Suntech appoints former Wuxi Guolian state business executive as president

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 22:59 (PV-Tech)

In a newly created position, Suntech Power Holdings has appointed a senior executive from a Wuxi Guolian state owned investment company to the board of directors and president of the company, with immediate effect. Read more

Suntech appoints former Wuxi Guolian state business executive as President

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 22:59 (PV-Tech)

In a newly created position, Suntech Power Holdings has appointed a senior executive from a Wuxi Guolian state owned investment company to the Board of Directors and President of the company, with immediate effect. Read more

Sustainable Energy announces USD 500,000 investment for energy storage inverter production

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 15:52 (Solarserver)

On March 15th, 2013, Sustainable Energy Technologies Ltd. (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) announced that it has received a USD 500,000 investment from Doughty Hanson Technology Ventures to accelerate production of its energy storage inverters for German solar photovoltaic (PV) battery systems. Read more

Milestone: Power-One sells more than 1 million PV inverters

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 13:42 (PV-Tech)

Power-One has said it has surpassed the 1 million milestone for PV inverters sold worldwide and boosted its installed base has to over 10GW. Read more

PV Exchange: EU Directive on anti-dumping tariffs leads to run on goods, throws PV market into a jitter

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 8:38 (Solarserver)

The turnaround in solar photovoltaic (PV) module prices in February 2013 has been confirmed, pvXchange GmbH (Cologne, Germany) announces. Increasing prices have been accelerated by what has proven to be an unpredictable and unpleasant development for the market, the PV trade platform reports. In the first week of March the wording of an EU Directive dating from 01.03.2013 was published, according to which all imports of Chinese solar modules must be registered by the customs authorities. Read more

Suntech announces default with respect to its 3% convertible notes, focuses on consensual restructuring

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 8:31 (Solarserver)

Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (Wuxi, China) on March 18th, 2013 announced that it has received from the trustee of its 3% convertible notes a notice of default and acceleration relating to Suntech's non-payment of the principal amount of USD 541 million that was due to holders of the notes on March 15th, 2013. Such event of default has also triggered cross-defaults under Suntech's other outstanding debt, including its loans from International Finance Corporation and Chinese domestic lenders, the company states. Read more

Tensions rise in utility versus solar debate

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 22:00 (PV-Tech)

Tension between California?s solar installers and the state?s investor owned utilities boiled over today at the Cleantech Forum in San Francisco. Read more

Mitsubishi acquires 50% stake in Italian PV company

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 18:49 (PV-Tech)

Mitsubishi Corporation, Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) and investment company Solar Ventures have acquired Solar Holding, which has a PV portfolio of 42MWp in Italy. Read more

Hanwha SolarOne sees massive shipment swing away from Germany to Japan

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 18:04 (PV-Tech)

Chasing higher margin business in Japan, India and Thailand in the fourth quarter of 2012 resulted in Hanwha SolarOne?s sales in Germany plummetting to only 8% of total sales, down from 39% in the third quarter. Read more

abakus solar connects 2MWp PV array in Germany

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 16:41 (PV-Tech)

On 4 March, abakus solar connected its 2MWp Westerwiehe I solar plant located in Rietberg in the Westphalian county of Gütersloh, Germany. Read more

Sunpreme completes largest commercial rooftop PV installation in Punjab

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 16:16 (PV-Tech)

Sunpreme, a solar power producer headquartered in California, US, has completed, it claims, the largest commercial rooftop PV installation in Punjab, India. Read more

Martifer Solar installs 4.26MW of PV plants in Spain

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 15:49 (PV-Tech)

Portuguese EPC firm Martifer Solar has completed two solar power plants in Spain which together provide an additional 4.26MW to the country?s PV capacity. Read more

Funding restored to Pennsylvania solar thermal rebate program

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 15:39 (Solarserver)

On March 15th, 2013, SunMaxx Solar (Binghamton, New York, U.S.) announced that funding has been restored to the existing Pennsylvania Sunshine Rebate Program. The Sunshine program has received USD 7.25 million in funding from the Commonwealth Financing Authority and is once again actively seeking applications for solar rebates. Read more

PermaCity Solar joints Panasonic/Coronal Management alliance

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 15:34 (Solarserver)

On March 14th, 2013, Panasonic Eco Solutions North America and Coronal Management LLC announced that PermaCity Solar (Los Angeles, California, U.S.) has joined their new solar power Alliance Program. Launched by Panasonic and Coronal, the Alliance Program gives members access to an integrated platform that aims to accelerate sales and implementation process for solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. Read more

China May Cut Subsidy for Largest Solar Projects

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 15:00 (Renewable Energy World)

China, forecast to become the biggest solar market this year, may restructure its subsidies to favor smaller projects over larger ones to promote new plants in in areas with power shortages, an industry official said. Read more

Sempra US Gas & Power begins building Copper Mountain Solar 3

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 14:15 (PV-Tech)

Sempra US Gas & Power, a subsidiary of Sempra Energy, has commenced construction on its utility-scale Copper Mountain Solar 3 project. Read more

India Set to Auction More Solar Capacity than Planned this Year

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 14:00 (Renewable Energy World)

