Your daily dose of photovoltaic technology developments and solar news

The M+W Group, Stuttgart, acquired shares in Schmid Silicon Technology Holdings, effective from January 1, 2010. Through this acquisition, the companies will partner in global activities in the engineering and construction of polysilicon plants based on monosilane technology.  

GT Solar has signed contracts of more than $40 million with two wholly owned subsidiaries of China-based GCL-Poly Energy Holdings. The first agreement, with Jiangsu Zhongneng Polysilicon Technology Development, is for GT Solar’s trichlorosilane (TCS) production technology solution, while the second deal, with Jiangsu GCL Silicon Material Technology Development, is for the equipment company's directional solidification system (DSS) furnaces and ancillary equipment.

Financially strapped polysilicon start-up Hoku Scientific and Tianwei New Energy Holdings have closed the deal giving Tianwei a majority investment in Hoku. As a result of the agreement, Hoku has issued orders to resume full-scale construction of its poly plant in Pocatello, ID, and authorize the shipment of equipment that had been placed on hold pending Hoku's receipt of financing.

Solar wafer manufacturer LDK Solar has entered into a project development agreement with Italian renewable energy company Uni Land S.p.A. for the construction of 20MW of PV plants throughout 2010 and 2011. LDK also announced that it has sold the 1MW mono-axis Apulia plant to Uni Land for €5 million.

GCL-Poly Energy Holdings has announced its plans to enter into a joint venture and share subscription agreement with the Chinese wealth fund China Investment Corporation (CIC). The share subscription agreement is expected to raise around HK$5.5 billion, giving CIC a 20% share in GCL. The joint venture company will be set up in early 2010 to invest in and develop PV projects overseas.

Padua, Italy-based Silfab, supplier of high-grade polysilicon to the photovoltaics industry, has opened five new 1MW solar power plants in the Bari and Taranto regions of Southern Italy. The company has also hinted that it intends to develop an integrated PV supply chain in an undisclosed location in North America based on a ‘Green-to-Green’ business model.

Hoku Materials and Jinko Solar have amended their polysilicon supply agreement. The companies said that, according to the terms of the amendment, both have agreed to reduce the term of the sales agreement by one year and to delay the first shipment date from Hoku's Pocatello, ID, plant from December 2009 to December 2010.

LDK Solar has signed an an agreement to sell a 15% ownership stake in its 15,000MT annualized capacity polysilicon plant in Xinyu City, China, to Jiangxi International Trust and Investment. The purchase price is approximately RMB1.5 billion (about US$219 million).

ReneSola Ltd.’s third-quarter financial results yielded quite an optimistic view of the company’s future. The vertically integrated Chinese wafer and cell manufacturer is looking to expand wafer production to 1GW (from 825MW); cell production to 360MW (from 120MW); and module production to 375MW (from 135MW).

Frost & Sullivan has released findings that a sunroof panel with solar cells can generate sufficient power to ventilate a vehicle interior. Currently, the auto industry is undergoing a move from the traditional internal combustion engines to battery powered motors. A combination of a more “green” thinking population, zero-emission vehicles, increased government spending on electric vehicles and the numerous vehicle prototypes are signs that electric vehicles could very well be dominate in the future.