Conergy: Module production to ‘restart soon’

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 16:59 (PV-Tech)

Insolvent PV manufacturer and developer firm Conergy has said its module manufacturing plant will be operational again soon. Read more

NREL wins R&D 100 award with high-efficiency PV cell

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 15:45 (Solarserver)

A high-efficiency silicon solar photovoltaic (PV) cell advanced at the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has been named among this year’s most significant innovations by R&D Magazine. "These R&D 100 awards honoring our work in solar, vehicles and energy efficiency demonstrate how NREL research produces results that can be moved to the marketplace,” NREL Director Dan Arvizu said. Read more

E-CL commissions 2 MW PV plant in Northern Chile

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 12:12 (Solarserver)

E-CL (Santiago, Chile) and Quiborax SA (Santiago, Chile) have commissioned a 2 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in Northern Chile, which will supply power to a Quiborax chemical plant. The El Aguila (Eagle) 1 PV plant is the first in the region of Arica and Parinacota, in the far north of Chile, and one of the largest in the nation. Chile's Environmental Assessment Agency has also approved a second 40 MW phase of the plant. Read more

Meeco invests in Oursun Japan Ltd., plans to enter Japanese, South Pacific PV markets

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 11:55 (Solarserver)

Oursun Japan Holding AG (Zug, Switzerland), backed by the Meeco Group (Zug, Switzerland), has acquired Oursun Japan Ltd. (Yokohama, Japan), a developer of small and medium-sized solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in Japan. Additionally, Oursun Japan Ltd. has developed a combined PV and storage system product that it has deployed in Fiji and the Solomon Islands. Read more

Intersolar NA 2013: US cell and module manufacture could be cheaper than China’s

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 20:21 (PV-Tech)

Localised manufacturing of silicon cells and modules should return to the US because of demand in the North American market and more profitable use of capital investment, a senior energy analyst said yesterday. Read more

Intersolar NA 2013: US cell and module manufacture ‘could be cheaper than China’s’

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 20:21 (PV-Tech)

Localised manufacturing of silicon cells and modules should return to the US because of demand in the North American market and more profitable use of capital investment, a senior energy analyst said yesterday. Read more

SolarWorld Shuttering Oregon Silicon Operations In US Restructuring Finale

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 19:38 (Renewable Energy World)

SolarWorld is closing down silicon wafer production at its Hillsboro, Oregon facility and laying off 100 workers, said to be the second and final phase of an ongoing corporate restructuring and attributed to persistent and unfair Chinese competition. Read more

Phoenix Solar and Silicon Ranch to construct ‘largest’ solar plant in Georgia

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 19:12 (PV-Tech)

PV system integrator, Phoenix Solar, has signed a contract with solar developer Silicon Ranch for a 38.6MW solar plant near Atlanta, Georgia. Read more

Solar Costs and Grid Prices On a Collision Course

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 17:18 (Renewable Energy World)

With the cost of solar continuing to fall rapidly (50 percent in the past five years) and electricity prices rising steadily, if slowly, the approach of solar grid parity is near. The following chart illustrates the trajectory of solar cost and electricity price, hinting at the coming intersection. The chart compares the cost of a residential solar Read more

India’s leading solar state, Gujarat, to consider tariff cuts

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 17:08 (PV-Tech)

Home to half of India’s solar capacity, the State of Gujarat is considering cutting tariffs after the state-run electricity board, Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVN), submitted a petition to the Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commisson (GERC) claiming solar power plant developers are reaping unfair gains. Read more

Hyundai targets US and Japan for growth in solar energy market

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 17:02 (PV-Tech)

Only around 18 months ago media reports were claiming that Hyundai Heavy Industries’ (HHI) foray into the solar PV market was over. But despite the highly competitive market place that has generated an extended period of consolidation, bankruptcies and market exits, HHI is focused on growing its market presence. Read more

Gehrlicher Solar files for insolvency

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 16:45 (Solarserver)

Gehrlicher Solar AG (Neustadt B. Coburn, Germany) filed for preliminary reorganization in the District Court of Munich on July 5th, 2013. The company states that this was a direct response to the termination of its EUR 85 million (USD 109 million) loan by the banking consortium. Read more

Gravesham Borough Council fits 200 homes with solar

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 16:14 (Solarpowerportal)

Approximately 200 council-owned houses across Gravesham Borough have been fitted with solar panels under a new pilot project. Read more

Regional Government of Andalusia, Abengoa open solar R&D center

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 15:58 (Solarserver)

Abengoa (Seville, Spain) and the Innovation and Development Agency of Andalusia (IDEA) on July 8th, 2013, opened their new solar Research, Development and Innovation (R&D+i) center at the Soland Center building in the Soland business innovation park in Sanlucar la Mayor, Seville. Read more

EC&R Solar completes two PV projects totaling 20 MW in Arizona

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 15:52 (Solarserver)

E.ON Climate & Renewables Solar (EC&R, San Francisco, Calif.) has commissioned two solar photovoltaic (PV) plants in the Tucson, Arizona area with a combined total of 20 megawatts (MWdc) of solar capacity. Both projects have long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Tucson Electric Power (TEP). Read more

Three More Solar Bankruptcies Emerge, While Europe and China Still Negotiate

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 15:33 (Renewable Energy World)

The past week has seen three more solar companies go belly-up, at both ends of the upstream and downstream side of the industry, all blamed at least partly on persistent global competition. Meanwhile, talks between Europe and China over solar trade issues might be getting closer to a resolution as the initial negotiating window starts to close. Read more

Canadian Solar and Strata Solar complete 18MW projects in North Carolina

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 14:47 (PV-Tech)

