Silicon Genesis Corporation (SiGen) and NorSun AS have endorsed an equipment development and supply agreement. NorSun will assess SiGen’s PolyMax “kerf-free” substrate samples and work together in optimizing the high-volume manufacturing equipment design that can process silicon ingots into kerf-free wafers of 150?m thickness and below. Their new agreement also contains commercial terms for the supply of HVM production equipment to NorSun.
Eyelit, Inc., a manufacturing software provider for visibility, control and coordination of manufacturing operations for the aerospace and defense, discrete electronics, semiconductor and photovoltaic penal industries, released revenues for its first nine months of 2008. It recorded a two times increase in its third quarter revenue, the highest third quarter revenue recorded in company history.
Sunovia Energy Technologies, Inc. and EPIR Technologies, Inc. have successfully demonstrated the optical down-conversion for increased solar cell energy efficiency. This proves to be a significant advancement for the maximization of solar cell efficiency and will play a distinctive role in the commercialization of the companies high-efficiency solar cells. Dr. Jacqueline Johnson completed the optical down-conversion during her employment at EPIR, under the direction of Dr. Paul E. Hausgen, for the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate program.
Kyocera Corporation is to construct a new large-scale solar cell manufacturing facility, which will be located in Yasu City, Shiga Prefecture, and will be the largest of the Kyocera Group’s Japan-based solar cell manufacturing plants. The new plant will manufacture the Back Contact Cell, developed in 2006, which achieves an 18.5% energy conversion efficiency rate. Construction is scheduled to start in 2009 with completion within the year so that production can begin in the spring of 2010.
Concentrator photovoltaics company SolFocus has introduced a CPV system targeting the medium- and utility-scale markets. The SolFocus 1100S can achieve panel efficiencies of 25%, resulting in systems which the company says produce the highest energy density and energy yield of any PV systems on the market.
Hoku Materials has signed a silicon metal supply agreement with Polymet Alloys. The wholly owned subsidiary of Hoku Scientific said it plans to use the metallurgical-grade silicon for the production of trichlorosilane, a critical raw material in the manufacture of solar-grade polysilicon.
Clal Energy, the energy division of IDB, and Tigo Energy have signed an agreement to distribute Tigo Energy products and technologies for the enhancement of energy output across a wide range of renewable energy projects.
A new analysis from iSuppli forecasts that the price of polysilicon will begin a "precipitous plunge in 2009 after peaking this year," as the supply of the raw material exceeds demand. At fault, according to the research firm, are "fundamental imbalances in the solar supply chain." After peaking at as high as $500 per kilogram this year and suppliers largely dictating terms to customers during a three-year price rise, the report sees the average spot market price for poly dropping next year to as low as $200 per kilogram.
Oerlikon Solar said it was now able to produce a-Si thin film modules with than 7% stabilized efficiency, enabling a 16% increase in panel power output. Its new ‘Amorph High Performance’ process uses a specially developed Zinc Oxide TCO layer, which Oerlikon Solar claims, significantly increases the performance characteristics of the panel through better light trapping properties. The company said that it had already been granted the requisite master certificates from TÜV.
NanoGram and Tokyo Electron have signed a joint technology agreement focused on the development of thin-film process equipment based on the cleantech company's proprietary laser reactive deposition (LRD) process for thin crystalline silicon films.
