In a sub-contracted OEM arrangement, China Sunergy is supplying NUE PTY Ltd, an Australian-based PV distributor with 10MW of mono-crystalline solar modules through early 2010. Shipments were said to have begun in June, 2009.
In its bid to lower operating costs while expanding production of its String Ribbon solar cell technology, Evergreen Solar with contract manufacturing partner, Jiawei Solarchina have started construction of an initial 100MW manufacturing plant in Wuhan, China. A ceremonial Groundbreaking event was held on August 29, 2009, although the plant’s construction began in July of 2009. Construction is expected to be completed by spring 2010.
LDK Solar continues to expand its systems and project business with the announcement of an agreement with Suqian City of Jiangsu Province to develop up to 300MW of various solar photovoltaic power projects by 2015. The terms of the deal include financing, design, and specific location of each projects and require a feasibility study as well as final approval from relevant governmental agencies before beginning a project, the company said.
Sunovia Energy Technologies and EPIR Technologies have completed the design and construction of a closed-space-sublimation (CSS) system for fabrication of polycrystalline cadmium telluride (CdTe) solar cell devices. The partners are developing an ultra-high-efficiency, low-cost CdTe-on-silicon PV device based on single-crystal CdTe instead of the polycrystalline material commonly used in CdTe panels.
Astronergy has won the bid to design and build a 2MW rooftop photovoltaic power plant located in Hangzhou Energy and Environment Industrial Park. The project, which will feature a mix of crystalline-silicon and thin-film modules, is Zhejiang province's first large-scale on-grid PV system. The installation will be fully financed by the government-run China Energy Conservation Investment Corp., as part of the Golden Sun initiative to finance at least 500MW in various PV installations over the next few years.
Sustainable Energy Technologies has appointed Robert Bucher as its president/CEO, effective Sept. 1. The company says that the former CEO of Adept Technology and Norsat International will guide the launch of its Paralex rooftop solar power system architecture in Europe and North America from its offices in Toronto.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has validated a new world record for terrestrial concentrator solar cell efficiency using Spectrolab's latest multijunction photovoltaic devices. The cells from the Boeing subsidiary hit efficiencies of 41.6% during June tests at the Department of Energy lab in Golden, CO, topping the previous record of 41.1% held by the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany.
First Solar's executive ranks have thinned with the departure of John Carrington, the company's EVP of global marketing and business development. In a Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the firm announced that effective Aug. 24, Carrington and the company had "mutually agreed" to end his employment. He joined the company in May 2008.
At a meeting on August the 24th, the Korean Green Growth Committee proposed plans to decrease support for large-scale solar systems. It also announced plans for the introduction of a 100MW pilot Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) through 2011, according to a recent repot by Barclays Capital.
