Feed-in tariff changes are to negatively impact photovoltaic (PV) installations in France, Belgium, Spain and Czech Republic in 2011, according to a new report from iSuppli Corp. However, the robust and stronger than expected growth of the German market for 2010 and 2011 will keep overall installations figures up compared with previous years. The market research firm expects worldwide installations in 2010 will amount to 15.8GW up from iSuppli’s previous outlook of 14.2GW, representing 118.7% growth from 7.2GW installed in 2009. In 2011 installations will amount to 19.3GW, down slightly from its previous forecast of 20.2GW.
Manz Automation has reported strong revenue growth in the first nine months of 2010. Sales reached €121.3 million, compared to €46.7 million in the same period a year ago. Revenues in the third quarter of 2010 reached €53.8 million, driven by new product sales for the production of crystalline solar cells. Revenue was €18.5 million in the same quarter of the previous year. Due to continued demand, Manz has raised its revenue guidance for 2010 to between €170 - €175 million, up from at least, €140 million.
Increased orders from PV manufacturers in Asia are responsible for Despatch Industries posting third quarter revenue in excess of US$75 million. Despatch said it had expanded production capacity to meet demand, particularly for thermal furnaces. Lead times have subsequently declined for its range of products, the company said.
New supply agreements with multiple customers have pushed JA Solar’s 2011 delivery commitments passed 1.2GW. The cell and module manufacturer said it had secured an additional 600MW of new product orders, all with delivery dates in 2011 and had received prepayments associated with these customer orders.
A significant increase in sales and bookings has forced GT Solar to raise its revenue guidance after reporting on its second fiscal quarter sales of US$229.3 million. This represented nearly a 70% growth over reported sales of US$135.2 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2011 and approximately 120% growth over the second quarter of last fiscal year when sales were reported at US$104.2 million. GT Solar reported an order backlog of US$1.16 billion, with US$544.6 million in its polysilicon segment and US$601.1 million in its PV segment.
STMicroelectronics has released details of a patented high-efficiency circuit and dedicated optimized power components. ST’s new design, called BC2 (Back-Current Circuit) is claimed to produce cost savings while helping designers comply with the highest power-efficiency standards. The new circuit and power components are ideally suited for boost or buck converters, which are power devices that are usually used in solar inverters.
An ambitious plan, which hasn’t been without implementation issues and which has stretched the financial structure of REC Group, is finally bearing fruit according to key executives of the company. At a lengthy investor and analyst seminar being held in Singapore, coinciding with the grand opening of the company's €1.3 billion plus integrated module production facility, enigmatic CEO Ole Enger claimed REC was on track to deliver a companywide all inclusive cost of €0.97/watt by the fourth quarter 2011. Excluding equipment and building depreciation at the new plant, the cash cost target for next year would be €0.74/watt.
MEMC Electronic Materials reported a 31% sequential increase in solar materials sales, primarily from wafers, in its third-quarter results. A 20% increase in shipments and modest improvement in wafer ASPs helped sales for the group reach sales of US$503.1 million, up 12.2% from US$448.3 million in the second quarter of 2010. Its subsidiary, SunEdison, reported sales of US$21.5 million and has 1,023MW in its project pipeline, of which 155MW is under construction.
Regardless of what market research data you rely on, the analysts agree: the photovoltaics market is expected to grow considerably in 2010. Even the most hawkish of forecasts would therefore expect PV installations to almost double from 2009, creating a demand somewhere near 14GW in 2010. According to Bernreuter Research, which specializes in tracking the polysilicon market, polysilicon production in 2010 should be sufficient to produce the equivalent of 17GW of c-Si modules.
It seems such an obvious thing that solar PV should be ubiquitous within ±35° latitude around the equator—otherwise know as the Sunbelt. It also has 75% of the world's population and 40% of the global electricity demand. Yet few actual installations to date are within this region.
