Energy firm, Constellation Energy is to acquire ground-mounted PV power plants at multiple sites being built by Belectric in Sacramento, California. The projects, which are expected to be commercially operational by the end of 2011, will use 81,000 First Solar CdTe thin-film modules, totals 30MW (DC) of solar generation. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Deutsche Bank has selected Vishal Shah as its managing director for its US-based alternative energy and semi cap equipment divisions. One of the leading solar market analysts, Shah will come to Deutsche Bank from Barclays Capital. He previously worked as a senior vice president with Lehman Brothers where he managed the research coverage of the solar and semi cap equipment divisions. Additionally, Shah served as a research analyst at Morgan Stanley and in his early career worked with Needham & Co.
JinkoSolar has simultaneously announced its unaudited first-quarter 2011 financial results and the appointment of Ron Kenedi as the president for its wholly owned JinkoSolar US subsidiary. As the company comes off a record setting first quarter with solar product shipments reaching 208.4MW and revenues totaling US$326.7 million, Kenedi is anticipated to keep the US division growing and profitable.
A 48MW project in Northern Italy worth several hundred million Euro is close to being sold by project developer SAG Solarstrom, after a 12MW section of the PV power plant was connected to the Italian grid via a new transformer substation specifically for the project. Italian Terna, which has already performed the technical acceptance and commissioning, is said to be planning to purchase the substation.
Innovalight has followed up the news about its sales partnership with Marubeni in Japan with another announcement about a similar arrangement with Grandway Wonice Technology in Taiwan. The latest deal calls for the Taiwanese trading firm to sell the San Jose-based company's nanosilicon ink and advanced process technology to solar PV cell and panel manufacturers on the island.
A new production line for SolarEdge Technologies photovoltaic inverters opened earlier this month at the Flextronics facility in Newmarket, Ontario. Systems manufactured at the plant will meet the domestic content requirements of the Canadian province's feed-in tariff programs and will also be exported to other customers in North America.
The Californian City of Coachella is now home to a 420kW concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) system, which will provide solar energy to the Coachella Water Reclamation Plant. Developed by Johnson Controls and Solar Power Partners (SPP) using 55 SolFocus SF-1100S tracking CPV systems, the project is now connected to the regional electrical grid, serviced by the Imperial Irrigation District (IID).
Having originally announced plans to produce EVA encapsulants in China that would come on stream by June 2011, Solutia has said that its new manufacturing facility in Suzhou was ready to supply commercial-grade Vistasolar EVA encapsulant. This is Solutia's first new EVA production facility to be developed after the acquisition of Etimex Solar GmbH of Germany.
Project developer and PV products supplier, BULL PowerTech a business segment of BULL Holding AG has signed a module supply deal with JinkoSolar. Under the terms of the agreement, which is the first between the two companies, 50MW of co-branded modules will be delivered in 2011.
Much weaker than expected demand in Europe impacted PV inverter manufacturer, Satcon Technology’s first quarter financial results. Although Satcon posted record revenue of US$62 million for a first quarter accounting period, the revenue figure was below initial projections of US$65 million to US$70 million. Some shipments were postponed to later in the year by some of its customers due to an inventory build, executives noted in a conference call to discuss financial results. Net loss for the first quarter was US$2.1 million.
