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Abound Solar is planning to triple the capacity of its thin-film module manufacturing plant in Colorado by the end of 2012. The site expansion will see annual production capacity reach 200MW and help the company meet growing global demand for cadmium telluride modules.
Thin-film technologies are a favoured manufacturing alternative to conventional crystalline solar modules in the US. The R&D history goes way back and of course the US is home to First Solar, which stamped thin-film technology firmly on the PV industry map. That said, announcements at Solar Power International 2011 relating to thin-film technologies have been rather thin on the ground these first few days of the show.
On the eve of the largest solar power event in the US, GE has announced the location of where it will build what it claims to be the largest solar module plant in the US, having initially announced plans in April 2011. GE said it had selected a site in an existing building in Aurora, just east of Denver, Colorado, which is near to the company’s existing solar centre of excellence. It said that the new CdTe thin-film plant is expected to start ramping in 2012 with commercial availability in 2013.
First Solar and Solar Chile, a subsidiary of Fundación Chile, have agreed to a strategic alliance that will see the companies work together to co-develop solar projects in Chile. First Solar has agreed to provide its PV modules, engineering and procurement services for the projects, which are subject to the execution of definitive project agreements.
Effective November 1, Abound Solar will have a new CEO and chairman of the board. Tom Tiller, current president and CEO, will be taking over as chairman leaving Craig Witsoe to step in as president and CEO of Abound. Witsoe joins Abound after serving three years as president and CEO of Lineage Power, which is now GE Power Electronics.
EDF Energies Nouvelles has brought its 67.2MW Gabardan solar PV project in the Aquitaine region of France into operation. The solar plant, located in the municipality of Losse in the Landes department utilizes approximately 872,300 thin-film PV panels by First Solar. The project was first begun in 2009 and will see EDF Services provide operation and maintenance support.
Although the financial costs remain unknown, an agreement has been reached over conservation issues arising from the 550MW Topaz Solar Farm project that First Solar is developing in San Luis Obispo County, California. A lawsuit against the project started by North County Watch and Carrizo Commons is expected to be dropped.
Having used Solyndra’s modules on a majority of its solar rooftop projects, EPC firm, Orion Energy Systems continues to champion the Chapter 11 firm’s technology and remains optimistic Solyndra could still emerge from the bankruptcy proceedings. Though its shares have fallen since Solyndra’s collapse, Orion Energy Systems claimed that it did not expect its business to be ‘adversely impacted.’
Constellation Energy has started to construct a 16.1MW solar installation in Emmitsburg, Maryland as part of the state’s Generating Clean Horizon’s initiative. The US$60 million facility will be financed, owned and operated by Constellation Energy with Maryland’s Department of General Services and the University System of Maryland purchasing the produced electricity under a 20-year PPA.
Continuing to build its project pipeline, First Solar has been awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for a 130MW solar park to be built in Imperial County, California. Tenaska Solar Ventures, the solar energy affiliate of independent utility company Tenaska, will operate the park and has a 25-year power-purchase agreement (PPA) with San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), which was announced in March 2011.
