U.S. Trade and Development Agency grants USD 405,000 to Mexico for smart grid efforts, including integration of more renewables

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 21:38 (Solarserver)

On June 26th, 2012, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) announced that it has awarded a USD 405,000 grant to the Comisión Reguladora de Energía (CRE) to support the development of a regulatory framework for smart grid implementation in Mexico. Mexico plans to invest billions of dollars in the effort over the next decade to improve electricity stability and reliability, while supporting the integration of additional renewable energy resources. Read more

Solaire introduces new proprietary PV mounting system for parking canopies

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 21:32 (Solarserver)

On July 2nd, 2012, Solaire Generation (New York, New York, U.S.) announced that it has unveiled a proprietary mounting system for its line of solar photovoltaic (PV) parking canopies. The new system "Max Rack" combines rail and panel installation into a single process in which panels are mounted onto rails on the ground or off-site and hoisted onto the canopy as units of six or more panels. Read more

Conergy installs 1MW PV rooftop system in Greece

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 17:56 (PV-Tech)

Conergy has connected a 1MW PV plant in Greece to the grid, the company has announced. The company has been responsible for the design and construction of the plant and has also supplied 13,000 thin-film PV modules for the installation. N. Kornilakis MEPE, a Greek logistics company, had the system installed on its 68,000m² warehouse roof. Read more

New market research: Indian PV module manufacturers are operating their plants on extremely slow utilization rates

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 15:54 (Solarserver)

BRIDGE TO INDIA, a solar market analysis and consulting firm based in New Delhi, has revealed that a lack of demand for Indian crystalline solar photovoltaic (PV) modules has led manufacturers to operate their plants on extremely low utilization rates of as low as 10-15%. According to the newly released research, this is due to Indian manufacturers experiencing a lack of demand for Indian manufactured crystalline modules in the market. Read more

Italy based TerniEnergia enhances its photovoltaic business abroad, announces new constructions in Greece and South Africa with a total capacity of 16 MWp

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 12:56 (Solarserver)

TerniEnergia (Terni, Italy) announces that, in line with the objective to internationalize the PV EPC business, an industrial sized photovoltaic (PV) plant with a total capacity of 6 MWp is in an advanced construction stage in Greece. The Company has also signed a contract with a special purpose vehicle (SPV) owned 100% by a leading European utility, to build a photovoltaic plant for a total capacity of 10 MWp, located in South Africa. Read more

Indian MNRE offers details of off-grid PV subsidies

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 12:47 (Solarserver)

India's Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has released details of subsidies for off-grid solar photovoltaic (PV) generation. The agency is providing a 30% subsidy for the benchmark costs of PV systems, as well as loans limited to 5% interest annually. The subsidies will be capped according to type of installation, with systems purchased by individuals limited to 1 kW, except for pumps for irrigation and community drinking water, which are limited to 5 kW. Read more

Advanced Solar Photonics introduces new glass-to-glass PV modules at Intersolar North America

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 21:48 (Solarserver)

Advanced Solar Photonics, LLC (ASP, Lake Mary, Florida, U.S.), an American manufacturer of solar photovoltaic (PV) equipment and provider of turnkey alternative energy systems, on July 3rd, 2012 announced it is introducing a line of next generation glass-to-glass PV modules at Intersolar North America 2012 on July 10th ? 12th at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California, U.S. Read more

Fuji Electric announces power conditioners for large-scale solar PV applications

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 21:41 (Solarserver)

On July 2nd, 2012, Fuji Electric Co. Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan) announced that it has introduced its new power conditioners to be used in megawatt solar applications. The power conditioner, PVI Series, is designed for large-scale photovoltaic (PV) generating facilities being planned for various locations across the globe as a source of renewable energy, the company states. Read more

DECC: solar is favoured by ?affluent, higher energy consuming households?

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 17:51 (Solarpowerportal)

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has undertaken analysis designed to determine the drivers that cause an individual to install solar photovoltaic technology at a domestic level. Read more

Somerset solar park offered for £886,000

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 15:59 (Solarpowerportal)

A 4.22MW solar park in Puriton, Somerset is the first solar park to be offered as a traditional property investment opportunity in the UK after property consultants Alder King have been instructed to listen to offers in the region of £886,000 on behalf of BAE Systems. Read more

Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems announces opening of Albuquerque outdoor solar PV test field

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 15:47 (Solarserver)

The Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE; Cambridge, MA) on July 2nd, 2012 announced the official opening of OTF-1, its new photovoltaics (PV) outdoor test field, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The facility is an extension of CSE's existing Albuquerque solar research annex, which began operation in 2011. Read more

Santerno wins 155 MW inverter supply contract for solar PV project in Imperial Valley, California

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 15:38 (Solarserver)

Elettronica Santerno SpA (Imola, Italy) on July 3rd, 2012 annouced, it has been awarded with a supply contract for 155 MW of "Santerno skid" solar Photovoltaic (PV) inverter stations to be installed in an Imperial Valley, California PV plant. "This contract is a milestone for Santerno, as it signals our entrance into the USA Solar Farm Market," says Guido Tonin, Executive Vice President of Santerno Inc., the North America subsidiary of Santerno Group, located in San Francisco. Read more

AS Solar builds 5.8MW PV plant in Hannover area

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 14:15 (PV-Tech)

