Photovoltaic Systems Share Characteristics of "Real Property"

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

Photovoltaic (PV) systems may meet many of the important criteria to be considered real property ? a status that could make them eligible for easier financing ? a new report by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, contends. Read more

PV Recycling ? WEEE directive affects also PV manufacturers and importers

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:44 (Solarserver)

When the amended directive of the European Parliament and of the council on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE directive) is also becoming binding for all manufacturers and importers of PV modules, the producers will require support in implementing such requirements, the take-e-way GmbH (Hamburg, Germany) reports in a press release. The WEEE directive regulates in summary the professional recycling of waste electrical and electronic devices and its financing by the manufacturers ? and in the future also in the case of photovoltaic modules. After the implementation of the "WEEE2" in the countries of the European Union, the requirements and obligations already Read more

Kohl's to install PV at 30 additional stores in 2012

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:29 (Solarserver)

On June 24th, 2012, Kohl's Department Stores (Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, U.S.) announced that it will install solar photovoltaic (PV) systems at roughly 30 more of its stores in six U.S. states in 2012. Kohl's estimates that this will represent a 25% expansion of its existing solar program, and that at the end it will have more than 150 PV plants on stores in 13 states. The company began construction on PV plants for its first stores in Spring 2012, and completed the plants by the end of 2012. Read more

Etrion in negotiations on a 5 MW PV plant in Chile

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:18 (Solarserver)

On June 21st, 2012, Etrion Corp. (Geneva, Switzerland), an independent power producer, announced that it is negotiating its first power purchase agreement (PPA) to construct a 5 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) power project in Chile by 2013. Etrion has opened an office in Santiago, Chile, to expand its operations into the Americas. The company expects to sign additional PPAs before the end of the year. Read more

NREL wins R&D 100 award for triple-junction PV cell

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:12 (Solarserver)

National Renewable Energy Laboratories (NREL, Golden, Colorado, U.S.) has won a 2012 R&D 100 award from R&D Magazine for a triple-junction solar photovoltaic (PV) cell which it developed in collaboration with Solar Junction Corporation (San Jose, California, U.S.). The SJ3 PV cell utilized tunable bandgaps, lattice-matched architecture and ultra-concentration tunnel junctions to reach a world record 43.5% conversion efficiency at a concentration of 418 suns. The award is one of two that NREL won in 2012, to bring it to a total of 52 R&D 100 awards since 1982. Read more

IHS iSuppli: Polysilicon prices to continue to fall, spot market sales increase

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 8:52 (Solarserver)

On June 22nd, 2012 IHS iSuppli (El Segundo, California, U.S.) released an analysis of polysilicon price trends, noting that average spot prices declined in May 2012 by a larger margin in the spot market than in contract negotiations, which it says will lead to continued price declines for the near future. In IHS iSuppli's PV Perspective Market Brief, the company estimates that the average global price of polysilicon used in solar photovoltaic (PV) cells declined 3.3% to USD 23.50 per kg in May 2012, while pricing for contracts fell only 2.4% over the same period. The company states that this caused spot market sales to increase to 47% of polysilicon purchases in May. Read more

Adenium buys into 29MW portfolio of grid-connected solar plants in Italy under JV with Foresight

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 22:15 (PV-Tech)

According to a report from Solarplaza, Adenium Solar Energy has bought a portion of a 29MW portfolio of grid-connected, operational solar plants in Italy. The transaction is valued at ?125 million with the assets to be managed by Adenium and Foresight. The companies expect for their joint venture to increase the portfolio within the next 12 months to a total of 100MW. Read more

GE to deliver over 8,000 solar panels for Tauá solar plant expansion

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 22:11 (PV-Tech)

Expansion of Brazil?s Tauá project is underway thanks to a continued partnership between MPX, E.ON and GE Energy. GE will supply all the equipment and PV technology systems for the plant?s expansion, including the delivery of more than 8,000 solar panels. Upon completion, Tauá will have nearly 13,000 solar panels helping to produce energy. Read more

GreenVolts commissions 464kW solar plant for Van Dyke?s Rice Dryer in California

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 21:59 (PV-Tech)

GreenVolts announced that it had commissioned its latest system, a 464kW solar plant in Pleasant Grove, California. Installed at Van Dyke?s Rice Dryer, the installation was built across a four-acre L-shaped portion of land and was completed on schedule with minimal impact to the ongoing operations of the dryer. Read more

Asia Report: Toshiba Plans Japan's Largest PV Project

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 21:41 (Renewable Energy World)

Toshiba announced plans this week to install 100-megawatts (MW) worth of PV plants in the devastated Fukushima region of Japan as the solar industry continues to jockey to take advantage of lucrative Feed-in Tariffs announced to take hold at the beginning of July. Read more

Natcore tasked by 5 companies to see if LPD processes will help reduce cost, improve performance

