DuPont Apollo, a subsidiary of DuPont, has opened its silicon based thin-film PV module manufacturing facility. The 538,000-square-foot facility will have an annual capacity of up to 50MW with a thin-film-on-glass photovoltaic module production line. Full-scale commercial production is targeted for the first-quarter 2010.
LDK Solar has signed an an agreement to sell a 15% ownership stake in its 15,000MT annualized capacity polysilicon plant in Xinyu City, China, to Jiangxi International Trust and Investment. The purchase price is approximately RMB1.5 billion (about US$219 million).
Yingli Green Energy announced at its annual global customer conference that its Yingli Solar brand modules have received the power controlled certification from TÜV Rheinland. The power controlled certification provides independent verification and assurance that the real rated power of Yingli Solar brand modules are within the specified tolerance stated in the company’s datasheets.
Shortly after eSolar announced its establishment of operations in South Africa and the Sierra SunTower in Southern California, they have now recruited George (Chip) Hambro, the retried COO of First Solar, to its board of directors. Hambro helped First Solar achieve a successful IPO, increase its global reach and focus its R&D to advance the thin-film technology and eSolar now looks forward to Hambro bringing his talent to their board.
Spire Corporation has released their third quarter revenue results for the period that ended September 30. The total revenue amounted to $16.5 million, compared to 2008’s third quarter $16.6 million. The net loss was $3.5 million this quarter compared to 2008, which saw a net income of $445,000. The losses include $1.2 million for 2009 and $77,000 for 2008 third quarter results for the company’s medical products business unit that has now been classified as a discontinued operation.
ReneSola Ltd.’s third-quarter financial results yielded quite an optimistic view of the company’s future. The vertically integrated Chinese wafer and cell manufacturer is looking to expand wafer production to 1GW (from 825MW); cell production to 360MW (from 120MW); and module production to 375MW (from 135MW).
Sanyo Electric has announced that with the European region improving its demand for solar panels, it will increase its solar panel production capacity in Europe by 90% or 315MW by next summer. Nikkei.com reports that the added production will be happening at the Sanyo Hungary facility using the space that has been released since the company ended the lithium ion battery pack production. The total investment for the additional panel production will be between two and three billion Yen.
Business is back and booming at major PV systems integrator Phoenix Solar. The German residential market is overheating as the race to complete installations by year-end intensifies. According to Phoenix Solar, there will not be enough inverters and solar modules available through to the end of the year to achieve its original revenue guidance.
aleo solar announced that its market share in Greece has increased to 16%. According to Hellenic Transmission System Operation, of the 38MW of PV power that have been connected to Greece’s national grid, aleo has supplied more than 6MW since 2007. Projects range from commercial, private and rooftop installations to large greenfield facilities.
Sino-American Silicon Products told Reuters.com that it expects its shipments to rise around 30% in 2010 as it sees that global market for solar power improving. Sino-American president Doris Hsu, told Reuters that the company is looking to raise cash by issuing shares and will see an increase in profit next year due to a higher demand for solar products, better wafer prices and lower raw material costs.
