Cupertino Electric begins work on transmission line for 200 MW PV plant in Southern California

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 19:58 (Solarserver)

On February 27th, 2013, Cupertino Electric Inc. (San Jose, California, U.S.) announced that it has broken ground on a 230 kilovolt (kV) transmission line to interconnect a new substation serving a 200 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant in Imperial Valley, California. The utility-scale PV plant in Southern California is expected to produce energy for more than 240,000 households. Read more

Alta Devices dual junction solar cell verified at 30.8% conversion efficiency

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 19:08 (PV-Tech)

The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has verified a new ?dual junction? thin film solar cell technology from Alta Devices with a conversion efficiency of 30.8%. Read more

Malaysia increases FiT degression rate to 20%

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 18:13 (PV-Tech)

Malaysia is to increase the degression rate of its PV feed-in tariff from 8 to 20% for installations larger than 24kW from April. Read more

Suntech appoints new Chairwoman

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 16:36 (PV-Tech)

Module manufacturer Suntech has appointed Susan Wang to replace Dr Zhengrong Shi as Chairwoman of the Board of Directors, effective immediately. Read more

IPVEA, SASIA join forces to promote PV in MENA

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 15:33 (Solarserver)

The International PV Equipment Association (IPVEA) and the Saudi Arabia Solar Industry Association (SASIA) have signed a new cooperation agreement to promote solar photovoltaic (PV) technology in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. SASIA and IPVEA expect the MENA PV market to grow to 3.5 GW by 2015, noting that Saudi Arabia alone plans to add 16 GW of PV by 2032. Under the agreement, the two organizations will also communicate on issues of market intelligence for localized PV manufacturing. Read more

APEC opens Saudi PV factory

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 13:42 (PV-Tech)

Arabian Power Electronics Company (APEC), a power electronics manufacturer based in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia has opened a new manufacturing facility that will produce PV systems and inverters as well as other power electronics equipment. Read more

MEMC appoints Shihab Kuran to head SunEdison Advanced Solutions

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 12:45 (Solarserver)

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (St. Peters, Missouri, US) has appointed former Petra Solar President and CEO Shihab Kuran as president of a new entity focused on energy solutions incorporating advanced grid management technologies. Kuran will head SunEdison Advanced Solutions, and report to MEMC President and CEO Ahmad Chatila. Advanced Solutions will be part of MEMC's Solar Energy Business Unit, which includes both SunEdison and solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing. Read more

Solar leasing provider OneRoof Energy acquires USD 100 million in new financing

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 19:51 (Solarserver)

On February 28th, 2013, solar finance provider OneRoof Energy Inc. (San Diego, California, U.S.) announced that it has secured an agreement for the acquisition of up to USD 100 million in financing with MS Solar Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of Morgan Stanley and Main Street Power Co. Inc. Under the agreement, OneRoof Energy will acquire USD 100 million in residential solar photovoltaic (PV) projects and expand its existing MySolar residential leasing platform. Read more

KB Home, SunPower achieve 1,000 solar home milestone

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 19:44 (Solarserver)

On February 28th, 2013, SunPower Corp. (San Jose, California, U.S.) and KB Home announced that they have achieved a milestone of building more than 1,000 new homes powered by SunPower's photovoltaic (PV) systems. Owners of the 1,000 solar-powered homes are expected to save nearly USD 1 million annually on their electricity costs as a result of their solar power systems. Read more

Solar shakeout: SiC Processing to prepare restructuring plan

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 18:41 (PV-Tech)

The local court in Amberg, Germany court has appointed Dr Hubert Ampferl, partner of Nuremberg-based law firm Dr Beck & Partner, as supervisor of SiC Processing, which is operating as ?debtor-in-possession? during insolvency proceedings. Read more

SolarWorld qualifies for French FiT bonus

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 17:41 (PV-Tech)

Germany-based SolarWorld has claimed to be the first PV manufacturer to receive France?s 10% domestic content bonus in addition to the feed-in tariff (FiT). Read more

Schletter to supply 100 MW of mounting systems to Strata Solar

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 15:29 (Solarserver)

Strata Solar LLC (Chapel Hill, North Carolina, US) has awarded Schletter Inc. (Tucson, Arizona, US) a contract to supply mounting systems to accompany 100 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity over the course of 2013. Schletter notes that it is near production ready at its facility in the US state of North Carolina, and credits the tripling of its manufacturing capacity as a key factor in winning the contract. Read more

Building an African Market: Solar Energy Entrepreneurs on the Rise

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 14:32 (Renewable Energy World)

Charities' early efforts to distribute clean energy technologies in Africa met with little success. Their use of donor funding to heavily subsidise products such as solar lighting kits would generally fulfil a programme's short-term targets, but in the long run the expertise and equipment needed to maintain the systems failed to be adequately developed or provided. Crucially, no new systems beyond a programme's target would appear in the area. But a new wave of investors and social enterprises has sprung up in the last decade, and they are increasing the availability of products tailored to off-grid domestic energy customers in Africa. Read more

California's Solar PV Rebates Nearly Over: Is This Good News?

