SolarCity expands ‘tariff-free’ REC Solar module order

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 11:21 (PV-Tech)

US residential installer SolarCity has expanded a module supply agreement struck earlier this year with REC Solar in the wake of the US anti-subsidy ruling on Chinese manufacturers. Read more

Enovos, Soitec inaugurate 1.29 MW CPV plant in Portugal

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 10:55 (Solarserver)

On October 7th, 2014, Enovos Luxembourg SA and Soitec SA (Bernin, France) inaugurated Enovos’ first solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant in Portugal. Announced in December 2013, the concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) power plant located in the Alcoutim region in the south of Portugal started operating in spring 2014. The CPV plant is comprised of 13,774 concentrator modules with a combined power of 1.29 MWp. Read more

Indian PV manufacturing insufficient to meet government ambition - report

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 12:52 (PV-Tech)

The latest India Solar Compass report concludes that a “very clear message” has emerged: domestic manufacturing capacity is not enough with the government keen to rollout substantial generation capacity now. Read more

Vikram modules get third-party quality audit for UK market

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 12:45 (PV-Tech)

Tier-one module manufacturer Vikram Solar has boosted its credentials in the UK after completing OST Energy’s factory and product audit. Read more

British Red Cross expands London solar installations

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 12:30 (Solarpowerportal)

UK charity, British Red Cross has expanded two UK solar installations. Read more

Chinese state-owned EPC lodges LDK module order

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 11:39 (PV-Tech)

A Chinese state-owned engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) firm has placed a 60.5MW module order with LDK Solar. Read more

Amber Rudd to address solar industry at Solar Energy UK

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 11:03 (Solarpowerportal)

The minister for energy and climate change, Amber Rudd will be delivering a speech on the state of the UK solar market at this year’s Solar Energy UK. Read more

Rexel sponsor the Rexel Foundation Prize at this year’s Solar Power Portal Awards Ceremony

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 11:01 (Solarpowerportal)

Rexel has recently launched the Rexel Foundation, sponsor of a new prize at this year’s prestigious Solar Power Portal Awards. Jerry Hamilton, director of renewable energy at Rexel, explains the purpose of the foundation in this exclusive interview. Read more

OST Energy confirms technical suitability of Vikram Solar PV modules for use in projects in the UK

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 10:45 (Solarserver)

Vikram Solar (Kolkata, India) has successfully completed the OST Energy (Brighton, UK) factory and product audit, and will now be considered by investors and banks alike as a confirmed partner for solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the UK. UK's leading, independent renewables auditor OST Energy attested the highest efficiency at nominal operating solar cell temperature (NOCT) among manufacturers audited by OST Energy, Vikram Solar emphasizes. Read more

Boulder Techstars company Wunder launches solar PV investing fund

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 10:36 (Solarserver)

On October 9th, 2014 Wunder, a Boulder Techstars Company, launched a first-of-its-kind solar fund that according to the company makes investing in solar photovoltaic (PV) projects easy, provides a seven percent annual return, and supports a clean, renewable power source. The Wunder Fund opens the door for any accredited investor to create a diversified portfolio of revenue-generating solar assets. Since the private launch on October 7th, 2014 investors have reserved USD 535,300 in The Wunder Fund of a planned USD 1 million in initial funding, the company announced. Read more

ib vogt GmbH and Primrose Solar close the sale of solar farms in the UK totalling 46 MW

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 7:07 (Solarserver)

ib vogt GmbH (Berlin, Germany) has sold a portfolio of three new UK solar farms with a total capacity of over 46 MWp to Primrose Solar (London). The PV plants are located at Littlebourne near Canterbury, Kent (17 MWp), at Ninfield near Bexhill-on-sea, Sussex (11.5 MWp), and at Herne Bay, Kent (18 MWp). Construction started in July, with all projects now close to completion and due to be connected to the grid in the coming weeks, ib vogt reports in a press release. Read more

SCE launches RFO for rooftop solar PV installations in California totaling up to 63 MW

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 7:00 (Solarserver)

