DOE awards $3.4 million to PV materials provider Innovalight as part of SunShot initiative

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 21:52 (PV-Tech)

The US Department of Energy has selected Innovalight for $3.4 million of funding as part of the agency?s SunShot initiative. The funds will go toward efforts to accelerate the development and production of the company?s silicon ink material and processes for high-efficiency solar cells at its operations in Sunnyvale in Northern California?s Silicon Valley. Read more

Inventux improves thin-film modules: Finalist in Deutscher Gründerpreis

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 17:51 (PV-Tech)

Micromorph thin-film module manufacturer, Inventux Technologies has boosted the yield of its modules by reducing edge stripping, which is said to provide a larger effective surface area. Other improvements were achieved with the use of white coloured reflector film, leading to positive performance tolerances of -0/+5 watts. Inventux advertises its X-Series modules as achieving 10% conversion efficiencies. Read more

Slovenian PV producer BISOL announces office opening in Germany

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 16:28 (Solarserver)

BISOL (Prebold, Slovenia) a European producer of premium quality photovoltaic (PV) modules, continues to expand its international sales activities by opening a representative office in Staufenberg, Germany. Local presence in the world?s most important PV market will enable the company to support its growth even better, BISOL emphasizes in a press release. Read more

IBC SOLAR launches new solar photovoltaic park in the German State of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 16:22 (Solarserver)

With a ground-breaking ceremony on May 17th, photovoltaics (PV) specialist IBC SOLAR AG (Bad Staffelstein, Germany) officially started construction works at the site of the Sukow Solar Park in the German state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania. The solar PV plant covering a total area of 31 hectares is planned to be completely installed in August, 2011. With an effective output of slightly more than 11 MWp, the solar park will be among the largest installations in the region. Read more

Conergy brings 12 years of experience to installer training in the UK

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 14:06 (Solarpowerportal)

Bringing over 12 years of experience to the UK solar industry, German solar equipment manufacturer Conergy is to offer expert training to budding installers, sharing its knowledge within the UK by offering installation companies and trade businesses extensive training opportunities. The teaching program covers both technical theory and practical experience. Read more

IBEW condemns Ontario Conservatives for threatening feed-in tariff

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 13:23 (Solarserver)

On May 18th, 2011, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Construction Council of Ontario (IBEW-CCO) denounced Ontario Conservative Leader Tim Hudak's statement that he would dismantle the Canadian province's feed-in tariff if his party is elected. The IBEW states that such a move could destroy thousands of jobs, estimating that the feed-in tariff and Green Energy Act have resulted in "several million" person-hours of construction work. Read more

German PV producer Solarion AG starts construction of the new plant in Zwenkau near Leipzig; Photovoltaic specialist invests EUR 40 million

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 13:20 (Solarserver)

With a ground breaking ceremony Solarion AG on May 18th, 2011 started the construction of an integrated solar cell and module factory in the presence of the Saxony State Minister of Economic Affairs, Labor and Transport, Sven Morlok. On a three hectares site in the new industrial park Zwenkau-South (section of the industrial park Leipzig-South) Solarion?s first production facility for mass manufacturing of thin-film solar cells and modules is being constructed. Read more

EMPA acheives world record of 18.7% efficiency with flexible CIGS solar cells

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 13:12 (Solarserver)

On May 19th, 2011, researchers at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research (EMPA, Switzerland) announced that they have reached a new world record of 18.7% efficiency with flexible copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) solar photovoltaic (PV) cells. This efficiency has been verified by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (Freiburg, Germany), and is much higher than the previous record of 17.6% set by the same team in June 2010. Read more

GTM Research: Concentrating photovoltaic technology to reach 1 GW by 2015

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 12:50 (Solarserver)

On May 16th, 2011, Greentech Media (GTM) Research (Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.) released a report stating that concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) technology is breaking through into the utility-scale solar market, and forecasting that new CPV installations will grow to more than 1 GW by 2015. GTM Research states that providing developers with superior economics is a driving force in winning project bids, noting that under the right circumstances CPV can provide a lower levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) over non-concentrating solar photovoltaics (PV). Read more

Western Australia to halve feed-in tariff rates

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 12:48 (Solarserver)

The Government of Western Australia has announced that it will reduce the state's feed-in tariff to AUD 0.20/kWh (USD 0.21/kWh) for all applications received after July 1st, 2011, from its current rate of AUD 0.40/kWh (USD 0.43/kWh). The Government also announced that the program will end when the total capacity of renewable energy installed under the program reaches 150 MW. Read more

