Sol Systems arranges financing for 1.7 MW of PV projects in Indiana

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 14:16 (Solarserver)

Sol Systems (Washington, DC) on July 23rd, 2013, announced that the company arranged financing for a 1.7 MW portfolio of solar photovoltaic (PV) projects located in Indiana.   Solscient Energy (Toledo, Ohio) built the four commercial PV projects, each with different landlords, ranging in size from 243 kW to 643 kW. Solscient Energy is a solar integrator, developer, and an independent power producer. Read more

Hareon Solar to build 300MW solar cell plant in Taiwan

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 12:10 (PV-Tech)

A potential shift by Chinese PV manufacturers to avoid anti-dumping duties in the US and EU as well as in India has started with plans by Hareon Solar to build a 300MW solar cell plant in Taiwan. Read more

Power-One shareholders approve ABB merger deal

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 11:48 (PV-Tech)

Inverter manufacturer Power-One’s acquisition by ABB has been officially rubber-stamped by shareholders. Read more

Trade War: Taiwan cell producers the only beneficiaries, says report

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 11:46 (PV-Tech)

Taiwan-based research firm, EnergyTrend, has said that Taiwan-based solar cell producers shipped 3.2GW of cells in the first half of 2013 on the back of anti-dumping duties against China in the US and EU. Read more

IFC to loan USD 14.3 million for 29 MW PV plant in Chile

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 8:35 (Solarserver)

The World Bank's International Finance Corporation (IFC) has approved a USD 14.3 million loan to support a second 29.1 MW phase of the La Huayca solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in Chile. Selray Energias Ltda., a joint venture of Saferay GmbH (Berlin) and Seltec Ltda. (Santiago, Chile) is developing the La Huayca II project, which IFC says would be the first large-scale merchant PV plant in the nation's Northern Grid (SING). SunEdison Inc. (St. Peters, Missouri, US) has suggested that it will soon begin construction on a 100 MW PV project in Chile, however this project will provide electricity primarily to a mining operation. Read more

First Solar to build 23MW of solar capacity in New Mexico

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 18:23 (PV-Tech)

An agreement between First Solar and US regional power provider Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) to construct a total of 23MW of solar power generating capacity across three sites is awaiting approval by the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission. Read more

Leeds solar farm given the go-ahead

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 17:14 (Solarpowerportal)

Leeds city council is in the process of giving planning permission to a 7.2MW solar park in the south of Leeds. Read more

25.8MW ‘mega solar’ project to be built on Japanese island of Kyushu

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 17:10 (PV-Tech)

A groundbreaking ceremony took place on Tuesday for a 25.8MW solar plant which is to be built in Japan, on the site of a former golf course in the south west of the country, by Japanese home building corporation Sekisui House. Read more

As Solar Costs Drop, Energy Storage Solutions Take Center Stage

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 16:49 (Renewable Energy World)

Energy storage has emerged as the next big opportunity for the solar industry. With significant improvements in PV technology and new balance-of-system innovations, the solar industry has dramatically reduced both commercial and residential solar system costs in the last year — leading to a substantial increase in the amount of solar connected to the grid in the U.S. The U.S. solar industry achieved impressive growth in 2012, and there is no slowdown in sight. In 2013, EuPD Research projects that the U.S. will add approximately 3.9 GW of new solar capacity and continue robust installation rates for both residential and utility-scale PV systems. Read more

The Community Solar 'Holy Grail'?

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 16:06 (Renewable Energy World)

Has a Carbondale, CO, company found the 'holy grail' of community renewable energy projects? In this podcast with with Paul Spencer, President and founder of the Clean Energy Collective (CEC) in Carbondale, CO, we explored how CEC is pioneering the process of delivering clean power-generation through medium-scale (mostly solar) facilities that are Read more

UK’s First Institutionally-backed Solar Fund Begins Trading

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 16:01 (Renewable Energy World)

After raising £130 million (€151 million) in an IPO, the UK’s first solar fund with institutional backing has begun trading on the London Stock Exchange. Read more

What Will Replace the California Solar Initiative?

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 15:54 (Renewable Energy World)

No one can really debate that the California Solar Initiative, a 3,000 MW solar program started in 2007, has been very successful. In fact, the utility customer portion of the program targeted 1,940 megawatts of solar by 2017 and we’re on track to cross that milestone later in 2013 or early 2014. This is really impressive and good news for Californians. Read more

Mascotte, Hareon plan 300 MW solar PV cell factory in Taiwan

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 15:16 (Solarserver)

Mascotte Holdings Ltd. (Bermuda) has entered into a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Hareon Solar Technology Company Ltd. (Jiangyin, China) to build a 300 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) cell facility in Taiwan, as well as pursue PV project development. Read more

Tata power to build 28.8 MW solar PV plant in Maharashtra, India

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 14:46 (Solarserver)

Tata Power has announced that it will build a 28.8 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in the Indian state of Maharashtra, and will sell the electricity generated to its distribution subsidiary through a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) to meet its renewable energy obligation. Read more

Ascent Solar to present new product line at Outdoor Retailer trade show

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 14:31 (Solarserver)

Ascent Solar Technologies Inc. (Thornton, Colorado, U.S.), developer of consumer and off-grid products with integrated flexible thin-film photovoltaic modules, on July 23rd, 2013, announced, the company will debut the newest additions to its “EnerPlex Kickr” series as well as introduce a new line of “EnerPlex” products to be showcased at the Outdoor Retailer Summer show in Salt Lake City July 31st through August 3rd. Read more

