Conergy’s US$100 million investment fund ‘first step in new strategic setup’

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 13:25 (PV-Tech)

Germany-based solar company Conergy plans to move into asset ownership by establishing a tax equity fund with an initial target volume of US$100 million. Read more

Welspun signs MOU to build 150 MW PV plant in India

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 8:52 (Solarserver)

Welspun Energy Ltd. (New Delhi) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Indian state of Punjab to build a 150 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in the state. Welspun plans to invest INR 1300 crore (USD 210 million) in the project over the next three years, and expects to commission the plant by 2017. The company is currently developing a 35 MW PV plant in Punjab. Read more

SolarCity and Tesla: The Golden Children of 2014?

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 23:22 (Renewable Energy World)

If you had gobbled up shares of Tesla or SolarCity about six months ago, you would’ve raised a few eyebrows. With both companies being heavily dependent on government subsidies, they were, at the time, losing money at an alarming rate. To top it off, these were among the most shorted stocks on Wall Street, meaning many investors were betting on the Read more

New User-Friendly Solar PV System Design Software Emerges from Beta

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 16:24 (Renewable Energy World)

After nine months in private beta, Folsom Labs has officially decloaked with its solar PV design software that it says is as accurate but vastly more usable than the industry's incumbent tool, claiming to cut down design times by up to 75 percent. Read more

Conergy creates fund for mid-sized U.S. solar PV plants

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 16:06 (Solarserver)

Conergy AG (Hamburg, Germany) has launched a new fund to provide financing for solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the United States with capacities in the 500 kW to 25 MW range. Read more

England's Clouds Part for Solar as Panels Carpet Fields

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 16:06 (Renewable Energy World)

Cloudy Britain is emerging as Europe's hottest market to build solar parks, as cheaper equipment costs and steady subsidies are attracting developers of large-scale, ground-mounted projects from nations like Germany and Spain that pioneered solar on the continent. Read more

Court clears the way for SolarWorld restructuring

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 15:34 (Solarserver)

A court in Cologne, Germany has ruled that complaints against 2013 decisions by SolarWorld AG (Bonn, Germany) and its bondholders should not interfere with these decisions. This clears the way for the company's financial restructuring in February 2014. Read more

How to Make PV System Design User-Friendly -- And Bankable

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 14:51 (Renewable Energy World)

After nine months in private beta, Folsom Labs has officially decloaked with its solar PV design software that it says is as accurate but vastly more usable than the industry's incumbent tool, claiming to cut down design times by up to 75 percent. Read more

Wiki-Solar: US overtook China for installed utility-scale PV capacity in Q3 2013

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 14:09 (PV-Tech)

The US overtook China for installed utility-scale solar capacity in the final quarter of 2013 and now exceeds 5GW, solar project tracking website Wiki-Solar claims. Read more

ForVEI investment vehicle snaps up 6.9MW solar farm in Italy

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 13:59 (PV-Tech)

Solar investment vehicle ForVEI has purchased a 6.9MW PV plant in southern Italy. Read more

BTU International to miss quarterly revenue guidance

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 12:51 (PV-Tech)

PV thermal processing equipment specialist, BTU International said that it has lowered fourth quarter 2013 revenue guidance to approximately US$11 million versus previous guidance of US$13.5 to US$14.5 million. Read more

Bulgarian president steps in over solar levy dispute

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 12:27 (PV-Tech)

Bulgaria’s president, Rosen Plevneliev, has weighed into a growing row over a proposed 20% levy on solar and wind projects. Read more

Missouri utility continues to embrace solar with renewable energy centre

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 12:17 (PV-Tech)

The investor owned electric and gas utility, Ameren Corporation is continuing its major solar energy initiative, with a 5.7MW solar farm in Missouri. Read more

EnergyTrend: Chinese EPC companies selling off solar PV assets

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 9:59 (Solarserver)

