and England because of how cheap solar panels are getting. It's valid to hang them vertically even though it is suboptimal for power generation because the panels are so cheap.
https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/solar-balconies-are-booming-...
I'd much prefer a fence to rooftop solar.