Photovoltaic production technology: Schmid to supply 60 MW module line to Canadian Magnum Pv

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 12:41 (Solarserver)

On May 18th, 2011, Gebr. Schmid GmbH + Co. (Tübingen, Germany) announced that it has entered the North American market with the sale of a solar photovoltaic (PV) module line with an annual output of 60 MW to Magnum Pv (Brampton, Canada). The first Schmid line will be delivered to Brampton, Canada in September 2011, and Schmid states that the first modules could be produced on the system as early as mid-October 2011. Read more

Empa research team sets new flexible CIGS efficiency record

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 0:05 (PV-Tech)

A team of scientists at Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, led by Ayodhya Tiwari, has broken their own conversion efficiency record for flexible CIGS solar cells with an 18.7% efficiency measurement. The team previously set the 17.6% record in June 2010 and has had its new record independently certified by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems in Freiburg, Germany. Read more

Project launched to develop, build 20MW PV power plant on grounds around Maryland prison

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 23:49 (PV-Tech)

Plans are in the works to develop and build a 20MW solar PV power plant on property surrounding the Maryland Correctional Institution outside of Hagerstown. The project would be the largest commercial solar facility in the state. Read more

Chevron Energy Solutions completes 7.1MW of solar installations for Northern California schools unit

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 21:06 (PV-Tech)

Chevron Energy Solutions has completed the construction for a 7.1MW of PV installations for the East Side Union High School District in San Jose, CA, a project that?s called the largest K-12 solar and energy efficiency program in the US. The program is expected to generate $43 million in savings through a 7.1 MW solar and energy efficiency project on 13 sites. Read more

LDK Solar sticks to financial guidance; sees Q1 revenues in $745 million to $755 million range

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 19:46 (PV-Tech)

LDK Solar is sticking to its previous financial guidance, issued on April 26, for both the first-quarter and the full-year 2011, seeing quarterly revenues in the $745 million to $755 million range (down from Q4 2010?s $920.9 million) and annual sales between $3.5 billion and $3.7 billion (up from 2010?s $2.5 billion). The vertically integrated solar manufacturer also holds to its forecast of wafer shipments coming in at 625-635MW for the quarter and 2.7-2.9GW for the year. Read more

PV installation red tape in Greece reduced

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 17:28 (PV-Tech)

A common criticism of installing PV systems, large and small in Greece has been the bureaucratic red tape that had cased many projects to be delayed by several years, limiting the appeal of the country?s FiT and resulting in a standstill for most projects. According to BSW-Solar and PV LEGAL, concerted efforts to unwind the red tape, have had some significant success recently. Read more

Rehm Thermal Systems offers extensive process support at new facility in China

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 16:55 (PV-Tech)

PV equipment supplier, Rehm Thermal Systems is offering a wide range of support services to PV manufacturers in China and Asia in general, having recently opened its first Process Development Centre in Suzhou, China. Read more

Huge Growth Expected for North American Solar Industry

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 15:45 (Renewable Energy World)

President Obama recently stated in his 2011 State of the Union Address: "Instead of subsidizing yesterday's energy, let's invest in tomorrow's." Shortly thereafter DOE secretary Chu launched the SunShot initiative, geared at research to drive down the costs of solar PV aggressively. Read more

SolarReserve receives DOE loan guarantee commitment for 110MW Nevada system (corrected)

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 14:05 (PV-Tech)

SolarReserve has secured a US$737 million conditional loan guarantee commitment from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to help build the company?s 110MW Crescent Dunes PV project. Building work on the site, located in Tonopah, Nevada, can begin this summer; the penciled-in completion date is late 2013. Read more

SolarReserve receives DOE loan for 110MW Nevada system

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 14:05 (PV-Tech)

SolarReserve has secured a US$737 million loan from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to help build its 110MW Crescent Dunes PV system. With financial backing now secured, building work on the project, located in Tonopah, Nevada, can now begin this summer; the pencilled in completion date is late 2013. Read more

CEC awards UCSD USD 1.39 million for research including improved PV forecasting

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 13:15 (Solarserver)

On May 18th, 2011, the California Energy Commission (CEC) awarded USD 2.87 million for four energy research projects through its Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) program. As one of these four projects, the CEC awarded the University of California at San Diego (UCSD) USD 1.39 million for a project that includes developing solar forecasting tools, distributed energy storage systems, using renewable energy to charge electric vehicles and improved observations of microgrid operations. Read more