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 21:15 (PV-Tech)

Natcore Technology has been contacted by five companies, two from North America, two from China and one from Europe, to perform R&D testing to determine if Natcore?s black silicon and liquid phase deposition (LPD) processes will help the unnamed companies reduce costs and improve performance of their solar products. Natcore noted that the five companies are known to use plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) to deposit films on their products. The company will use its AR-Box at its R&D Center in Rochester, New York to complete testing. Read more

Nanosolar welcomes three new executives to lead worldwide sales and marketing for cells and panels

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 21:15 (PV-Tech)

Nanosolar advised that it had brought three new executives on board who will help lead the company?s sales and marketing initiatives for its solar panels and cells throughout the US, Europe, Asia and beyond. Stephan Hansen has been appointed as executive VP of worldwide sales, Roy Shaw has been named head of North America sales and Stefan Zschiegner is VP of worldwide marketing. Read more

GreenVolts commissions 464kW solar plant for Van Dye Rice Dryer in California

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 21:15 (PV-Tech)

GreenVolts announced that it had commissioned its latest system, a 464kW solar plant in Pleasant Grove, California. Installed at Van Dyke?s Rice Dryer, the installation was built across a four-acre L-shaped portion of land and was completed on schedule with minimal impact to the ongoing operations of the dryer. Read more

Order Focus: SERIS purchases ALD tool from SoLayTec

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 18:15 (PV-Tech)

The Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS) has ordered an ALD process tool from SoLayTec that will see the former utilize the process at several global research institutes. SERIS has also entered into a three-year research agreement with metalorganics material supplier AkzoNobel and SoLayTec to study the viability of the integration of Al2O3 into new cell concepts. The contract also extends SoLayTec?s reach into Asian markets. Read more

Queensland cuts FiT by 80%

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 18:15 (PV-Tech)

The Campbell Newman government in Queensland has decided to reduce the feed-in tariffs by 80%, according to a report in The Australian. The current feed-in tariff will be reduced from 44c/kWh to just 8c/kWh, effective July 10, 2012. Queensland is the last Australian state to cut its FiTs to replace it with a nominal amount, supporting national decisions to reduce renewable energy subsidies. According to State energy minister Mark McArdle, the scheme would have amounted to an annual state bill of AU$1.8 billion by 2028 and the original purpose of the FiT, stimulation of the solar industry, had been achieved. Read more

First Solar installs 10 millionth PV panel at 550MW PV plant

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 17:15 (PV-Tech)

First Solar?s EPC team has installed the 10 millionth PV panel at a utility-scale PV plant, the company has announced. The module was installed at the 550MW Desert Sunlight solar farm in Riverside County, California. The project is being constructed for NextEra Energy and GE Energy Financial Services. Read more

NextEra named top bidder for 1GW Blythe plant

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 17:15 (PV-Tech)

The US?s largest solar and wind project developer, NextEra, has placed the successful bid to purchase the unbuilt 1GW Blythe solar project in Riverside County, California. The plant is another of the projects ? both built and unbuilt ? being auctioned off from the assets of bankrupt Solar Trust of America. The agreed price of the project was not revealed. Read more

Rehm Thermal Systems inaugurates new building

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 17:15 (PV-Tech)

Rehm Thermal Systems has finished the construction of a new facility at its headquarters in Blaubeuren, Germany, the company has announced. The new building comprises an application and demonstration centre as well as training facilities, social areas and offices spread over five stories. The facility is intended for employees as well as customers, who can test their PCBs or speak to Rehm employees if they need guidance with regards to optimizing their PCBs. Besides testing facilities, the building also comprises more than 370 m² of training facilities and classrooms. The testing centre offers equipment and tools for nitrogen and conductivity analysis, x-ray inspection and Read more

Who Has the Most Cost-Effective Solar FiT Program?

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 16:54 (Renewable Energy World)

In a new report on U.S. CLEAN (Clean Local Energy Accessible Now) programs, I provide a comparison of solar CLEAN Contract (feed-in tariff) rates across the United States. Comparing published rates is not particularly helpful, however, because contract lengths vary (from 15 to 25 years) and the solar resource also varies widely.  For international Read more

Solarsense receives International Green Hero award

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 16:14 (Solarpowerportal)

Renewable energy specialist Solarsense has received an International Green Hero award in recognition of the environmental initiatives the company has implemented at its headquarters near Bristol. Read more

NPD Solarbuzz: Supply/demand balance to return in 2H 2012, PV module prices to continue to fall

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 15:59 (Solarserver)