TrendForce's (Taipei City, Taiwan) EnergyTrend division reports that an increasing number of publicly listed Chinese companies are selling the solar photovoltaic (PV) plants that they build as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractors. EnergyTrend attributes the need of listed companies to boost their sales performance as a driving factor, as well as changes to the nation's feed-in tariff payment levels at the end of 2013. Read more

Hanwha SolarOne supplying solar PV modules for 20.5 MW UK PV plant

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 9:54 (Solarserver)

Hanwha SolarOne Co. Ltd. (Shanghai) is supplying 20.5 MW of its HSL-60 solar photovoltaic (PV) modules to Ib Vogt GmbH's (Berlin) UK subsidiary for a PV plant in the nation. Hanwha SolarOne delivered the first batch of PV modules in December 2013 and expects to complete the shipment early in the first quarter of 2014. The company has supplied PV modules for a number of large-scale plants built by Ib Vogt in the UK, including a 9.8 MW PV plant in Kent and a 6.2 MW PV plant in Cornwall. Read more

Deutsche Bank predicts 46 GW solar PV market in 2014

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 9:01 (Solarserver)

Suggesting “upside demand surprises” in the Chinese, Japanese and U.S. markets, Deutsche Bank (Frankfurt, Germany) has raised its global solar demand outlook to 46 GW in 2014 and 56 GW in 2015. This is higher than IHS' 2014 forecast of 40–45 GW and Mercom Capital's forecast of 43 GW, but lower than NDP Solarbuzz' optimistic expectation of 49 GW. Deutsche Banks expects Chinese incentives, subsidy cuts at the end of 2014 and lessened financial constraints to all support growth in solar installations. Read more

New EU rules create loophole for Chinese solar PV modules with third-nation cells

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 8:55 (Solarserver)

The EU Commission has modified the rules of origin for solar photovoltaic (PV) modules, declaring that the nation of origin of PV modules is the nation of origin of the cells which comprise it. This change echoes the U.S. trade ruling on PV cells and modules, which focused only on cells. As such, it could create a loophole in EU trade regulations exempting Chinese PV modules comprised of cells from Taiwan or other nations. Read more

Prickly Pear Cactus: Nuisance or Bioenergy Opportunity?

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 14:00 (Renewable Energy World)

In much of west Texas, the iconic Prickly Pear cactus — with its plum-like fruit and forbidding spiked pads — is at best considered a nuisance, and at worst a downright hazard to livestock. But in most of the rest of the semi-arid world — from Mexico and Chile, large swaths of India and South Africa, as well as Spain and Morocco — Opuntia ficus-indica (Prickly Pear) is used in dye-making, as feed for livestock, and, little by little, as feedstock for anaerobic biogas production. Read more

How to Build a Clean Energy Grid

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 16:53 (Renewable Energy World)

By John Jimison, Bill White, and Ben Paulos As part of their regional webinar series, Americans for a Clean Energy Grid is hosting a free webinar on transmission issues and opportunities in the PJM region.  Register here for the January 24th session. America’s electric transmission grid is rarely thought of, and taken for granted until something go Read more

Alternative Energy Mutual Fund and ETF Year End Update

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 15:30 (Renewable Energy World)

Alternative energy investing was very profitable in 2013. This article reviews how green mutual funds and ETFs performed in 2013, what stocks were most favored by these funds, and forecasts where funds should go in 2014 and beyond. Read more

Danish pension companies commit to international renewables fund

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 15:04 (PV-Tech)

A consortium of pension funds in Denmark has agreed to commit DKK1.2 billion (US$219 million) to the Danish Climate Investment Fund (DCIF), a vehicle for financing climate resilience projects and promoting Danish solar and other renewable energy technologies in developing countries. Read more

Yingli Green signs PV module distribution agreement with XSOL in Japan

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 13:26 (PV-Tech)

Japanese PV wholesaler, XSOL and Yingli Green have signed a PV module distribution agreement. Read more

Infinity Innovations launches Stealth Energy PV Tile

Tuesday, 1.14.2014 - 12:41 (Solarpowerportal)

Infinity Innovations has announced the launch of its new Stealth Energy PV Tile after two years of development. Read more