Migros plans largest rooftop PV plant in Switzerland

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 23:26 (Solarserver)

On November 30th, 2012, Migros (Zürich, Switzerland) announced that it has received a building permit for the construction of the largest rooftop photovoltaic (PV) plant in Switzerland. The company will build a solar energy system on the roof of the Migros Verteilbetrieb Neuendorf AG, to produce electricity for about 1,000 single-family homes. Read more

Italy Abandons RPS, Adopts System of Feed-in Tariffs

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

This past summer Italy not only adopted new feed-in tariffs for solar, but also radically revised its program for wind and other renewables. The complex new Italian policies go into effect at the beginning of the new year. Read more

Ukraine cuts feed-in tariffs for PV generation 16-27%

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 9:39 (Solarserver)

On November 29th, 2012 the office of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich confirmed that he has signed into law changes to the nation's feed-in tariff, including a 16-27% reduction to the rates paid to solar photovoltaic (PV) generation. Under law 5485-VI, as of April 1st, 2013 ground-mounted PV will be reduced to 3.5 "green tariffs", with rooftop PV reduced to between 3.7 and 3.6, depending upon the size. Developer Activ Solar GmbH (Vienna, Austria) states that this decrease is mostly offset by a decline in component prices. Read more

SMA Solar Technology opens offices in Chile and South Africa

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 23:37 (Solarserver)

SMA Solar Technology AG (Niestetal, Germany) announced that it has expanded its global presence with new sales and service companies in South Africa and Chile. In these new markets, the company plans to initially concentrate on installations in the solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant category, while at the same time also offering PV inverters and system technology for all other plant sizes. Read more

German PV systems integrator mp-tec cooperates with Warsaw University to test solar energy systems

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 23:21 (Solarserver)

On December 4th, 2012, mp-tec GmbH & Co. KG (Eberswalde, Germany) announced that it has signed a cooperation agreement with Warsaw University of Technology (Poland) under the "dena" solar roofs programme. As part of the project, two solar photovoltaic (PV) systems are currently being installed on the Warsaw University of Technology campus. The fixed and a tracking solar installation will have a total capacity of 8.64 kilowatts (kW). Read more

Solarbuzz: California to represent majority of US market in 2013

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 16:55 (Solarserver)

NPD Solarbuzz Inc. (Santa Clara, California, US) has released a prediction that California will regain a dominant share of the US solar photovoltaic (PV) market, rising to more than 50% of market volume in 2013 after falling to 30% in 2011. The firm notes that California's share has dropped as New Jersey, Arizona and states on the US East Coast launched initiatives to deploy PV. However, NPD Solarbuzz estimates that California's PV market will grow 60% annually in 2012, greater than the 51% growth of the overall US PV market. Read more

Alfa Laval to supply heat exchangers for concentrating solar power plant in South Africa

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 16:49 (Solarserver)

Alfa Laval (Lund, Sweden) has won a contract from Abengoa SA (Seville, Spain) to supply its Packinox heat exchangers to a concentrating solar power (CSP) plant in South Africa, with delivery scheduled to be finalized in 2014. The company will supply custom heat exchangers for the thermal storage systems where heat from the plant is stored in molten salt, enabling production during cloudy periods and after the sun has set. The companies did not disclose the value of the transaction. Read more

Report: Solar fastest growing renewable in US to 2040

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 16:32 (PV-Tech)

Solar will play a central role in boosting the share of renewables in America?s energy mix between now and 2040, according to figures from the US Energy Information Administration. Read more

Tamil Nadu opens tenders for 1GW solar capacity

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 15:56 (PV-Tech)

The Indian state of Tamil Nadu has announced the auction of 1GW of solar capacity for 2013 in order to meet its target of 3GW by 2015. Read more

China Solar: LDK Cuts, New First Solar Projects

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 15:50 (Renewable Energy World)

There're quite a few news bits coming from the solar sector today, with more downbeat news from struggling LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK) even as 2 western panel makers make important new inroads to the China market. Meantime, Canadian Solar (Nasdaq: CSIQ) is also getting some good news in the form of new financing from a major western commercial lender for Read more

Solea Renewables commissions off-grid diesel hybrid solar PV plant for South African mining company

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 14:39 (Solarserver)

Solea Renewables (Johannesburg, South Africa) completed and commissioned the world?s first 1 MW ground mounted diesel/solar photovoltaic (PV) hybrid electric power plant for industrial mining applications. The decentralized 1 MW DC hybrid PV system was planned and installed for Cronimet Energy South Africa (Pty) Limited to fuel Cronimet Mining?s chromium ore operations. Read more