AS Solar has constructed a 5.8MW PV plant in the Hannover area, the company has announced. The plant has been built on the property of the former Gross Munzel sugar factory and on behalf of an investor from Cologne. The site is 90,000m² in size and the project is equipped with 25,000 REC and LG solar modules as well as SMA inverters. Read more

California installs 1GW in 2011

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 14:15 (PV-Tech)

In 2011, California became the first US state to install more than 1GW of customer-generated solar energy, according to figures published by the California Public Utilities Commission. The report, California Solar Initiative (CSI) also demonstrates that 311MW were installed in the investor-owned utility territories last year. The CSI program has received a budget of US$2.4 billion and is aiming to reach 1,940MW of solar capacity by the end of 2016. Read more

TerniEnergia constructs 16MW of PV plants in Greece and South Africa

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 13:49 (PV-Tech)

TerniEnergia, an Italian developer of PV projects, has begun the construction of a 10MW solar power plant in South Africa, the company has announced. The company has been chosen by an undisclosed European utility company to build the project, which is estimated to be connected to the grid later this year. Read more

Solar installer files High Court incompetence claim against REA and REAL

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 13:12 (Solarpowerportal)

The Renewable Energy Assurance Scheme (REAL) and its parent company The Renewable Energy Association (REA) is to face legal action at the High Court over claims that it has unfairly targeted companies with a campaign of disruption. Read more

Solaria develops 50MW of PV projects throughout Argentina

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 13:11 (PV-Tech)

Solaria Energía y Medio Ambiente is planning to develop up to 50MW of PV projects in Argentina, the company has announced. Under an agreement signed by Solaria and Argentinian energy company Energía Argentina SA (ENARSA), Solaria will develop the projects throughout Argentina. No further details were disclosed. Read more

SkyPower concludes sale of 190-200 MW of PV projects to Canadian Solar

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 12:51 (Solarserver)

SkyPower Ltd. (Toronto, Canada) has concluded the sale of controlling interest in 16 solar photovoltaic (PV) projects totaling 190-200 MW-DC to Canadian Solar Inc. (Guelph, Canada) for USD 185 million. Through the transaction, SkyPower has also acquired a five-year warranty for 9.9% of Canadian Solar's outstanding shares. Canadian Solar expects to begin construction of these plants in 2013 and commission them in 2014. Read more

Sussex school receives community funded solar array

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 11:28 (Solarpowerportal)

The Priory School in Lewes, Sussex is now home to a 37kWp solar array thanks to a joint project by OVESCO and Southern Solar. The community-owned array was born out of the excess funding raised by OVESCO?s first community scheme which saw panels installed on Harveys Brewery. Read more

Queensland terminates USD 75 million funding for Solar Dawn project

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 9:48 (Solarserver)

The government of Queensland, Australia has terminated USD 75 million in funding to the Solar Dawn concentrating solar power (CSP) project. As a result, the Australian federal government has referred the future of the project to the newly created Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA). The Australian federal government committed USD 464 million to the project under its Solar Flagships Program. The project was given until June 30th, 2012 to meet financial close, however the development consortium did not meet those conditions, prompting the government of Queensland to withdraw funding. Read more

Abound Solar to liquidate through Chapter 7 bankruptcy

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 9:41 (Solarserver)

On July 2nd, 2012 Abound Solar (Longmont, Colorado, U.S.) filed in a U.S. court to liquidate through the Chapter 7 bankruptcy process. Through Chapter 7 a court-appointed insolvency administrator will sell the company's assets to pay creditors, without the option to restructure. According the bankruptcy filing, Abound Solar has between USD 100 million and 500 million in both debt and assets, and between 200 and 1000 creditors. On June 28th, 2012 the company announced that it would suspend operations and lay off 125 employees. Read more

Back to basics: GE suspends CdTe thin-film production plans

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 8:15 (PV-Tech)

Several reports cite General Electric?s General Manger of solar technology operations, Danielle Merfeld saying that the company has suspended the construction and commercial roll-out of its CdTe thin-film modules due to the current market conditions. GE announced the location of its first thin-film plant in October, 2011 which would have a nameplate capacity of 400MW and start commercial shipments in 2013. The facility was at the core of a US$600 million investment in entering the solar industry. Read more

Fraunhofer CSE opens solar test field in New Mexico

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 7:15 (PV-Tech)

With a heavy emphasis on utility-scale PV plants in the South-West region of the US, The Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE) has opened an outdoor test field, adjacent to its solar research annex in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Read more

JBIC extends credit line for ICICI Bank of India

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 19:51 (PV-Tech)

The Japanese Bank for International Cooporation (JBIC) has signed a general agreement with ICICI Bank (Bank of India) for an export credit line of up to US$30 million to fund a variety of renewable energy projects, it has been announced. Other private Japanese institutions will also co-finance the loan, adding another US$50 million to the credit line, making the credit a total of US$80 million. Read more

On the Road Toward Energy Independence

Wednesday, 7.4.2012 - 15:19 (Renewable Energy World)

With all the bad press about the renewable energy industry, it's easy to miss the fact that we are moving steadily down the road towards energy independence. It's a trip that we need to make, but it hasn't been easy and there's no way we can afford to coast now. Read more