Not be outdone by rivals such as Yingli Green in the utility-scale PV power plant business in China, Trina Solar has secured a 30MW module supply agreement with Huanghe Hydropower Development Co. Huanghe Hydropower is planning two ground-mounted solar projects in China's Qinghai Province, of which delivery is expected to start from August and continue through October of this year.
A US$50 million fund is up for grabs by the US Department of Energy to domestic PV manufacturers wanting to take solar technology from the lab to the fab to help restore the United States as being at the forefront of solar manufacturing. The funding program is the second solar Photovoltaic Manufacturing Initiative (PVMI) initiative, dubbed SUNPATH, which stands for Scaling Up Nascent PV At Home.
Independent power developer K Road Power Holdings and Barclays Natural Resource Investments have established a partnership aimed at the development, construction, and operations of K Road’s utility-scale solar power portfolio. The developer has 11 solar projects totaling nearly 2.3GW in various stages of development in the southwestern US.
AEG Power Solutions has acquired the outstanding 25% of Skytron Energy after buying a majority stake in 2010. Under the existing management of Martin Sauter, Skytron will stay a separate legal entity with its own brand. The companies said they will jointly take advantage of the strong global growth within the solar market, especially in India. Other business opportunities are developing operations and maintenance business as well as smart-grid solutions.
Having cited weaker-than-expected financial results for the first quarter of 2011, due in part to the halt in PV installations in the key Italian market, Trina Solar has revised its second-quarter guidance, which points to the demand issues in Italy for the company's lower sales expectations.
China's first BIPV fire station was put into service in Baoding, Hebei, on July 29, featuring a 250kW, 2650 m2 solar façade. With an annual generating capacity of 300MWh the system is expected to reduce 312 tons of carbon emissions each year.
Meyer Burger Technology has received antitrust clearance from the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China, concerning the acquisition of equipment supplier, Roth & Rau. The settlement of the tender offer and the payment of the offer price are expected to take place on 9 August 2011.
LDK Solar has signed a contract to supply 58,803 modules for Advanced Solar Products’ new 14.1MW project in East Windsor, New Jersey. When completed, the system, which is located on the McGraw-Hill Companies’ campus, will be the largest privately-owned, net-metered PV project in the Western Hemisphere.
Despite reports that Solar Frontier’s 900MW, CIS thin film production plant in Miyazaki, Japan has reached full capacity the company has said nothing of the sort. What Solar Frontier has said is that all production lines are now commercially operational having started its production ramp earlier this year. The Kunitomi Plant was said to be ‘on track to reach its targeted annual capacity of 900MW as average module output continues to increase, without giving a timeline. The Kunitomi Plant is said to be Japan’s largest solar module production facility, as well as the largest CIS factory in the world.
The ongoing wafer supply deal dispute between China Sunergy and REC Wafer entered a new phase with a Norwegian court ruling in favour of China Sunergy. REC Wafer is said to appeal the decision made by the Norwegian Court of Appeal.