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 14:00 (Renewable Energy World)

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), which coordinates California?s solar incentives programs through the California Solar Initiative, said earlier this week that residential solar incentives in an increasing number of utility service areas are reaching fulfillment. Many solar industry supporters, like the Vote Solar Initiative, say t Read more

Dominion plans 7.7MW PV plant in Georgia, US

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 13:57 (PV-Tech)

Dominion, a US-based energy producer, has acquired a solar energy development project from Smart Energy Capital and Jacoby Development for an undisclosed purchase price. Read more

Schletter and Strata Solar announce 100MW supply agreement

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 13:52 (PV-Tech)

Mounting system manufacturer Schletter has announced 100MW supply agreement with installer with North Carolina-based Strata Solar. Read more

PassivSystems and JinkoSolar announce partnership

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 13:14 (Solarpowerportal)

Chinese module manufacturer JinkoSolar and UK-based monitoring specialists, PassivSystems, are set to announce a partnership to capitalise on opportunities in the UK solar market. Read more

India's Union Budget includes new support for the solar industry

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 12:55 (Solarserver)

India's recently unveiled Union Budget for 2013-2014 includes multiple benefits for both solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturers and developers according to RESolve Energy Consultants (Chennai, India). The company has noted incentives for solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing, funding for low interest loans through the National Clean Energy Fund, and the extension of a tax holiday for power projects. The budget is now before India's congress for approval. Read more

California Solar Initiative residential solar PV rebates fully claimed in multiple areas

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 12:50 (Solarserver)

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has announced that rebates will no longer be available through the California Solar Initiative (CSI) for residential solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in many parts of the state. CPUC states that the allotment of residential rebates has been filled in the service areas of Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E, San Francisco, California, US) and San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E, San Diego, California, US). The Vote Solar Initiative (San Francisco, California, US) describes this as a sign of the success of the program. Read more

Orta Solar receives approval for five multi-megawatt solar farms

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 12:16 (Solarpowerportal)

Andover-based renewable developers, Orta Solar, has received planning permission for five multi-megawatt solar farms in the south of England totalling 40MW of new capacity. Read more

Work underway on 8minutenergy Renewables 266MW Mount Signal solar farm

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 11:53 (PV-Tech)

Utility-scale PV project developer 8minutenergy Renewables has completed the pre-construction development stage of the proposed 266MW DC (200MW AC) Mount Signal solar farm and will now begin building the facility. Read more

Concentrating solar power: Chile opens solicitation for Latin America's first CSP plant

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 10:07 (Solarserver)

Chile's Ministry of Energy and Production Development Corporation (CORFO) have opened a call for proposals to build a concentrating solar power (CSP) plant at least 10 MW in capacity in the northern part of the nation. A USD 20 million grant as well as more than USD 350 million in financing are available to support the project, the first of its kind in Latin America. Proposed designs must include three hours of energy storage. Read more

EC opens anti-dumping investigation of solar glass imports from China

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 10:01 (Solarserver)

On February 28th, 2013 the European Commission launched an anti-dumping investigation into imports of solar glass from China, prompted by a complaint from trade group EU ProSun Glass. The investigation could take up to 15 months, however the EC could impose provisional anti-dumping duties as soon as December 2013 if it finds them necessary. The EC notes that this is a separate investigation from its anti-dumping and CVD investigations of Chinese PV exports. Read more

SEMI calls for proactive action to resolve solar trade war

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 9:58 (Solarserver)

Describing a ?protectionist impasse?, SEMI (San Jose, California, US) has released a white paper on the trade disputes affecting the global solar photovoltaic (PV) industry, which it says offers a way forward beyond trade litigation and encourages a path towards dispute resolution. The report is the work of SEMI and representatives from leading PV manufacturers on its PV Public Policy Sub-Committee. The document calls for support for unification of national and regional renewable energy and solar trade associations, as well as encouraging governments to initiate a dialogue that transcends enforcement actions. Read more

