Your daily dose of photovoltaic technology developments and solar news
Power Generation
Opinion
U.S. Energy Department awards another loan guarantee to solar firm: $1.37B to BrightSource Energy
The U.S. Department of Energy has announced its latest Recovery Act conditional loan guarantee for clean energy, awarding $1.37 billion to BrightSource Energy. The concentrating solar thermal company is the second solar recipient of a loan guarantee, joining thin-film PV firm Solyndra.
News
SMA Solar starts Ontario subsidiary, plans to build PV inverter factory in province
The lure of Ontario’s attractive subsidies, especially for firms with “local content,” has enticed another solar company to set up manufacturing and expand operations in the Canadian province. SMA Solar Technology has started a subsidiary for production, sales, and service in Ontario, with plans to invest €5-10 million for the buildout of a 500MW capacity photovoltaic inverter factory.
Project Focus: SunEdison receives go-ahead for largest plant in Europe
SunEdison has received final approval from the Italian government to develop and construct what will be the largest solar power plant in Europe. The 72MW project will be based in Northeastern Italy, near the town of Rovigo.
Project Focus: SunPower scores 200MW rooftop PV contract with Southern California Edison
The most ambitious rooftop solar initiative in the U.S. has taken a decidedly crystalline-silicon turn, as Southern California Edison has awarded a contract to SunPower to supply up to 200MW, or 80%, of the utility’s photovoltaic installation program. First Solar had won the contract to supply the first three projects with its CdTe thin-film panels. Company sources tell PV Tech that the remaining 45MW of capacity in the 250MW, five-year program is still up for grabs and that some of that megawattage could end up in ground-mounted arrays rather than on roofs.
Order Focus: OZZ Solar to buy 18MW of Satcon PV inverters for Ontario rooftop projects
Satcon will deliver 78 of its PowerGate Plus inverters to rooftop PV developer OZZ Solar. The 18MW of units will be deployed on commercial rooftop projects across the province of Ontario, and will be fully compliant under the Ontario feed-in tariff (FIT) program launched in 2009.
First Solar secures 300MW power purchase agreement with PG&E
The 550MW Desert Sunlight project planned by First Solar in eastern Riverside County, California, looks to be set to go ahead now that a power purchase agreement with Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) has been signed for the remaining 300MW plant. First Solar had previously signed a 250MW supply deal with Southern California Edison for the Desert Sunlight power plant. Approval is still required from the California Public Utilities Commission, and the project is expected to start by the end of 2010 for completion in 2013.
Phoenix Solar posts record quarterly sales: Orders of €296 million booked for 1H10
Major systems integrator Phoenix Solar has reported fourth-quarter and full-year preliminary results, showing module sales increasing by almost 70% to more than 202MW in 2009. The company reported fourth-quarter revenue of €230.8 million, which was almost 50% of its full-year revenue of €473 million. Revenue in 2008 was €402.5 million. Phoenix Solar also noted that orders for the first half of 2010 already stood at €296 million, which is accounted for as €183 million to the components and systems segment and €51 million in the power pPlants segment.
Technical Papers
Utility solar business models
U.S. electric utilities are beginning to explore participating in the U.S. solar markets in new and unique ways, including utility ownership of solar projects, innovative program designs that purchase solar energy from customers or third-party providers, and providing financing for customer or third-party projects. Known as Utility Solar Business Models, these utility innovations are expanding and diversifying the market in new and unique ways, driving hundreds of megawatts of new business, but how these new projects and programs impact the solar value chain and what is driving the change varies from utility to utility. This article lays out the evolving nature of utility engagement with solar markets, defines utility solar business models generally, and explores some of the specific program that utilities are proposing.
The rise of building-integrated photovoltaics: policy construction begins
Building-integrated photovoltaics or BIPV is one form of solar electricity that looks set to dominate the solar market in the coming years. The increase in BIPV installations is already evident in some European countries as governments begin to tweak their policies in order to provide a platform for this technology. The past few months have seen countries such as France and Italy make efforts to up the installation rate of this integrated form of solar, increasing the feed-in tariff (FiT) rate quite substantially for BIPV and lowering it for the more common installations such as roof and ground-mounted systems in order to increase the uptake. This BIPV-dedicated section will focus on the new policies implemented in France and Italy, concentrating on France's policies as a blueprint for others. It will provide a focus on why governments are so keen to increase incentives in favour of BIPV and what the future implications of this market shift will be.
Product Briefings
New Product: D380 ‘TwinPack’ microinverter from Enphase lowers BoS costs and installation time
Product Briefing Outline: Enphase Energy is introducing the D380 ‘TwinPack’, a new product optimized for commercial installations. The D380 TwinPack is comprised of two Enphase Microinverters in a single enclosure and an innovative cabling system, further reducing Balance-of-System costs and installation time.
New Product: SunPower ‘T20 Tracker Evolution’ delivers maximum energy with 128-cell, 400-watt mo
Product Briefing Outline: SunPower has introduced the next generation of its T20 Tracker, which it claims is the most powerful solar tracker on the market today, incorporating SunPower's high-efficiency 128-cell, 400-watt solar panels for maximum energy output.
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