In a move which compliments the news of Japan's recent government support for renewables, Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K. and its 100% subsidiary Showa Shell Solar K.K. have decided to construct their third CIS PV plant in Miyazaki Prefecture, which is planned to start operations in 2011.
By the end of September, TerniEnergia should have completed all nine of its new PV solar installations in Puglia, Marche and Umbria with a total combined capacity of 10MW. Five of the new installations are assigned to the joint ventures for the production and sales of electrical energy from solar sources, with total combined capacity of 6MWp, while the other four are for third parties and will achieve 4MWp.
SMA Solar Technology has acquired the microinverter technology platform from Dutch company OKE-Services, a move that SMA says makes it the only manufacturer in the world with a product portfolio featuring all existing inverter technologies for operating photovoltaic systems of any size and with optimal technical system configuration.
Trina Solar has opened its own center of excellence to ensure a high level of quality assurance and precision testing of its PV modules. Located at the company's headquarters in Changzhou, the 7200-square-meter facility supports a comprehensive range of indoor and outdoor tests, including product certification processes, material reliability tests for module products, highly accelerated stress tests, and material evaluation and research.
Ascent Solar has said that SkySentry, a high altitude vehicle developer headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, received its first flexible CIGS PV array for an upcoming aerostat test in Sandusky, Ohio, scheduled for mid-September. The aerostat is part of Army Space and Missile Defense Command's High Altitude, Long-Endurance Testbed.
A new venture-funded player has come out of stealth mode and entered the increasingly crowded photovoltaic system power optimization space. San Jose-based eIQ Energy says its just-launched Parallux product and Parallel Solar technology will lower the installed cost and improve the energy output of solar systems, while eliminating the design and installation constraints found in conventional string architectures.
Insurance broker and risk adviser Marsh and reinsurer Munich RE are collaborating in the launch of a new product guarantee insurance solution tailored for the solar panel manufacturing sector in Asia--said to be the first of its kind in the region. Taiwanese photovoltaic manufacturer NexPower (a client of Marsh Taiwan) is the first company to purchase the package.
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.
