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According to a report published by market intelligence company GlobalData, cost of solar energy is steadily coming closer to that of traditional energies. The report “Grid Parity for Wind and Solar Power - Future Outlook and Impact Analysis” describes that the increase in installed solar capacity will continue growing, as the US and China reach grid parity by 2017.
Norwegian manufacturer Innotech Solar has supplied a 3.1MW PV plant, located on a site of 80,000 square metres in Nauen nearby Berlin, with more than 13,000 solar modules, the company has announced.
The modules that Innotech Solar provided have a special feature: they are sourced from modules that have been sorted out for defects and that have been restored by Innotech using laser technology.
Sunways has announced that it has entered into a partnership with Solar Energy Australia (SEA) to distribute Sunways inverters in Australia. In the partnership, SEA is the exclusive distributer of Sunways inverters in Australia as well as provider of customer service.
Q-Cells and the Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) have completed an off-grid PV installation in the Abu Dhabi desert, in the United Arab Emirates, the company has announced. This rooftop installation is the first off-grid installation in UAE and generates 368kW. It is equipped with 1,536 Q-Cells multicrystalline PV modules.
Conergy has announced the construction of a 10.5MW solar power plant – the largest of its kind in the Saarland region. To be built near the French border, the historic Linslerhof estate is owned by the von Boch investor family celebrated for its environmentally-friendly way of life. The recent drastic cuts to the feed-in tariff will require the project to be completed by the end of June. Conergy will act as main contractor and will be responsible for the installation of the park as well as the supply of Conergy components.
Sunrun advised that during its latest equity financing round it had raised US$60 million. The investment were led by Madrone Capital Partners with existing investors Accel Partners, Sequoia Capital and Foundation Capital also participating. The funding will see the company continue its work to develop and scale the software and service components needed to reduce the cost of solar and streamline the installation process for customers and partners.
Over 50MW of new solar energy projects have been brought into commerical operation by Recurrnet Energy. Comprised of three projects located in Elk Grove, Galt and Sloughhouse, California, the three projects are delivering energy to the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) under a 20-year FiT.
eSolar and Sanmina-SCI advised that they had entered a partnership that will combine the companies’ proficiency in solar thermal energy solutions, local content-optimized component design and manufacturing for utility-scale power plants. Sanmina-SCI noted that it plans to work with eSolar to enhance the company’s solar collector system product offering, which is currently being used in operating CSP facilities.
Developments in the South American market, particularly in Brazil, have created such a buzz that it will play host to Intersolar’s first South America Summit in São Paulo in August 2012. Countries in the region are seeing dramatic increases in energy consumption of up to 30% per year, chiefly as a result of industrial development. At the same time, in nations such as Brazil, solar power is currently on the brink of grid parity.
Enerplan is demanding the new French administration put its money where its mouth is to show its commitment to the solar industry as promised by President-elect François Hollande. The Association has called on the new Minister for Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy Nicole Bricq to implement three emergency measures to boost solar power in what has become a turbulent and unpredictable industry. Enerplan claims 15,000 or 25,000 existing jobs have been lost and further job losses need to be avoided at all cost.
