Solectria Renewables adds transformerless residential PV inverter series to its product line

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 13:29 (Solarserver)

U.S. solar photovoltaic (PV) inverter manufacturer Solectria Renewables LLC (Lawrence, MA) on June 23rd, 2014 announced the introduction of three new transformerless residential PV inverters, adding 5.2 kW, 6.6 kW and 7.6 kW inverters to its product line. The complete series of transformerless residential inverters includes the PVI 3800TL (introduced in January 2014), PVI 5200TL, PVI 6600TL and PVI 7600TL. Read more

Trina Solar receives prestigious award by United Nations Industrial Development Organization for solar cells, Honey PV modules

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 13:18 (Solarserver)

Trina Solar Limited (Changzhou, China) on June 23rd, 2014 announced it received the BlueSky Award 2014 for Global Top Investment Scenarios to Apply New Technologies for Renewable Energy Utilization ("BlueSky Award") for its high efficiency crystalline silicon solar photovoltaic (PV) cells and Honey Ultra PV modules. Read more

Kyocera’s accumulated PV module production exceeds 5 GW; 1.4 GW targeted for FY 2015

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 9:00 (Solarserver)

Kyocera Corporation (Kyoto, Japan) announced that its total accumulated production of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules since 1975 has exceeded the 5 gigawatt (GW) milestone. For comparison, 5 GW of solar modules would be sufficient to supply individual 3.5-kilowatt PV systems for more than 1.4 million homes. In the current fiscal year (April 2014 to March 2015), the company is targeting annual production of 1.4 GW, up from approximately 1.2 GW in the previous fiscal year. Read more

Harworth Estates partners with Anesco to install 30MW of solar on former collieries

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 19:52 (Solarpowerportal)

Three former colliery sites in Nottinghamshire will soon be transformed into solar farms capable of generating enough electricity to supply 10,000 local homes. Read more

Cameron announces £400 million solar agreement between MAP Environmental and ZN Shine Solar

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 17:13 (Solarpowerportal)

UK-based solar installer MAP Environmental has inked a £400 million deal with Chinese solar module manufacturer ZN Shine Solar. Read more

BMW installs solar at Mini hatchback plant

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 13:56 (Solarpowerportal)

Automobile manufacturer BMW’s Oxford Mini plant has upped its renewable power intake, with a 3MW solar plant installation. Read more

Solar PV and energy storage: SunPower and KB Home partner on residential solutions

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 13:24 (Solarserver)

On June 24th, 2014 SunPower Corp. (San Jose, California, U.S.) announced a new collaboration with its longtime partner KB Home (Los Angeles, California, U.S.) to install innovative energy storage solutions at certain KB Home locations in California as part of a pilot program. SunPower currently offers its high-efficiency solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems to purchasers of new homes in more than 150 KB Home communities; this new pilot program expands the partnership and demonstrates this new technology's ability to store solar power generated during the day for use during power outages. Read more

Canadian start-up gains funding for low-cost mono polysilicon

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 13:15 (PV-Tech)

Canada-based start-up, Ubiquity Solar Inc has received CAD$3.1 million in funding to further develop its low-cost hyper-pure polysilicon and monocrystalline ingot/wafer technology, ahead of plans to commercialise the technology. Read more

Washington DC universities to adopt North Carolina solar

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 13:00 (PV-Tech)

George Washington University (GW), American University (AU) and the George Washington University Hospital (GWUH) are to be part powered by an off site solar project in North Carolina. Read more

SunPower becomes latest PV provider to pilot storage in California

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 12:36 (PV-Tech)

SunPower Corporation has become the latest US solar provider to pilot the deployment of residential storage systems in California by extending the terms of an existing partnership with homebuilding company KB Homes to include storage. Read more

Chilean Environmental Protection Agency approves First Solar PV project: 369 MW to be installed in Antofagasta Province

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 12:15 (Solarserver)

The Environment Agency of Chile (EIS) has approved the construction of a solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant with a nominal capacity of 369 megawatts (MW) in the north of the country. The Chilean subsidiary of First Solar, Inc. (Tempe, Arizona, U.S.), project developer Parque Fotovoltaico Sol del Desierto SpA, plans to start working on the "Desert solar farm" in the province of Antofagasta in June 2015. Read more

Ascent Solar announces significant milestone for its PV joint venture with the City of Suqian, China

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 12:00 (Solarserver)

Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. (Thornton, Colo., U.S.) a manufacturer of flexible thin-film solar photovoltaic (PV) modules on June 23rd, 2014 announced the achievement of a significant milestone related to a Definitive Agreement signed in December of 2013 with the Government of the Municipal City of Suqian in Jiangsu Province, China. As previously announced under the Definitive Agreement, Suqian will build a facility to manufacture Ascent's proprietary Copper-Indium-Gallium-Selenium (CIGS) PV modules on flexible thin films. Ascent and Suqian will also form a joint venture entity (JV) in which Ascent’s share will grow progressively up to 80% based on an ascribed value Read more

UK solar firms face audits as part of EU-China duty dodging crackdown

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 11:47 (PV-Tech)

The UK solar sector could be set for a round of audits as part of an enforcement effort of the EU-China price undertaking, according to a senior industry figure. Read more

