Mark Osborne

The acquisition of PV module manufacturer REC Solar was said to have been completed by Norway-based Elkem Group, owned by Chinese investment firm China National Bluestar Group.

Major merchant solar cell producer Neo Solar Power (NSP) reported first quarter 2015 sales down around 37% from the same period a year ago as demand remained weak.

Array Technologies (ATI), has announced the introduction of its latest single-axis tracking system, the ‘DuraTrack’ HZ v3 for utility-scale PV power plants. After nearly 2 years of development and testing, Array recently commissioned the first 1.2MW DuraTrack HZ v3 site in northern New Mexico.

PV module equipment specialist Spire Corporation said it was continuing to receive and ship orders for its range of sun simulators, primarily to tier-1 PV manufacturers.

Hanergy Thin Film Power Group (Hanergy TF) has revealed plans to open 1,500 retail stores globally for its suite of thin-film solar products by 2017.

PV manufacturing equipment specialist, Amtech Systems has reported its highest level of tool order backlog in three years as part of reporting its fiscal second quarter 2015 financial results.

PV manufacturing equipment specialist Singulus Technologies expects ongoing improvement in sales after its order backlog exceeded €60 million in the first quarter of 2015.

Polysilicon producer REC Silicon reported a 48% decline in polysilicon sales in the first quarter of 2015, driven by a number of negative impacts.

Leading PV microinverter producer Enphase Energy met the mid-range of sales and shipment guidance on the seasonally weak first quarter.

Major polysilicon producer Wacker Chemie said its capacity could reach around 80,000MT by 2017 as it optimises production in Germany and ramps its new plant in Tennessee.