Thin film PV producer Stion receives USD 2 million grant from U.S. DOE

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 22:23 (Solarserver)

On November 20th, 2012, Stion (San Jose, California, U.S.), a manufacturer of high-efficiency thin-film solar photovoltaic (PV) modules, announced that it has received a USD 2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) SunShot Initiative. The company intends to continue pilot production and scale-up of its ultra-high efficiency thin film modules based on proprietary tandem junction technology. Read more

Rajasthan re-opens RFPs for PV, CSP

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 9:43 (Solarserver)

On November 20th, 2012 Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation Ltd. (RRECL, Jaipur, India) announced that it will re-open a request for proposals (RFP) for 100 MW-AC of solar photovoltaic (PV) and 100 MW-AC of concentrating solar power (CSP) projects in the state. PV projects will be limited to 5-10 MW-AC in size and CSP projects to 50 MW-AC, and both will be selected through a competitive solicitation process under Rajasthan Solar Energy Policy 2011. Bridge to India (New Delhi, India) notes that the RRECL had previously postponed this RFP, which was originally scheduled for March 2012. Read more

Ukraine cuts PV feed-in tariff 27%

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 9:34 (Solarserver)

Ukraine's parliament has approved modifications to the nation's feed-in tariff, which according to PV-Tech includes a 27% decrease in FIT levels for solar photovoltaic (PV) generation. Bill 10183, "On amendments to the law 'On Electric Power'" passed on November 20th, 2012. The changes are set to begin in 2013; however final details have not yet been published. Read more

Blue Oak Energy provides video series for solar PV education

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 22:16 (Solarserver)

On November 20th, 2012, Blue Oak Energy (Davis, California, U.S.) announced that it has launched an educational video series for solar photovoltaic (PV) system engineering. The Tech Talk Tuesday video series was launched in August 2012 to convey simple and concise messages to educate customers, collaborators, students and others on the basics of implementing solar projects. The once weekly video series, posted every Tuesday, is aimed at assisting the solar electric industry to plan successful solar PV projects. Read more

Register for the Next #SolarChat on Solar Job Market Growth this Wednesday at 2:00 EST -- Click Here

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 21:28 (Renewable Energy World)

http://www.ecooutfitters.net/blog/2012/04/register-for-the-next-solarchat/ Read more

The Solar Industry May Soon Face a Shortage of Skilled Labor

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 19:18 (Renewable Energy World)

Growing Industry The growth of the solar industry may soon face the reality of not having enough skilled workers to satisfy demand, suggests a recent report by The Solar Foundation and the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP). Despite a dragging economy overall, installed solar capacity has increased dramatically in the p Read more

France retroactively cuts FiT by 20%

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 17:09 (PV-Tech)

A recent warning from French solar energy association Enerplan has been substantiated with the recent announcement that France will cut feed-in tariffs by 20%. Read more

Chaori Solar and S4 Clean Energy plan 272MW PV plant in Brazil

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 17:09 (PV-Tech)

Shanghai Chaori Solar Energy Science & Technology, a Chinese PV module manufacturer, has signed a cooperation agreement with Brazil-based S4 Clean Energy Projectos Esolucoes Sustentaveis Ltd. to construct up to 272MW of PV plants in Brazil. Read more

Hanwha SolarOne opens office in Israel

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 15:59 (Solarserver)

Hanwha SolarOne (Shanghai, China) has opened its first office in the Israeli market in Modiin, near Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, appointing Eran Kopel sales and marketing director for the nation. The company also announced that it will showcase its polycrystalline silicon SF220 and SF260 solar photovoltaic (PV) modules at the Eilat-Eilot Renewable Energy Conference in Eilat, Israel from November 27th-29th, 2012. Read more

Funneling Solar Energy: A New Way to Harness the Sun

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 15:54 (Renewable Energy World)

The quest to harness a broader spectrum of sunlight's energy to produce electricity has taken a radically new turn, with the proposal of a "solar energy funnel" that takes advantage of materials under elastic strain. Read more

Pension Insurance completes first-ever public solar finance bond

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 15:53 (Solarserver)

Pension Insurance Corporation Ltd. (London, UK) has completed a USD 64 million bond linked to two 5 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plants in Somerset, UK, as the first ever publicly-listed solar finance bond in the nation. The Solar Power Generation Ltd. (Butleigh, UK) bond matures in 2036, and the deal for the bond was arranged by Independent Debt Capital Markets LLP (London, UK). The two plants participate in the UK's feed-in tariff. Read more

China Starts Dumping Probe Into Polysilicon From U.S., Europe

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 15:48 (Renewable Energy World)

China started a probe to determine if suppliers from the U.S., South Korea and the European Union are dumping polysilicon in the world's biggest maker of solar panels and if retroactive duties should be imposed. Read more

