New factory in Saudi Arabia will manufacture PV systems, inverters

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 23:13 (Solarserver)

Arabian Power Electronics Company (APEC) has opened a new manufacturing facility in Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia, which will manufacture solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and inverters, as well as other power electronics equipment. APEC says the factory will produce products suited to the unique environmental conditions of the region, and will eventually include a ?massive? research and development facility. The APEC plant is the product of a joint venture between APLAB Ltd. (Thane, India) and Eram Group (Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia), and was inaugurated on Monday, February 25th, 2013. Read more

France surpasses 4 GW of installed PV in 2012

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 13:05 (Solarserver)

France's Ministry of Energy, Ecology and Sustainable Development has released its annual report on wind and solar photovoltaics (PV), which finds that the nation added 1.08 GW of new PV capacity in over 34,500 plants in 2012. While this is a 39% decrease compared to 2011 installations, it also increases France's cumulative capacity by 37% to over 4 GW. Plants over 250 kW represented the majority of new capacity, with 249 plants totaling 632 MW. Read more

SoloPower layoffs latest sign of trouble

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 12:55 (Solarserver)

On February 27th, 2013 thin-film solar photovoltaic (PV) startup SoloPower Inc. (San Jose, California, US) announced that it will restructure, including an unspecified number of layoffs. The company also stated that it would begin shipments of its flexible copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) PV modules from its new factory in the US state of Oregon this month. However, a number of details including the recent departure of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Mustafa Pinarbasi and other executives have led to concerns over the company's future. Read more

Updated: May feed-in tariff rates remain largely the same despite controversial degressions

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 10:38 (Solarpowerportal)

Ofgem has confirmed the feed-in tariff (FiT) rates for solar photovoltaic technology for the period starting 1 May 2013 until 31 July 2013. Read more

May feed-in tariff rates remain largely the same despite controversial degression

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 10:38 (Solarpowerportal)

Ofgem has confirmed the feed-in tariff (FiT) rates for solar photovoltaic technology for the period starting 1 May 2013 until 1 July 2013. Read more

May feed-in tariff rates remain largely the same despite controversial degressions

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 10:38 (Solarpowerportal)

Ofgem has confirmed the feed-in tariff (FiT) rates for solar photovoltaic technology for the period starting 1 May 2013 until 1 July 2013. Read more

GT Advanced Technologies reports heavy losses on write-downs, restructuring in 4Q 2012

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 9:55 (Solarserver)

GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (Nashua, New Hampshire, US) has released results for the fourth quarter of 2012, reporting substantial write-downs and restructuring charges leading to an operating loss well in excess of revenues at USD 176 million. GT reported only USD 6.5 million in Photovoltaic (PV) revenues, however, the company's Polysilicon division brought in USD 89.3 million during the quarter. Overall, company revenues fell 33% year-over-year to USD 102 million in the fourth quarter of 2012, in line with its guidance. Read more

Kerala releases draft solar policy for 2013 including mandatory use of solar water heating

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 23:09 (Solarserver)

The state government of Kerala, India has released its draft solar policy for 2013, calling for 500 MW of new solar by 2017 and 1.5 GW by 2030. ?Kerala Solar Energy Policy 2013? covers both solar electric and solar thermal technologies, calling for mandatory use of solar water heating in many buildings. The policy will be implemented on April 1st, 2013. Read more

Chicken Little and the "Crisis" of Grid Reliability

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 17:55 (Renewable Energy World)

The Wall Street Journal published an alarmist piece yesterday depicting California's electrical grid as the victim of a 'looming crisis' brought on by the state's 'growing reliance' on wind and solar. Read more

Build It And They'll Come: Georgia Power Kicks Off 210-MW Solar Program

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 17:55 (Renewable Energy World)

Today (March 1) at 8:00 am EST, Georgia Power Company began accepting applications for its Advanced Solar Initiative (GPASI), a program that will add 210 megawatts of solar capacity over the next three years. This first deadline is for small and medium-sized facilities (up to 100 kW and 100 kW - 1 MW, respectively), for which the utility is seeking a total of 45 MW in each of the next two years. An additional 60 MW of utility-scale projects will be solicited for 2013 (that RFP goes out next month) and 2014, to be brought online in 2015 and 2016. Read more

LDK Solar sells 5 million shares to Fulai Investments Limited

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 16:08 (PV-Tech)

LDK Solar, a vertically-integrated PV manufacturer, has sold 5 million of its newly issued ordinary shares to Fulai Investments Limited. Read more

300 Reasons Utilities Should Do These 3 Things for Distributed Solar

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

In the next decade, over 300 gigawatts of unsubsidized solar energy could be deployed across the United States, generating electricity for the same or less than retail electricity prices.  But many utilities remain blissfully unaware of the coming solar storm or how to handle it, as evidenced by a Public Utility Commission hearing in Minnesota last Read more

UConn Professor's Patented Technique Key to New Solar Power Technology

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

A novel fabrication technique developed by UConn engineering professor Brian Willis could provide the breakthrough technology scientists have been looking for to vastly improve today's solar energy systems. Read more

Duke Explores Rooftop Solar as Panels Slow Electricity Demand, CEO Says

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 14:30 (Renewable Energy World)