NPD Solarbuzz (San Francisco, California, U.S.) has predicted that the balance between solar photovoltaic (PV) module supply and demand will be restored in the second half of 2012, following two years of over-capacity, oversupply and excess inventories. The company also expects module prices to continue to fall over the course of the year. The company's latest "Solarbuzz Quarterly" projects over 30 GW of global PV demand in 2012, including 5 GW from China in the second half of 2012. NPD Solarbuzz also forecasts that metrics including module production and supply will to come within 8% of the second-half market demand of 17.2 GW. Read more

Canadian Solar to supply Real Goods Solar with 40 MW of PV modules

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 15:53 (Solarserver)

On June 25th, 2012 Canadian Solar Inc. (Guelph, Canada) announced an agreement wherein it will supply Real Goods Solar Inc. (Louisville, Colorado, U.S.) with up to 40 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules for U.S. commercial and residential PV installations. Canadian Solar describes Real Goods as a leader in bringing solar to the U.S. residential market, citing the company's reputation for high quality customer service and customer satisfaction. Read more

How to Grow a Solar Energy Garden

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

Getting energy from the sun is a great idea. However, installing solar panels house-by-house is slow, costly and cumbersome, and downright inefficient if the goal is to bring solar to the masses. This problem troubled Paul Spencer after he built his own uber-efficient, custom solar home near Aspen, Colorado in 2004.  The engineer and serial entrepr Read more

Polysilicon prices continue downward trend as IHS reports 3.3% price drop in May

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 13:55 (PV-Tech)

The polysilicon spot market has been the subject of many analyses and commentaries since prices started to drop, leading to oversupply and demand issues across the PV manufacturing board. Average pricing for a kilo of solar-grade polysilicon on the spot market in May dropped to US$23.50, down 3.3% from its US$24.30 price in April. IHS?s Polysilicon Price Index has shed light on the fact that poly pricing for contracts dropped by only 2.4% for the same period, which means that the discrepancy between spot and contract pricing is widening ever further. Read more

DuPont files lawsuit on metallization paste IP against Heraeus, SolarWorld

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 13:06 (Solarserver)

On June 21st, 2012, DuPont (Circleville, Ohio, U.S.) announced that it has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Federal Court for the District of Oregon alleging that Heraeus Materials Technology LLC and its customer SolarWorld Industries America Inc. (San Jose, California) have infringed a recently issued DuPont patent related to front-side metallization paste compositions used in solar cell technology. Read more

Industry supply and demand to recover in 2H12, says NPD Solarbuzz

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:59 (PV-Tech)

Two years of turbulence in terms of supply and capacity are leading to calmer days ahead, according to NPD Solarbuzz?s latest Quarterly Report. Demand across the world?s markets will surpass 30GW this year, signifying an 8% increase year-on-year. Over 5GW of this global demand will be from the emerging Asia-Pacific regions, with China?s domestic market growth representing a large proportion of this 5GW figure. Read more

BenQ Solar acquires JET certification

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:49 (PV-Tech)

BenQ Solar has received the Japan Electrical Safety and Environment Technology Laboratory (JET) certification, it has been announced. JET is a Japanese institution that tests and inspects electronic products. BenQ Solar has been developing a PV module, the Green Triplex PM200M00) designed for the usage in residential installations but also an all-black module (Green triplex PM250M00) and a module that withstands salt mist corrosion (Green triplex PM240P00), specifically for commercial rooftop installations. Read more

Order Focus: Canadian Solar and Real Goods Solar enter supply agreement for 40MW of modules

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:17 (PV-Tech)

Canadian Solar and solar installer Real Goods Solar have entered a supply agreement, it has been announced. Canadian Solar will provide approximately 40MW of PV modules to Real goods Solar under the agreement. The modules are intended for commercial as well as residential PV systems in the US. Canadian Solar recently acquired 122MW of US projects and the company has announced that it intents to expand onto the US market. Read more

CSI data shows increasing adoption of solar as a service as California home solar market booms

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:05 (Solarserver)

Sunrun Inc. (San Francisco, California, U.S.) and PV Solar Report (Cheyenne, Wyoming, U.S.) released a list of 13 high-growth cities for solar photovoltaic (PV) technology in California, with the municipalities of Santa Clarita, Castaic and Palmdale leading the list. The companies state that this list reflects growing solar adoption in median income communities, and note that in 9 of these high-growth cities, at least 75% of solar customers chose solar as a service over purchasing a PV system outright. California Solar Initiative data shows that the overall small residential PV market in the state has grown 81% in 2012 to date. Read more

Solar panels may lose green tax break

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 11:21 (Solarpowerportal)

Last week the European Commission ordered Government to remove the legislation that currently allows reduced VAT rates for ?green? goods and services on the grounds that it failed to comply with the EU?s VAT Directive. Today, after concerns were raised about the true impact of this move, the European Commission has offered the UK a way round a ruling. Read more

Canadian Solar to acquire 190-200 MW of PV projects in Ontario from SkyPower, JV formed

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 8:46 (Solarserver)

