Acting fast on last week's news that MEMC would not cancel the 10-year contract to supply solar wafers, Conergy is starting legal action in New York City. Although few details have been revealed over the specific reasons, Conergy believes court action is justified as there were a number of invalid clauses in the contract but in particular ‘anti-competitive contractual provisions’ that rendered the entire contract invalid.
Caught with dramatically lower demand for semiconductor silicon wafers and a below seasonal demand for solar wafers, MEMC is to review its capital spending and polysilicon capacity expansion plans, executives said in response to questions from financial analysts in a quarterly conference call. MEMC had previously announced plans to boost polysilicon production from the current 8,000MT per annum, reached at the end of 2008 to 15,000MT in 2010.
Hopes of a revision to Conergy’s 10-year wafer supply agreement with MEMC have rescinded as soon as they were raised, with MEMC noting in a press statement covering first quarter financial results that the ‘contract remains in full force and effect.’ In a conference call to discuss financial results, MEMC executives said that Conergy had already been advised that the existing contract would remain in place.
Coherent, Inc. has shipped its 100th AVIA laser into the solar industry and is claimed to be one of the most widely adopted laser for a wide variety of solar cell fabrication applications. According to Coherent, the AVIA laser has more than 90% market share of the silicon cell edge isolation step.
Roth & Rau AG has acquired Ortner cleanroom logistic systems GmbH for an undisclosed sum in an effort to meet increasing demand from customers to support crystalline and thin-film equipment servicing, spare parts and other support activities. Ortner, based in Dresden, is a specialist in tool installations and automation company. Ortner’s existing management and skilled workforce will continue to operate the business as a subsidiary of Roth & Rau.
SunEdison has signed up integrator REC Solar as its first channel partner. The North American solar energy services company's channel program provides national installers and integrators increased project financing capabilities, including the ability to deliver projects via a solar power purchase agreement. The PV systems developed under the program also receive SunEdison's service, maintenance, and monitoring capabilities through its advanced control and management technologies.
JA Solar Holdings has broken ground on its Phase II, ingot, cell and module facility in Yangzhou, China. According to Chinese news reports, the production plant will cost approximately US$100 million and be completed by the end of 2009. The reports suggested the new plant would increase JA Solar’s production capacity by 300MW.
Intertech Pira, organisers of the Photovoltaics Summit Europe 2009, to be held at the Crowne Plaza Rome in St Peter’s, Rome from June 30th to July 2nd, has announced its speaker line-up for the event. The Summit will be focused on the European PV markets and will include a half-day pre-conference workshop led by Daniela Schreiber and Markus Wackerbeck from EuPD Research.
In an expansion of an existing relationship, Opel International will supply more high-concentration photovoltaic systems to Spanish solar integrator Betasol for a 2.375-MW, dual-axis-tracking HCPV project. Betasol has obtained a bank guarantee worth €1,187,500 and has applied for permits to build a new utility-grade solar farm.
Three sales agreements that total approximately 42MW of PV module sales in Germany for delivery in 2009 have been announced by Trina Solar. One deal with Bull Solar GmbH is worth 12MW of modules, Trina said. The sales were all signed in the first quarter of 2009.