Canadian Solar and Strata Solar are nearing the completion of three projects in North Carolina with a total capacity 18MW. Read more

Solar venture capital increases, but upstream companies continue to struggle

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 14:15 (PV-Tech)

Solar venture capital investments increased by over US$60 million in the second quarter of 2013, having hit a record low in the first part of the year. Read more

SolarWorld plans 100 layoffs in Oregon

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 13:42 (PV-Tech)

SolarWorld has announced it will lay off 100 people from its plant in Hillsboro, Oregon, according to media reports. Read more

Solar Plane Completes Cross-U.S. Flight

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 13:16 (Renewable Energy World)

Late last Saturday night the solar-powered airplane Solar Impulse HB-SIA landed in New York, successfully concluding the last in its series of demonstration flights. This time the Swiss-made plane flew across the U.S., a total distance of 3,511 miles (5650 km). Read more

Council requires environmental study for Cumbria solar farm proposals

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 12:15 (Solarpowerportal)

A solar development firm is working up plans for a new 72-acre solar park in rural Cumbria. Read more

Solar power storage: Prosol invest standardizes "Sonnenbatterie" on Sustainable Energy's inverter

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 12:08 (Solarserver)

On July 8th, 2013, Sustainable Energy Technologies (SET, Calgary, Alberta, Canada) announced that Prosol Invest Deutschland GmbH (Wildpoldsried, Germany) will standardize its market leading “Sonnenbatterie” energy storage line for global markets around Sustainable Energy's “Bidirex” smart grid energy storage PV inverter platform. Prosol has increased its initial order for Bidirex inverters and has accelerated inverter deliveries, SET notes. Read more

Astonfield earns India's first CRISIL 'A' credit rating for 5 MW PV plant in Rajasthan

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 12:02 (Solarserver)

Astonfield Renewables (mumbai, India) on July 8th, 2013, announced that Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited (CRISIL), a division of the McGraw Hill Corporation and whose majority stakeholder is Standard & Poor's, has given an A- credit rating on loan facilities for its 5 megawatt (MW) solar power plant in the state of Rajasthan. The plant has been in operation since 2011. Astonfield is the first company to receive an A class rating by CRISIL for a solar power plant in India. Read more

Solar Shakeout: Gehrlicher Solar blames insolvency on EU anti-dumping measures

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 11:17 (PV-Tech)

Gehrlicher Solar has blamed its application for insolvency on the EU’s anti-dumping measures. Read more

NPD Solarbuzz: US goes beyond 10GW installed milestone

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 9:28 (PV-Tech)

The installed PV capacity in the US had surpassed 10GW, a new and significant milestone for the country, according to NPD Solarbuzz on the eve of one of the country’s major expo’s in 2013. Read more

Solar PV meets 10.5% of Italian electric demand in June 2013

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 6:32 (Solarserver)

Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems in Italy produced a total of 2.72 Terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity in June 2013, enough to supply 10.5% of the nation's electricity demand. This is a 33% increase in output from June 2012. Despite Germany's reputation as the center of the energy transition, Italy had the world's highest solar output as a percentage of electricity demand of any large nation on earth in 2012 at 5.7%. Read more

Phoenix Solar to build 38.6 MW PV plant in US state of Georgia

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 6:23 (Solarserver)

Phoenix Solar AG's (Sulzemoos, Germany) US subsidiary has signed a contract with Silicon Ranch Corporation (Nashville, Tennessee, US) to build a 38.6 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in the US state of Georgia. Phoenix Solar has already begun site work on the Simon Solar Farm, which will be by far the largest PV plant in the Deep South region when complete, as well as the largest PV plant Phoenix Solar has built. The company will supply engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for the project, which will be located roughly 50 km east of Atlanta. Read more

Weak and Unclear Policy Threatening UK Offshore Wind Industry, Says Think-tank

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 14:07 (Renewable Energy World)

The development of the UK’s offshore wind market is at risk because of “weak and unclear signals from government on the long-term future of renewable energy”, according to a report out today. Read more

Wind Energy in Brazil: The Country of the Future?

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 8:55 (Renewable Energy World)

At the end of 2012, Brazil had 2.5 GW of installed wind capacity, enough to power four million households, accounting for 2 percent of national electricity consumption. In 2012 alone, 40 new wind farms came online, adding more than 1 GW of new capacity to the Brazilian electricity grid and creating 15,000 new jobs. This represents an investment of Read more

Tapping Brazilian “Bagasse” for Electricity Production

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 20:17 (Renewable Energy World)

French company Albioma (née Sechilienne-Sidec) wants to invest 400 million euros (about US $528 million) over the next decade to tap into the confluence of two established and emerging sectors in Brazil: converting sug- arcane waste into electricity. Read more

Russian Renewable Energy Bill Disappoints, Regions Pick Up the Slack

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 16:00 (Renewable Energy World)

Russia’s Renewable Energy Source Development Measures (RESDM) that went into effect at the end of May have gotten off to a tepid start. Many Russian energy pundits are convinced that the renewables goals set in the trimmed bill will soon inevitably bump into major roadblocks on the path. Read more

Government sets a new definition for fuel poor households

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 15:15 (Solarpowerportal)

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has set a new definition for fuel poverty following an independent review and consultation. Read more

Industry body calls for tax changes to boost green retrofits

Tuesday, 7.9.2013 - 12:00 (Solarpowerportal)

A report by the UK Green Building Council has called for incentives including reduced council tax bills or stamp duty to encourage up to 1.5 million home energy retrofits each year and boost the government’s Green Deal programme. Read more