New gas strategy concerns Solar Trade Association

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 12:18 (Solarpowerportal)

The Solar Trade Association (STA) has hit out at government?s newly announced gas strategy over concerns that a ?dash-for-gas? scenario threatens the meeting of the binding 2020 renewable energy targets. Read more

Natcore commissions AR-Box solar PV cell tool with black silicon capability

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 10:40 (Solarserver)

Natcore Technology (Red Bank, New Jersey, U.S.) has commissioned an upgraded version of its AR-Box solar photovoltaic (PV) cell processing station that will include "black silicon" capability. Black silicon is a technology to create silicon wafers with very low reflectance, which are processed into high-performing PV cells. As is the case with the original AR-Box, MicroTech Systems Inc. (Fremont, California, U.S.) will manufacture the device, which it expects to complete in the first quarter of 2013. Read more

Solar Frontier to supply 14 MW of CIS solar PV modules for Japanese PV projects

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 9:44 (Solarserver)

Mitsui & Company Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan) and project partners have placed orders with Solar Frontier KK (Tokyo, Japan) for 14.1 MW of its copper indium gallium diselenide (CIS) solar photovoltaic (PV) modules for use in utility-scale PV projects throughout Japan. Mitsui and partners plan to invest USD 100 million in ten PV projects in locations across Japan during fiscal year 2013, including at least four projects using Solar Frontier modules. Delivery of PV modules for the first project began in early November 2012. Read more

U.S. Offshore Wind Market Becoming 'Real' With European Interest

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 15:44 (Renewable Energy World)

European energy companies are considering participating in U.S. offshore wind-farm auctions, a sign of increasing confidence in the viability of marine-based wind power off U.S. shores, according to Arcadia Windpower Ltd. President Peter Mandelstam. Read more

French Reactor Cost Rises Dramatically, Wind Energy Now Cheaper than New Nuclear

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 15:02 (Renewable Energy World)

Liberation reports that for the second time in a little more than a year the cost of a new reactor under construction at Flamanville, France has risen dramatically. Read more

Blue Oak Energy completes 4.1 MW rooftop PV plant in Arizona

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 23:40 (Solarserver)

On December 4th, 2012, Blue Oak Energy (Davis, California, U.S.) announced that it has installed a 4.1 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) rooftop system in Arizona, the largest rooftop PV plant in the state. The PV system, installed at First Solar's facility in Mesa, is expected to begin operation by year end. Read more

Government publishes nuclear action plan

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 16:19 (Solarpowerportal)

The government has published its Nuclear Supply Chain Action plan today after Energy Minister John Hayes spoke of the nuclear industry?s major role in securing the UK?s energy supplies as well as generating new economic growth. Read more

New Head of Australia's Green Fund Sees First Investment by July 2013

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 15:15 (Renewable Energy World)

The new head of Australia's Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) expects the fund, set up by the ruling Labor government to invest A$10 billion (US$10.4 billion) in renewable energy, energy efficiency and low emissions technologies, to make its first investment in July 2013. Read more

Kuwait targets 15% renewable energy by 2030

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 12:41 (PV-Tech)

Kuwait has set a target to generate 15% of its electricity demand from renewable energy including solar by 2030. Read more

Report finds financial conditions impact viability of renewable energy projects in India

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 10:44 (Solarserver)

The Climate Policy Initiative (CPI, San Francisco, California, U.S.) has released a report which finds that high interest rates and relatively short-term loans for projects add 24-32% to the cost of renewable energy in India as compared to the United States. "Meeting India's Renewable Energy Targets: The Financing Challenge" finds that even if the cost of debt declines, issues with loan terms, access to low-cost equity and other issues will present barriers to growth for India's renewable energy sector. Read more

European Commission calls for facilitation of greater financing support for renewable energy projects

Thursday, 12.6.2012 - 9:33 (Solarserver)

On December 3rd, 2012 the EU Transportation, Telecommunication and Energy Council adopted a set of conclusions on renewable energy, including a call for facilitating financing for renewable energy projects through multiple institutions as support schemes are phased out. This could include the European Investment Bank, structural funds, and institutional investors. Energy Commentator Karl-Friedrich Lenz has also noted that these conclusions do not mention recent talks between the European Commission (EC) and the Germany Ministry of the Economy wherein the EC took the position that the nation's feed-in tariff is a subsidy under EU rules. Read more