Southern California Edison (SCE, Rosemead, Calif., US) on October 9th, 2014 has launched a Request for Offers (RFO) to procure electricity from independent power producers as part of its Solar Photovoltaic Program (SPVP). This RFO is the fourth solicitation (SPVP 4) since the program began in 2010. The program is primarily designed to encourage energy production from rooftop-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) facilities sized between 500 kilowatts and 10 megawatts. SCE is seeking up to 63 megawatts (MW) of direct current power in SPVP 4 based on the economics of the offers. Read more

Conti Group purchased 10 MW of Canadian Solar PV modules in Q3, 2014

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 6:51 (Solarserver)

Canadian Solar Inc. (Guelph, Ontario) on October 9th, 2014 announced that it supplied Conti/SunDurance with 10 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules during the third quarter of 2014. For this 10 MW order, Canadian Solar delivered to the Conti Group in total 33,792 pieces of CS6X solar modules in 6 x 12 cell matrix with UL 1000 V certificate. Read more

Lessons from the Cell Phone Phenomenon: How Microgrids Can Power Developing Countries

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 14:44 (Renewable Energy World)

Buying vegetables in a small town in Ecuador from a woman who had trekked from her farm miles away, barefoot, in traditional indigenous garb, made me feel I was back in time. As we were conducting our transaction, I heard a ringtone and instinctively reached into my pocket. The 70-year-old woman pulled out her cell phone. This woman, along with the majority of people in rural areas of the developing world, never had a land-line in her home, probably has no electricity, and may not even have a toilet. Yet she relies on her mobile phone. In fact, developing countries around the world have leapfrogged past the landline infrastructure of the industrialized world and now have Read more

Buffett's MidAmerican to Invest Another $280 Million in Iowa Wind Energy

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 18:08 (Renewable Energy World)

MidAmerican Energy Co., which has already committed about $15 billion to renewable energy, plans to invest an additional $280 million in Iowa wind farms. Read more

How One Utility Enlisted Geothermal Cooling to Reduce Peak Electric Demand and Improve System Utilization

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 17:34 (Renewable Energy World)

On July 1st, 2014, PSEG Long Island released its Utility 2.0 Long Range Plan. This plan is on the leading edge of New York’s “Reforming the Energy Vision” (REV) proceeding. REV is a process through which the NYS Public Service Commission is defining the utility of the future — one that meets customers’ and society’s evolving needs by making efficient use of distributed energy resources (DER). The REV defines DERs to include energy efficiency, demand response and distributed generation. Read more

Net-Zero Neighborhoods Gaining Traction

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 17:18 (Renewable Energy World)

The largest net-zero neighborhood in North America will be constructed more than a mile above sea level. All 308 houses in the Geos Neighborhood in Arvada, Colo. will harness sunlight and the earth’s core to generate as much energy as the homes consume. But before the solar and geothermal technology comes into play, the design of these cottages and Read more

Prost! 5 Breweries Embracing Renewable Energy

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 22:31 (Renewable Energy World)

Love it or hate it, summer is gone and cold weather is creeping its way into our lives. Here in New England, fall brings all sorts of activities, from apple picking to pumpkin patches to football. But at REW, we’re most excited for one quintessential fall event: Oktoberfest. The changing leaves also bring about changing brews, so we decided to high Read more

Will an Energy Proposal in New York Institutionalize Power Monopolies?

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 18:02 (Renewable Energy World)

On August 22, the New York Public Service Commission (NY PSC) issued a proposed rule on the Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) initiative and comments were submitted throughout September. In short, the PSC intends to transform NY’s utilities into Distributed System Platform Providers (DSPPs), which will create, operate, plan, and police new markets Read more

Is Energy Efficiency Investment Hurting Renewables?

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 17:09 (Renewable Energy World)

Investments in measures to curb energy waste and boost efficiency are overtaking wind and solar spending and have reached at least $310 billion a year, the International Energy Agency said. Read more

Walmart family accused of ‘threatening clean energy growth’

Friday, 10.10.2014 - 13:53 (PV-Tech)

The Waltons, owners of one of the USA’s biggest retailers and the country’s richest family, have been accused of threatening America’s “clean energy future” in a new report published by the Institute for Local Self Reliance (ILSR). Read more