Module manufacturer Solvis has entered into a long-term cooperation agreement with solar system integrator Relatio, which will see Relatio market half of Solvis’ full annual capacity in Germany during 2011 by installing Solvis modules on its roof and field projects.
EOSOL Energies Nouvelles has used 35,000 CS6P modules supplied by Canadian Solar for an 8MW PV power plant now operational in Villeneuve de Marsan, Aquitaine in south western France. The power plant also uses inverters, electrical monitoring systems from Siemens.
Munich-based system integrator SolConTec International has had a 994KW PV power plant connected to the Italian grid by Enel on May 26th and complies with the Conto Energia III tariffs. The Servigliano plant is located in the Marche region of Italy and employs Phono Solar PS-FM190 Watt monocrystalline modules on a 3.2395 hectare site. Siemens supplied the central inverter.
A dramatic u-turn by German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been officially proclaimed with the announcement that all nuclear plants in the country will be shut down permanently by 2021. Initially, eight of Germany’s oldest nuclear plants will shut down immediately and the remaining plants will be phased out over the next 10 years. However, three plants could remain operational until 2022 to allow for the possibility of delays occurring in the addition of new energy sources - mainly renewables - as a replacement.
Solar Power Partners and JCM Capital have signed a deal with Rumble Energy, to provide full development, construction, and long-term equity financing for a 6MW portfolio of commercial-scale rooftop installations located throughout Ontario. The agreement follows the SPP-JCM announcement in December 2010 on the launch of their Solar Fund to develop, finance, own, and operate 200MW of solar projects in Ontario.
LDK Solar has signed a module supply agreement with a leading Italian system integrator. Under the terms of the contract, LDK will provide 45MW of modules to the unnamed client, with monthly shipping likely to begin in June.
The nascent solar arm of electronics giant, Samsung has been shuffled into subsidiary, Samsung SDI, known originally for flat panel display manufacturing but more recently for lithium ion battery manufacturing. Samsung said that the transaction, valued at approximately US$148 million was to ‘manage the company’s resources more efficiently and focus more on its key businesses.’Samsung SDI will take over the solar cell business on July 1, 2011.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) has found that by using the Rasirc Steamer efficiency in the production of back contact silicon solar cells reached 20.2%. Fraunhofer used the steamer system to provide ultrapure water vapor for its metal wrap through (MWT) and passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) solar cell manufacturing processes.
Morgan Solar has closed the first installment of its Series B funding round with US$16.5 million. The funding will enable the company to increase its manufacturing and deployment for its Sun Simba concentrated PV module. Existing investors Inversiones Financieras Perseo, of the Iberdrola Group, and Nypro were joined by new investor, The Frost Group. Morgan Solar is in talks with strategic investors to close the remainder of the funding round.
TÜV Rheinland has revealed its latest measurement testing in the form of a measurement system for spectral sensitivity and quantum efficiency of PV modules for crystalline and thin-film module manufacturers. The group has established a new spectral measuring station at its solar test center in Cologne, which can measure PV modules with an edge length up to 200cm. The measurement testing, conducted in wavelengths that range from 300 to 1,200 nanometers, is performed in increments of one nanometer. TÜV Rheinland points out that the testing is non-destructive since the modules can be connected to the terminals without interfering with the solar cell circuitry.
