Turning the Moon into Earth's solar plant

Charlie Osborne has a SmartPlanet article about solar power:

We are used to harnessing the Sun's power on Earth but, once fossil fuels dwindle, we are still likely to be left with an energy shortfall. However, if a Japanese company's dreams are realized, real estate on the Moon could provide us with solar energy for generations to come.
The Shimizu Corporation has proposed a strip of solar cells eleven thousand miles long on the Moon's surface. The construction of the solar cells, dubbed the "lunar ring", would take decades; involving material transport from Earth of ceramics, water, oxygen, glass, and concrete, as well as the construction of robots to operate the ring alongside astronauts.
Microwave and laser energy collected from the lunar ring will then be beamed to energy conversion facilities on our planet, where semiconductors and inverters will convert the energy to clean electricity in the grid. As a result, households and businesses will have access to the space-collected resources, according to the firm.

Rico says it's no more delusional than a myriad other ideas, just not cheap... (As a commenter pointed out, there's a little problem with micrometeorites that won't burn up, given the Moon's lack of atmosphere, but there's enough material already on the Moon to provide all the ceramics and glass they'd need.) Consider it an interesting boondoggle...