India, which plans to raise solar capacity eightfold by 2017, will probably auction more megawatts than planned this fiscal year in a bid to cut chronic power shortages in the world's second most-populous nation. Read more

Transphorm: Delivering the Promise of Gallium Nitride for Solar Inverters

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 14:00 (Renewable Energy World)

While solar inverters are playing an increasingly important role for electric grid management, the march to reduce their size and price is reaching the limits set by silicon, which is commonly used to build them. At a power electronics conference in California this week, Google-backed startup, Transphorm, is showing off its first-generation gallium nitride-on-silicon transistors that the company says will accomplish both goals. Read more

Solar3D touts market entry in 2014

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 13:57 (PV-Tech)

US-based three-dimensional solar cell start-up Solar3D is planning to produce a manufacturing prototype of its cell technology in 2013. Read more

DSM offers light trapping lamination sheet via SolarExcel acquisition

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 13:32 (PV-Tech)

PV materials start-up, SolarExcel based in the Netherlands has been acquired by major industrial materials form, DSM for an undisclosed sum. Read more

Solar Shakeout: Aion files for bankruptcy

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 12:56 (PV-Tech)

Italian PV installer Aion Renewables SpA will file for bankruptcy after Italian district court Reggio-Emilia rejected its insolvency plan, following its request in December 2012. Read more

Plans submitted for 13.5 hectare solar farm in Leeds

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 12:43 (Solarpowerportal)

Plans have been submitted for a 7.2MW solar park on the outskirts of Leeds by local green energy company, Oakapple Renewable Energy. Read more

STR Holdings pinning business recovery on PID solutions

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 12:24 (PV-Tech)

Encapsulant supplier STR holdings is pinning hopes for a recovery in sales on a range of new potential induced degradation (PID) products having taken a hit last year with the loss of its largest customer First Solar. Read more

Solar Shakeout: Würth Solar announces solar business divestment plans

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 12:14 (PV-Tech)

German PV developer Würth Solar, part of the larger industrial group Würth, has announced plans to outsource most of its solar business to BayWa and an unnamed second partner. Read more

SMA Solar Technology AG concludes acquisition of majority stake in Chinese PV inverter producer Zeversolar

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 10:57 (Solarserver)

SMA Solar Technology AG (Niestetal, Germay) has concluded the acquisition of a majority stake of 72.5% in Jiangsu Zeversolar New Energy Co., Ltd. (Shanghai), a solar photovoltaic (PV) inverter manufacturer in China. The acquisition of a majority share in Zeversolar was approved by the Chinese government authorities. Zeversolar's products are specially tailored to the requirements of the Chinese photovoltaic market, SMA emphasizes. This transaction secures SMA access to the growing Chinese PV market and strategically consolidates its position as a global market leader. Read more

Solarbuzz: Turkey to install 100 MW of PV in 2013

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 10:50 (Solarserver)

The Turkish solar photovoltaic (PV) market is being driven by the competitive cost of solar power more than by other incentives, Solarbuzz (Santa Clara, California, U.S.) explains. The latest market developments in Turkey support Solarbuzz? recent forecast for 2013 PV demand, as featured in ?Marketbuzz 2013?, of approximately 100 megawatts (MW). This forecast is based upon the emerging competitive economic terms being recognized, Solarbuzz notes. Read more

BrightSource chief exec: CSP in the US will continue to grow

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 22:52 (PV-Tech)

CSP project development in the US would continue to see growth despite the expiration of government funding for large-scale installations, the chief executive officer of BrightSource Energy said yesterday. Read more

CSP development in the US will continue to grow

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 22:52 (PV-Tech)

CSP project development in the US would continue to see growth despite the expiration of government funding for large-scale installations, the chief executive officer of BrightSource Energy said yesterday. Read more

2012 German Nuclear & Gas-Fired Generation Falls Further While Renewables Grow

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 14:00 (Renewable Energy World)

Apparently my article last October documenting the growth of renewables in Germany while nuclear generation continues to decline got under the skin of pro-nuclear bloggers. Read more

Energy Storage Series: Making the Case for Batteries

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 14:00 (Renewable Energy World)

As the renewable energy industry grows and becomes a larger part of our energy mix, the concept of energy storage has made its way into the spotlight and has created some important pressing questions: Do renewables' inherent intermittency require some kind of energy storage, and should it be at the endpoint of use or closer to the utility (or both)? Do we even need an "energy storage" application, or can grid flexibility and responsiveness assume this role? If energy storage is indeed embraced, how should we weigh the options? Read more

2012 German Nuclear and Gas-Fired Generation Falls Further While Renewables Grow

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 14:00 (Renewable Energy World)

Apparently my article last October documenting the growth of renewables in Germany while nuclear generation continues to decline got under the skin of pro-nuclear bloggers. Read more

CFN provides US$2 million to finance 1MW PV plant in Eucador

Tuesday, 3.19.2013 - 13:06 (PV-Tech)

Corporación Financiera Nacional de la República del Ecuador (CFN), a financial company owned by the government of Ecuador, has released its first ?trade credit? for a renewable energy project. Read more