On June 21st, 2012 Canadian Solar Inc. (Guelph, Canada) announced the acquisition of a majority interest in 16 solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the Canadian province of Ontario from SkyPower Ltd. (Toronto, Canada). The projects, which total between 190 and 200 MW-DC, are in advanced permitting stage, and Canadian Solar expects to begin construction in 2013 and reach full commercial operation in 2014. The two companies have also formally launched a 50:50 joint venture (JV), CSI SkyPower, to develop and build PV plants in Africa, the Middle East and South America. Read more

LA County to allow First Solar to install PV modules at the Antelope Valley Solar Ranch One

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 8:39 (Solarserver)

On June 22nd, 2012 First Solar Inc. (Tempe, Arizona, U.S.) announced that it has reached an agreement with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works to allow continued installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules at the 230 MW Antelope Valley Solar Ranch One (AVSR1) PV plant in Southern California. Installation of PV modules had been delayed while First Solar and Public Works worked towards an agreement related to module code certifications. First Solar plans to increase project staffing "over the next several weeks" and to complete the plant in 2013. Read more

Torrefaction Cracks the Biomass Challenge

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

Utilities are facing major challenges in the coming decades. Current policy envisions a transition to a sustainable energy supply, while ensuring security of supply. Therefore, current energy policy is spuring utilities to improve the sustainability of their coal-fired power plants. Read more

Vestas to Close Chinese Manufacturing Plant Due to Uncertain Growth

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 18:10 (Renewable Energy World)

Danish wind turbine maker Vestas is to close a factory in China after already scrapping plans for a manufacturing plant in the UK. Read more

In Michigan's Renewable Energy Battle, Voters May Get Final Say

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 20:12 (Renewable Energy World)

Polls show that Americans like the concept of renewable energy. But cost-conscious American households and businesses are by nature wary of dramatic shifts in strategy. And they're equally reticent to make permanent changes to a state's constitution. Read more

Environmental graduates remain positive about green jobs growth

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 17:50 (Solarpowerportal)

A survey of 500 environmental graduates has found that 80 percent believe the number of green jobs will continue to rise in the future, despite the current economic downturn. Read more

Cheap Coal Is Dead. Long Live Renewable Age (Part 3)

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

China announced on March 20 that it would raise retail gasoline prices to more than $5 a gallon. Two days later, the government announced its intention to cap consumption of coal at 3.9 billion tons a year, only 10 percent above its current level. Read more

Energy Storage Solutions to be Piloted in Nova Scotia

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

When the Southwestern Municipality and Town of Digby in Nova Scotia started looking into developing a Combined Heat and Power Plant, it discovered a lack of grid capacity which has sent it in a bold new direction. ?We engaged Lockheed Martin to give us a view on the feasibility of a CHP plant and one of the things that came out is the grid capacity Read more

EU Energy Efficiency Directive negotiations conclude

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 14:37 (Solarpowerportal)

Earlier this month the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission negotiators reached an agreement on the EU Energy Efficiency Directive. The long-awaited deal sets out a number of binding measures that will be used to achieve targets, including the EU goal of improving energy efficiency by 20 percent by 2020. Read more

Leads2Trade launches green fund for renewable energy installers

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:41 (Solarpowerportal)

A new green fund, launched in conjunction with Leads2Trade, is expected to provide new opportunities for renewable energy installers looking to provide energy saving technologies for UK home and business owners. Read more

Tigo Energy receives additional SunShot Award to improve monitoring software

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:36 (Solarserver)

On June 21st, 2012, Tigo Energy (Los Gatos, California, U.S.) announced that it has received an additional USD 500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy through its SunShot program to develop software with the ultimate goal of reducing solar photovoltaic (PV) system costs. Tigo Energy is in the process of developing software to pinpoint faults in PV systems and assess the financial benefits of service and maintenance by weighing repair costs against the value of lost electricity. This is the second SunShot Incubator award that Tigo Energy has won, following a USD 3 million award in 2011. Read more

Grupo Clavijo builds 1.3 MW of PV plants on greenhouses in Spain

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:22 (Solarserver)

On June 21st, 2012, Grupo Clavijo (Navarra, Spain) announced that it has completed solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays on two greenhouses in Spain with a total capacity of 1.3 megawatts (MW). Each plant covers a surface area of 24,000 m2 (48,000 m2 in total). Read more

A quarter of Brits are worried loft insulation is too much hassle

Monday, 6.25.2012 - 12:02 (Solarpowerportal)

According to the latest research from E.ON a quarter of UK homeowners have not insulated their loft as they are worried about the process being too messy, too difficult or because they have too much clutter to move out of the way. These statistics, from research carried out by OnePoll with 2,000 respondents in August 2011, have been recorded despite the fact that many energy providers offer the service free of charge. Read more