US-based PV installer, PetersenDean and PV module manufacturer, SolarWorld have signed a supply deal inline with the installer’s strategy of only sourcing US produced products.
Tier-1 PV manufacturer, Hanwha SolarOne said that it’s chairman and CEO, Ki-Joon Hong has retired and the company expected to appoint a replacement by the end of April.
Taiwan-based solar cell producer, E-Ton Solar Tech Co reported sales of over NT$423 million (US$14 million approx) for the month of March.
Local California news, The Desert Sun, reported the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is looking to increase wildlife monitoring at solar plants.
Major manufacturing equipment supplier, Applied Materials could be entering a new market after announcing the development and practical testing of a superconducting fault current limiter (SCFCL) system and technology being implemented at a substation owned and operated by Central Hudson Gas and Electric Corp in Central Hudson, New York.
The International Photovoltaic Equipment Association (IPVEA) said it would collaborate with Solar PV Consulting to study the entire PV supply chain in an effort to reduce wastage after estimates project annual inefficiencies could cost the industry as much as US$1 billion by 2018.
Malaysia’s largest electric utility company, Tenaga Nasional has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with a government-owned development company to buy electricity generated by a 50MWac PV plant.
Shunfeng Photovoltaic International is planning to issue convertible bonds totalling US$296.6 million to support its PV project business plans.
Dubai’s state utility company has opened the tender process for 100MW solar PV generating capacity.
Global PV equipment manufacturer, Sungrow supplied a US utility solar plant with its 500kW inverters.
JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (Shanghai) has announced selected preliminary information for the first quarter of 2014, estimating that it shipped more than 620 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules, well above its guidance of 580–610 MW. The company also expects sequential gross margin improvement in the first quarter of 2014, and has confirmed its PV cell and module shipment guidance of 2.7–2.9 GW for the full year of 2014. This includes 200 MW of module shipments to its PV projects.
Greenbacker Renewable Energy Corp. (New York City) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Hanergy's (Beijing) U.S. subsidiary under which it will have the opportunity to finance and purchase up to 126 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the United States. Terms were not disclosed. Hanergy notes that the cooperation is an opportunity to establish a relationship with a long-term source of capital, which could allow it to offer lower-cost PV to its customers. The company says that the strategic agreement will promote a more efficient process for getting renewable energy projects from development to service and may lead to cost savings for both organizations.
Alanod GmbH & Co. KG (Ennepetal, Germany) has announced that it will close the production facilities of BlueTec GmbH & Co. KG (Trendelburg, Germany), only weeks after acquiring the company on March 28th, 2014. The company says that after a survey of the site and consideration of potential options, it was left with no choice but to shut down production. Alanod intends to produce BlueTec's EtaPlus selective absorber material for the solar thermal industry at its factory in Ennepetal.
The European Commission is expected to revise its minimum import price for Chinese solar photovoltaic (PV) modules shortly, which has already affected the shipments and prices of major PV manufacturers. Martin Schachinger of pvXchange GmbH (Cologne, Germany) predicts that this price will be EUR 0.53-0.54 (USD 0.73-0.75) per watt, and expects an official announcement in the near future.
Ib vogt GmbH (Berlin) reports that it commissioned six solar photovoltaic (PV) plants totaling 80 MW in England during the first quarter of 2014. As such, all qualify for the 1.6 renewables obligation credit (ROC) rate. All six have been purchased by institutional investors, with construction finance supplied in part by ib vogt and in part by the investors.
A new report by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns that due to greater-than-expected emissions, “major institutional and technological changes” will be needed to keep global temperatures from rising more than two degrees Celsius. The contribution of Working Group III to the IPCC's Fifth Assessment Report finds that emissions grew more quickly between 2000 and 2010 than in each of the three previous decades. But while the report identifies decarbonization of electricity including more rapid ramping of renewable energy as a key need, German and European renewable energy trade groups say that policies are currently moving in the wrong direction.
Shunfeng Photovoltaic International Ltd. (Changzhou, China) has entered into an agreement with Partners Capital Securities Ltd. (Hong Kong) to place up to USD 300 million in convertible bonds. The company states that the bonds will be used to provide capital for some of the 10 GW of solar photovoltaic (PV) projects which it intends to build by the end of 2016, as well as “general corporate purposes”. Completion of the bond issue will take place on June 30th, 2014.
Los Angeles, San Diego and Phoenix have installed the most solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity among American cities, according to a new report by Environment Massachusetts (Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.). Including San Jose and San Francisco, California cities made up four of the top ten and three of the top four. But while California dominated the rankings of raw capacity, the per-capita numbers tell a slightly different story. Honolulu, Hawaii is by far the leader in terms of per-capita installations at 265 watts per resident, with San Jose, California coming in second at 97 watts per resident and Wilmington, Delaware right behind at 96 watts.
SolarEdge (Hod Hasharon, Israel) has begun offering a line of single-phase inverters with built-in meters to provide revenue-grade production data for the North American residential market. The company expects to begin shipping the first inverters during April 2014. The company notes that it is the first company to offer listed inverters with ANSI C12.1 certification for residential applications. The new inverters will report the production data directly to the SolarEdge monitoring portal, which will eliminate the need for installers and owners to purchase additional meters.
Utility Tenaga Nasional Bhd (Kuala Lumpur) has signed a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with state-owned development company 1 Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB, Kuala Lumpur) for the output of a 50 MW-AC solar photovoltaic (PV) project to be built in the Malaysian state of Kedah.