Landfills & Brownfields Become America's Energy Sites for Solar Arrays

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 15:24 (Renewable Energy World)

By: Nora Prevoznak                    There are about 10,000 old municipal landfills in the United States that have reached capacity, and now their waste is sealed underground.  These landfills are taking up space across the country, and are often in areas close to dense populations were land is valuable.  A developing trend has been to utilize thi Read more

Costa Rica inaugurates largest solar plant

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 15:17 (PV-Tech)

The President of Costa Rica Laura Chinchilla has officially inaugurated a 1MW solar park in Miravalles which is said to be the country?s largest PV plant to date and the largest project of its kind in Central America. Read more

Solar Chile receives environmental approval for 30MW PV plant

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 12:36 (PV-Tech)

The Chilean environmental authority Servicio de Evaluación Ambiental (SEA) has approved Solar Chile?s environmental impact statement (EIS) for its proposed 30.24MW thin-film PV plant. Read more

EC decision against Chinese imports criticised by International Trade Committee

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 12:31 (PV-Tech)

The Committee on International Trade (INTA) of the European Parliament has criticised the European Commission (EC) for moving too slowly to reach a decision on Chinese solar imports. Read more

3W Power wins contract with Martifer Solar in Ukraine

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 11:48 (PV-Tech)

3W Power Ukraine, a subsidiary of AEG Power Solutions, has signed its first contract with the solar division of the Portuguese multinational group Martifer. Read more

Wind Installations "Falling off a Cliff" In India

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 16:37 (Renewable Energy World)

Wind-turbine installations in India will plummet this year as lenders shun projects amid a policy vacuum in the third-biggest market for the machines, according to BlackRock Inc.-backed Mytrah Energy Ltd. Read more

Asia Report: China Dominates 2011 Global Wind Installations

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 14:54 (Renewable Energy World)

China dominated the global wind market in 2011, installing three times as many wind rotor blades on its wind farms than the U.S., its closest rival. Read more

Desertec Foundation calls World Bank on fossil fuel funding hypocrisy

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 22:27 (Solarserver)

On November 21st, 2012 Desertec Foundation Director Dr. Thiemo Gropp issued a public statement calling on the World Bank to follow its own investment recommendations and invest in renewable energy instead of fossil fuels. Dr. Gropp cites a recent World Bank report calling on global governments to redirect the USD 1 trillion in annual subsidies to fossil fuels to developing alternative energy sources. He contrasts this with the more than USD 12 billion in World Bank funds that have been invested in the construction of new fossil fuel power plants and the extraction of petroleum, natural gas and coal over the last six years. Read more

U.K. Consumer Electricity Bill Costs to Increase by 2020 for Renewable Energy Expansion

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 16:07 (Renewable Energy World)

Britain's electricity customers will be paying higher bills by 2020 to cover the costs of expanding renewable energy supplies such as solar and wind, government officials said. Read more

Cultivating the Promise of Agricultural Cleantech

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 15:35 (Renewable Energy World)

An expanding world population, coupled with increasing concerns about resource scarcity, land availability, biodiversity conservation and global warming is fostering interest in sustainable agriculture technologies. Large companies and clean technology investors are focused on energy, and some are following water. Yet very few are tracking breakthr Read more

Frost & Sullivan: VC funding for renewables to triple by 2020

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 12:42 (Solarserver)

Frost & Sullivan (London, UK) has released a report which predicts that venture capital (VC) funding for renewable energy will triple by 2020 due to regulatory improvements, support for carbon reduction, and innovation in renewable energy technologies. "Venture Capital Funding in Renewable Energy in Europe" also notes that while Europe and North America have been the hub of most deal activity, bidders are looking at South Asia and Asia-Pacific as emerging regions for these technologies. Read more

UK Energy Bill to include USD 12 billion green energy budget

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 12:31 (Solarserver)

On November 23rd, 2012 the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) announced decisions on its draft Energy Bill, including increasing its Green Energy Budget to up to GBP 7.6 billion (USD 12 billion) in 2020. The coalition government's Energy Bill will be introduced in the week of November 25th - December 1st, 2012, and the bill's decarbonization target will be deferred to after the next election. Solar Trade Association (STA, Milton Keynes, UK) notes that it is still awaiting clarity on support schemes, as well as the revised renewable roadmap. Read more

U.S. to provide USD 6 billion in support under new energy partnership in SE Asia

Monday, 11.26.2012 - 12:23 (Solarserver)

On November 20th, 2012 the governments of the United States, Brunei and Indonesia proposed a sustainable energy partnership which would include USD 6 billion in U.S. financial support for projects in the region. Renewables and cleaner energy are identified as one of four regional priorities under the proposed U.S.-Asia Pacific Comprehensive Partnership for a Sustainable Energy Future. Goals of the partnership include offering a framework for consolidating and expanding energy and environmental cooperation and increasing access to affordable energy in the region. Read more