Solar Startup Alta Devices Sets Efficiency Record, Works on New Cell Design

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 9:15 (Renewable Energy World)

Alta Devices, which engineers solar cells with more exotic materials, has achieved a new efficiency record of 30.8 percent, the Silicon Valley startup said Monday. Read more

How to Follow Renewable Energies into Emerging Markets

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 15:05 (Renewable Energy World)

Large-scale deployment of renewable energies has so far been concentrated in Europe and in the U.S., but that is changing. Take wind energy, solar PV and CSP (Concentrated Solar Power), for instance: 44 percent, 35 percent and 23 percent, respectively, of new capacity for the next five years will be deployed in emerging markets (Exhibit 1). For Nor Read more

Geothermal Energy in Iceland: Too Much of a Good Thing?

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 17:04 (Renewable Energy World)

Iceland is named the land of fire and ice for a good reason. It is certainly icy: temperatures hover around 10-20°F (-12 to -6°C) in the winter. But underneath that frozen earth lies fiery hot rock and water ? so much of it that 87 percent of the country?s heat and hot water demand is met with geothermal energy and 25 percent of its electricity dem Read more

Obama appoints Moniz to head DOE, McCarthy to head EPA

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 21:29 (Solarserver)

On March 4th, 2013 US President Barack Obama appointed nuclear physicist and MIT Energy Initiative Director Dr. Ernest Moniz as secretary of energy, to replace Dr. Steven Chu. Read more

Pike Research: Distributed generation micro-grids revenues to reach nearly USD 13 billion by 2018

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 19:39 (Solarserver)

On February 28th, 2013, Pike Research (Boulder, Colorado, U.S.) has released a new report stating that annual revenues from distributed generation micro-grids will reach USD 12.7 billion in 2018. According to Pike Research, micro-grids are becoming an increasingly common way for campuses, communities, and other large power users to harness the benefits of distributed power generation. Many of these systems are deployed by end-use customers who are not getting the quality of energy services they desire from their host distribution utilities. Read more

Yingli reports booming shipments but heavy loss in Q4 2012

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 18:49 (Solarserver)

Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Ltd. (Baoding, China) has reported very strong shipment volumes for the fourth quarter of 2012, but also heavy losses impacted by impairment and inventory provisions. Read more

Yingli Green to ship an extra 1GW in 2013; module prices rising

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 18:23 (PV-Tech)

A net loss in 2012 of nearly US$500 million was overshadowed by Yingli Green?s shipment guidance for this year increasing by a massive 1GW. Read more

Yingli reports booming shipments but heavy loss in 4Q 2012

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 17:15 (Solarserver)

Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Ltd. (Baoding, China) has reported very strong shipment volumes for the fourth quarter of 2012, but also heavy losses impacted by impairment and inventory provisions. Read more

France has cumulative installed capacity of 4GW of PV

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 14:54 (PV-Tech)

France added 1.08GW of PV capacity in 2012, represented by over 34,500 plants, according to the country?s Ministry of Energy, Ecology and Sustainable Development. Read more

France installed over 4GW of PV in 2012

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 14:54 (PV-Tech)

France added 1.08GW of PV capacity in 2012, represented by over 34,500 plants, according to the country?s Ministry of Energy, Ecology and Sustainable Development. Read more

Romania to Scale Back Renewable Energy Aid to Curb Power Price Gains

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 14:00 (Renewable Energy World)

Romania will scale back renewable power subsidies to limit electricity-price increases for consumers, according to the minister-delegate for energy. Read more

German Energy Storage Association membership growing

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 11:42 (PV-Tech)

The German Energy Storage Association (BVES) has experienced a growth in membership in recent weeks demonstrating an increased interest in energy storage, the organisation claims. Read more

German energy storage subsidies postponed indefinitely

Monday, 3.4.2013 - 10:11 (Solarserver)

A German program to subsidize storage to accompany solar photovoltaic (PV) generation has been indefinitely postponed due to a funding shortfall, according to MP Hans Josef-Fell (Green). The EUR 50 million (USD 65 million) program was to be funded through the sale of CO2 certificates through the Energy and Climate Fund, however the price of such certificates has crashed, leading to a spending freeze. Fell argues that in not securing other funding, the CDU/FDP coalition government is not honoring its commitments. Read more