SolarWorld supplies PV panels, racking for Mexico’s largest rooftop array at 1.16 MW in Tijuana

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 11:18 (Solarserver)

An audio-headset factory in Tijuana (Mexico) is now home to the largest, privately owned roof-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) installation in all of Latin America. The 1.16-megawatt system features PV panels, racking and system engineering from SolarWorld (Hillsboro, Oregon). The system will power the Mexico operations of Plantronics, a global producer of audio communications headphones. The project is the second with SolarWorld solar panels installed at a Plantronics facility. In 2011, Plantronics installed 608 kilowatts of roof-mounted and carport-mounted solar arrays at its headquarters in Santa Cruz, Calif. Read more

Market share of residential PV leases set to spike in 2014, says GTM Research

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 10:00 (PV-Tech)

A new report from GTM Research, titled US Residential Solar Financing: 2014-2018, has shed some light on the large financing transition within the US residential PV market in 2014. Read more

GTM Research report: Market share of residential PV leases set to spike in 2014

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 9:15 (PV-Tech)

A new report from GTM Research, titled “U.S. Residential Solar Financing: 2014-2018, has shed some light on the large transition within the US residential PV market in 2014. Read more

California extends solar property tax exclusion

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 9:10 (Solarserver)

On June 20th, 2014 California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a comprehensive state budget, along with legislation (SB 871) that extends the existing solar property tax exclusion until January 1st, 2025. “SEIA commends Gov. Brown, as well as the California Assembly and Senate, for extending this longstanding, existing state policy, which was initially established through a ballot initiative over 30 years ago,” stated Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) president and CEO Rhone Resch. Read more

NRG Energy exceeds 1.2 GW of installed solar power capacity

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 9:06 (Solarserver)

NRG Energy Inc. (Princeton, New Jersey, U.S.) reached a solar power capacity of more than 1,200 megawatts (MW) to produce enough electricity to support more than one million homes, the company reports in a press release. Since the beginning of 2014, NRG’s utility-scale solar facilities have collectively produced more than 957,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity from 12 major projects. Read more

Mexico’s largest rooftop PV array, powered by SolarWorld panels, completed in Tijuana

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 2:12 (PV-Tech)

A 1.6MW PV system, installed on top of an audio-headset factory in Tijuana, Mexico, is now the largest privately-owned rooftop PV installation in the country, as well as all of Latin America. Read more

Storm Clouds Gathering Over the US Solar Industry

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 0:59 (Renewable Energy World)

According to Tony Clifford, CEO of Standard Solar and a keynote speaker during PVAmerica 2014, which opened in Boston on Monday, solar PV could see some difficult times in the near future, many of which are out of the industry’s control. Read more

There Is a "Solar Revolution" Happening in Massachusetts

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 0:58 (Renewable Energy World)

At the 2014 PVAmerica Conference an Expo keynote, Governor Deval Patrick took the stage to explain why Massachusetts has become one of the top solar states in the nation: forward thinking. Read more

RGS Energy to install 1MW across 930 New York apartments

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 18:02 (PV-Tech)

RGS Energy will install 1MW of solar capacity at an apartment complex in Kew Garden Hills, New York. Read more

What Your City Can Do to Fight Climate Change

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 14:44 (Renewable Energy World)

The Obama administration is pushing power plant regulations to reduce carbon emissions and most states have some sort of renewable energy policy. But there's plenty of opportunity left for action at the local level; action that can also boost the local economy. The following presentation by ILSR’s Director of Democratic Energy John Farrell to the N Read more

New Research Bolsters Batteries with Nanotubes

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 13:55 (Renewable Energy World)

Researchers at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are turning to extremely tiny tubes and rods to boost power and durability in lithium-ion batteries, the energy sources for cell phones, laptops, and electric vehicles. If successful, the batteries will last longer and perform better, leading to a cost advantage for electric vehicles. Read more

ACORE releases report on evolving business models for renewable energy, opportunities to the entire power sector

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 11:52 (Solarserver)

The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) on June 23rd, 2014 announced the release of a groundbreaking report titled “Evolving Business Models for Renewable Energy”. “From potential storage benefits of electric vehicles, to recommendations on ideal scenarios for integration of distributed renewable assets, ACORE and its members are tackling the cutting edge issues facing our electricity sector today,“ said co-author and CEO of American Clean Energy, Steve Morgan. Read more

Investment firm KKR buys major stake in ACCIONA; plans yield co IPO

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 11:50 (PV-Tech)

In a financial deal that is said to be one of the largest ever within the renewable energy sector, investment firm, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) has purchased a one-third stake in ACCIONA Energía International (AEI) for €417 million (US$567.3 million). ACCIONA Energía is to retain two-thirds ownership of AEI. Read more

Challenges to Financing Renewable Energy Projects on US Military Sites

Tuesday, 6.24.2014 - 11:26 (Renewable Energy World)

The Department of Defense (DOD) is looking to significantly increase the installation of renewable energy projects on US military bases over the next decade. Some of the first military projects out of the gate have been utility-scale solar PV projects in Arizona and Georgia. While utility-scale solar is a necessary and permanent stage of solar development in the electric utility sector, and while these projects appear to show progress toward a smart strategy of a strong, diversified, energy supply for our nation, they in fact face significant problems. Read more