Concentrating solar power: DOE awards conditional loan guarantee commitment to Crescent Dunes CSP project

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 12:45 (Solarserver)

On May 19th, 2011, SolarReserve LLC (Santa Monica, California, U.S.) announced that it has received a conditional commitment for a USD 737 million loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for its 110 MW Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project. The concentrating solar power (CSP) project will use solar power tower technology with molten salt storage. Construction on the project is scheduled to begin in the summer of 2011 in Nye County in the U.S. state of Nevada. Read more

Petra Solar expands its SunWave technology reach by expanding into international markets

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 0:50 (PV-Tech)

Petra Solar is expanding past North America by bring its SunWave Solar Energy Solution to international markets including the Pacific Rim, Europe and Middle East. Its SunWave technology will feature a new Smart Energy Module (SEM), specifically designed for international consumers to convert photovoltaic DC electricity into 230V AC power. Petra Solar?s system has been certified to international grid standards holding, CE, IEC62109, G83, AS/NZS3100 and AS4777 safety and electrical compliance certifications. Read more

U.S. Biofuels Leaders to Congress: Don't Mess With RFS

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 15:36 (Renewable Energy World)

Sending a significant signal of industry unity to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, leading advocates of the U.S. biofuels industry sent Congress a message today that urged lawmakers "to stand firm in the face of calls to waive or repeal the groundbreaking biofuels provisions included in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA), including the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS)." Read more

New speakers confirmed at Wind Power Italia: 14-15 June, Rome

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 17:15 (Renewable Energy World)

Don't miss out on attending Wind Power Italia to hear from Roberta Benedetti (EON Climate and Renewables), Pio Forte (UniCredit Leasing), Carl Durante (Maestrale) and Paolo Grossi (RWE Innogy) along with other senior practitioners shaping the Italian wind industry. Read more

Geothermal Assesses Its Potential

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 10:32 (Renewable Energy World)

The annual report counts 15 states with projects currently under consideration or development: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. Between confirmed and unconfirmed projects there are a total of 146 geothermal projects in development, the report said. Read more

Clean Edge releases annual U.S. Leadership Index; California, Oregon and Massachusetts are the top states in the nation

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 16:31 (Solarserver)

On May 18th, 2011, Clean Edge Inc. (Portland, Oregon, U.S.) released its second annual U.S. Clean Energy Leadership Index, ranking the 50 states in clean energy development. The report, which looked at more than 50 different indicators in technology, policy, and capital, including clean energy capacities, ranked California, Oregon and Massachusetts as the top states in the nation. Read more

CSP TODAY USA ? Latest Program and Keynote Speaker Announced

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 16:10 (Renewable Energy World)

CSP Today is delighted to announce the release of the latest program for CSP TODAY USA 2011 (June 29-30, Las Vegas) Read more

California, Oregon, Massachusetts, New York, and Colorado Top the Nation in Clean Energy Leadership

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 15:40 (Renewable Energy World)

Clean Edge's second annual U.S. Clean Energy Leadership Index, released today, provides the industry's most comprehensive and objective analysis and ranking of how all 50 states, and the individuals, businesses, and organizations that operate there, compare across the clean-energy spectrum. Read more

Yingli Green shipments hurt by stalled Italian market in Q1: Remains bullish on shipments in 2011

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 13:29 (PV-Tech)

The stalled Italian PV market had a noticeable affect on Yingli Green in the first quarter. Module shipments decreased by a low teen percentage from the fourth quarter of 2010 with revenue reported for the first quarter at US$527.3 million, down from US$616.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2010. Gross profit was US$144.1 million, representing a gross margin of 27.3% and an operating margin of 16.5%. However, Yingli expects shipments to increase by more than 30% in the second quarter and reiterated previous guidance of module shipments of between 1.7 - 1.75GW in 2011. Read more

Yingli Green shipments hurt by stalled Italian market in Q1; remains bullish on shipments in 2011

Friday, 5.20.2011 - 13:29 (PV-Tech)

The stalled Italian PV market had a noticeable effect on Yingli Green?s figures for the first quarter. Module shipments decreased by a low teen percentage from Q4 2010 with revenue reported for Q1 2011 at US$527.3 million, compared to US$616.1 million in Q4 2010. Gross profit was US$144.1 million, representing a gross margin of 27.3% and an operating margin of 16.5%. However, Yingli expects shipments to increase by more than 30% in Q2 and reiterated previous guidance of module shipments of between 1.7 and 1.75GW in 2011. Read more