Solarfun Power Holdings Co., Ltd., manufacturers of silicon ingots and PV modules, have appointed Dr. David N.K. Wang and Professor Rongqiang Cui as Independent Directors, replacing Zhoumiao Gao and Johan van Splunter respectively. In addition to Independent Director, Dr. Wang was also appointed to the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors.
Premier Power Renewable Energy, Inc., a global leader in design, engineering and development in the US and European solar markets, announced the reports for 4Q08 and fiscal 2008.
Thin-film PV module manufacturer Signet Solar has chosen inline metrology systems from Dr. Schenk for its volume production fab. Signet will use the quality and process control gear in its factory near Dresden, which houses the first TFPV manufacturing site to receive factory acceptance for an Applied Materials-supplied SunFab turnkey line.
Five JCPenney stores in New Jersey now benefit from 2 MW worth of solar power systems featuring SunPower modules installed by the PV company and owned and operated by Integrys Energy Services. The initiative is part of the retailer's efforts to deploy 3.7 MW of solar arrays at nine of its stores in New Jersey and California.
Following on from last week’s news of the introduction of a solar subsidy system for the Chinese market, Barclays Capital Solar has published an update, with details garnered from the Chinese Ministry of Finance’s announcement on March 31st. The reviewed announcement includes news of an annual decline in subsidies. The Barclays report states that contrary to the original release, the program covers both non-BIPV rooftop applications as well as BIPV, but that the incentive for the non-BIPV applications will be lower than the $2.90/W announced for BIPV.
Applied Materials has claimed that the European Patent Office (EPO) has revoked a Patent No. EP 0 871 979, which is at the centre of a patent infringement case Oerlikon filed in June, 2008 in the German District Court of Duesseldorf, against SunFilm AG, a customer of Applied Materials ‘SunFab’ thin film technology and production line equipment.
The Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA) has announced the first of its 2009 Workshop Series, "Solar Options for Low Cost Utilities," to be held on April 13-14 at the Hilton Knoxville in Tennessee. This workshop will focus on utilities in low-cost electricity states in the Midwest and Southeast, while being open to all utilities, State Public Utility Commissions, State Energy Offices, and solar companies. TVA, along with the City of Knoxville, will sponsor the event.
One of the largest diversified equipment and service providers to the photovoltaics industry, centrotherm photovoltaics AG, posted an increase in revenue for 2008 of over 125% to reach €374.7 million compared to €166.2 million in 2007. Order backlog stands at €990.2 million at the end of 2008, of which the company expects to convert 60% into revenue this year. Total revenue guidance was set between €500 million and €550 million for 2009, potential growth of over 40% year-on-year.
Thin film and c-Si PV equipment supplier Roth & Rau AG has reported sales of €272 million for 2008, an increase of 86.1% over sales of €142 million in 2007. Growth was attributed to both product and service expansion due in part to key acquisitions undertaken that included AIS Automation and TECNOFIMES. The company now claims that its own products cover about 65% of the process steps in the value chain, compared to 45% previously.
Record sales and market share gains marked SMA Solar Technology AG’s financial results for 2008. Sales more than doubled to €682 million, representing a slight increase on preliminary results reported in February, 2009.