Duke Energy Corp., the largest U.S. utility owner, may expand into rooftop solar as wider use of photovoltaic panels by customers cuts into demand for electricity in states including California, Chief Executive Officer Jim Rogers said. Read more

KB Home and SunPower hit 1,000 solar home milestone

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 13:29 (PV-Tech)

KB Home and SunPower Corporation have come together to attend a special event in Lancaster, California, to celebrate hitting the 1,000 solar home milestone. Read more

NRG's solar PV assets add USD 86 million to EBITDA in 2012

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 13:00 (Solarserver)

NRG Energy Inc. (Princeton, New Jersey, US) reports that it added 290 MW of operational solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity to its generation portfolio in 2012, which contributed USD 86 million to its EBITDA. The utility's fourth quarter and full year 2012 results show an EBITDA of USD 52 million in 2012 in its Alternative Energy division, which includes these solar projects. In 2011, this division reported an EBITDA of USD -15 million. Read more

Update: UK cuts large-scale FiTs by 3.5%

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 12:43 (PV-Tech)

UK energy supplier Ofgem has confirmed a 3.5% degression for solar PV up to 5MW for the period starting 1 May 2013 until 31 July 2013, as reported by PV-Tech?s sister website Solar Power Portal. Read more

UK cuts large-scale FiTs by 3.5%

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 12:43 (PV-Tech)

UK energy supplier Ofgem has confirmed a 3.5% degression for solar PV up to 5MW for the period starting 1 May 2013 until 1 July 2013, as reported by PV-Tech?s sister website Solar Power Portal. Read more

European Commission launches investigation into solar glass dumping

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 12:37 (PV-Tech)

The European Commission has launched an anti-dumping investigation against Chinese manufacturers of solar glass following a complaint filed last month. Read more

Solar shakeout: SoloPower hits ?Valley of Death? point

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 11:45 (PV-Tech)

Flexible-CIGS thin-film start-up SoloPower said it would be restructuring its operations which will involve a workforce reduction as it approaches volume production at its plant in Oregon, USA. Read more

Europe to begin requiring registration of Chinese solar PV imports

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 10:03 (Solarserver)

The European Commission (EC) will begin requiring registration of imports of silicon wafers and solar photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules from China, according to a statement by the trade group Alliance for Affordable Solar Energy (AFASE). AFASE expects an EC regulation to this effective on or before March 8th, 2013, as the first step towards a decision on whether or not to apply anti-dumping and/or countervailing duties (CVD) retroactively. Opposing trade group EU ProSun has repeatedly asked for such a registration, in anticipation of the stockpiling of PV imports. Read more

Isofotón signs MOU to build solar PV, polysilicon production facilities in Kazakhstan

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 9:59 (Solarserver)

On February 25th, 2013 Isofotón SA (Madrid, Spain) signed a memorandum of understanding with Lancaster Group (Almaty, Kazakhstan) to build solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing and polysilicon production facilities in Kazakhstan. The factories will serve Central Asian markets. Isofotón will also provide technology expertise, in cooperation with the Center for Silicon Solar Technology (CENTESIL) at the Polytechnical University of Madrid (Madrid, Spain). Read more

First Solar may recycle 100,000 Abound Solar CdTe panels

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 9:33 (PV-Tech)

First Solar has said that it has contacted Abound Solar?s trustees to begin discussions whether it can recover materials from up to 100,000 panels made by the bankrupt cadmium telluride (CdTe) module manufacturer. Read more

Biomass Analysis Tool Is Faster, More Precise

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

A screening tool from the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) eases and greatly quickens one of the thorniest tasks in the biofuels industry: determining cell wall chemistry to find plants with ideal genes. Read more

Saudi Arabia confirms ambitious renewable energy goals; experts discussed market potential in MENA at networking forum

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 23:04 (Solarserver)

According to an official communiqué published after the first ?PV Briefing & Networking Forum Saudi Arabia? in Riyadh 54 GW of renewable, especially solar energy generation capacity is planned to be installed in Saudi Arabia by 2032. The market for solar photovoltaic (PV) and concentration solar power (CSP) plants in the region is set to increase to a total of 3.5 gigawatts (GW) by 2015. Read more

Green Jobs Survey Killed as US Prepares Government-Wide Cuts

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 15:33 (Renewable Energy World)

A program tracking U.S. green jobs, faulted by Republican lawmakers, will be scrapped by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as part of automatic budget cuts set to take effect today, according to a person familiar with the decision. Read more

The Real Power behind Today's Energy Efficiency Industry?

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

President Barack Obama recently pushed for increased energy efficiency in his State of the Union address. His endorsement is a plus, no argument. But it may not be the federal government that drives the industry?s next growth spurt. Increasingly, the push for clean energy seems to be more grassroots, from the city and community. Consider these sign Read more

Lightsource Renewable Energy purchases 9.6MW project in Cornwall, UK

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 13:53 (PV-Tech)

UK solar energy generator Lightsource Renewable Energy has purchased two solar parks totalling 9.6MW from Germany-based project developer Wirsol. Read more

OneRoof Energy secures US$100 million investment

Friday, 3.1.2013 - 12:33 (PV-Tech)

OneRoof Energy, a US-based solar finance provider, has announced it has secured US$100 million in new financing following the signing of an agreement with MS Solar Holdings, a 100%-owned subsidiary of Morgan Stanley and Main Street Power Company. Read more