Solar power generation and storage: meeco Group adds iKUBE to its mobile energy product range

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 14:29 (Solarserver)

The meeco Group (Zug, Switzerland) has recently added a product innovation to its “sun2live” range of solar energy and storage solutions, called iKUBE. The mobile energy solution, manufactured by the Italian company Pro D3 s.r.l. (Leini, Piedmont, Italy) is equipped with up to 1.4 Kilowatt solar photovoltaic (PV) power generation capacity and 400 Ampere-hours of storage capacity, and completes the lower-output level of the sun2live solutions provided by the Swiss Group. Read more

Building-Integrated Solar PV Market Set to Triple by 2015

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 13:00 (Renewable Energy World)

From stadiums in Brazil to a bank headquarters in Britain, architects led by Norman Foster are integrating solar cells into the skin of buildings, helping the market for the technology triple within two years. Read more

PPA offered for 50MW Uruguay solar park

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 12:59 (PV-Tech)

A 30-year Power Purchasing Agreement (PPA) has been offered by Uruguay’s state-owned power company to Netherlands-based solar developer Fotowatio Renewable Ventures, following a tender process which opened on 27 May this year. Read more

Capitas finance announces ground-mount PV fund

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 12:18 (Solarpowerportal)

Capitas Finance has announced a new solar PV funding solution dedicated to ground-mounted solar PV sites across the UK. Read more

Landmark Indian solar case a ‘waste of time’: SunBorne MD

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 12:16 (PV-Tech)

A landmark case in the Indian state of Gujarat is wasting the solar sector’s resources and creating unnecessary uncertainty, according to the managing director of SunBorne Energy. Read more

Soitec, Alstom to collaborate on solar CPV

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 11:57 (Solarserver)

The Alstom Group (Levallois-Perret, France) and Soitec SA (Bernin, France) have signed a cooperative agreement to deploy concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) plants, including participating in French government solicitations. Alstom says that the agreement follows a call for 100 MW of CPV issued by the French government on March 13th, 2013, and notes that Soitec's CPV technology is well suited to power production in the South of France. The two companies also plan to create a “center for excellence”. Read more

Solar power self-consumption systems make up 1/3 of new German PV systems

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 11:51 (Solarserver)

The German Solar Industry Association (BSW-Solar) reports that the electricity produced by roughly 1/3 of new solar photovoltaic (PV) systems installed in the nation is consumed primarily in the household or business where the PV system is installed. BSW-Solar found these results from a survey of solar installers, which found that the switch to “self-consumption” systems involves considerations of system sizing, power management and energy storage. There are also strong economic incentives for such a switch. Read more

JA Solar strengthens South Africa presence with Powerway partnership

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 11:39 (PV-Tech)

Chinese PV manufacturers JA Solar and Powerway are to join forces to target South Africa’s burgeoning solar market. Read more

U.S. Investor Kawa to Buy Insolvent German Solar Company Conergy

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 9:00 (Renewable Energy World)

U.S. private-equity firm Kawa Capital Management Inc. agreed to take over Conergy AG, once Germany’s biggest solar company, two weeks after the Hamburg- based company filed for bankruptcy. Read more

SEIA urges U.S. government to push for better solar trade conditions with India

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 8:46 (Solarserver)

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA, Washington DC) has joined with leading U.S. business groups to urge U.S. Vice President Joe Biden to raise concerns over India's trade policies in an upcoming visit to the nation. On July 22nd, 2013 the letter from SEIA, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (Washington DC), the National Association of Manufacturers (Washington DC) and 38 other business groups was delivered to the VP's office. The letter follows the first hearing in India's anti-dumping case covering imports of solar photovoltaic (PV) cells from the US and China. Read more

Twelve solar states prove effectiveness of policy

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 3:01 (PV-Tech)

The impact of policy on the growth of solar was underscored today by a new report examining the effect of state mandates and incentives on the industry. Read more

Twelve US solar states prove effectiveness of policy

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 3:01 (PV-Tech)

The impact of policy on the growth of solar was underscored today by a new report examining the effect of state mandates and incentives on the industry. Read more

From Cities to Soap, Recognizing the US EPA's Newest Top Green Power Users

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 19:36 (Renewable Energy World)

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has updated its quarterly rankings of organizations that supply their electricity needs with renewable energy. You'll recognize a few of the new additions, and several that are raising the bar for everyone. Read more

DECC awards £7 million for social landlord renewable heat projects

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 19:11 (Solarpowerportal)

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has awarded shares of a fund worth around £7 million to 46 landlords under the Renewable Heat Premium Payment (RHPP) contest. Read more

Investec to invest US$813 million in South Africa renewables

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 13:19 (PV-Tech)

Specialist bank Investec is investing ZAR8 billion (US$813 million) in South Africa’s renewable energy independent power producer procurement programme (REIPPPP). Read more

Power-One stockholders approve ABB acquisition

Wednesday, 7.24.2013 - 12:02 (Solarserver)

Power-One, Inc. (Camarillo, Calif.), provider of renewable energy and energy-efficient power conversion and power management solutions, announced that at its special meeting of stockholders held on July 23rd, 2013, the stockholders approved the adoption of the merger agreement, pursuant to which ABB (Zurich, Switzerland) will acquire Power-One for USD 6.35 per share of Power-One common stock. Read more