Virginia has announced that it will be implementing its first-ever renewable energy rebate program, supported by Standard Solar. This will provide homeowners and businesses in the Commonwealth with a possible US$2,000 per kW for PV systems up to 10kW. Standard Solar urges interested parties to apply quickly as there is a limit on available funds.
Americans overwhelmingly believe that the nation should develop and use solar energy and that the federal government should make solar power a national priority, according to a new poll. The Schott Solar Barometer survey finds almost half of all Americans are thinking about solar power as an option for their homes or businesses and cite solar as their top choice among energy sources.
Solar and semiconductor wafer slurry reprocessing company, CRS Reprocessing Services (CRS) has named Scott T. Massie as CEO. Prior to this role, Massie was CEO of EPV Solar -- manufacturer of thin-film modules based in Robbinsville -- New Jersey.
As the company ventures down the road of product development expansion, Evolution Solar has appointed Robert Hines as its new president of US operations. Mr. Hines is a financial executive who owns an entrepreneurial consulting firm, Robert Hines & Associates, LLC.
Michigan Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm has announced that Georgia-based Suniva will invest US$250 million in a new solar manufacturing facility in Saginaw County's Thomas Township. With this development, Suniva will create 500 new jobs over the next five years subject to receiving a Department of Energy (DOE) loan guarantee, which the company recently applied for.
The U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory has adopted Synopsys' Sentaurus TCAD package for simulating solar cell characteristics to improve performance. The lab recently implemented the simulation software to create both thin-film and silicon PV cell models.
Terry Bailey has taken over the chairman and CEO reins at Soliant Energy, a concentrated photovoltaics company based in Monrovia, CA. Bailey, who replaces interim CEO Marco DeMiroz, recently left Evergreen Solar, where he was senior VP of marketing and sales.
IMEC and BP Solar have demonstrated 18% conversion efficiency for silicon solar cells developed using BP Solar's Mono2 silicon. IMEC's processing techniques and BP Solar's low-cost substrates make it possible to produce a solar cell that is both efficient and low in price.
In the move toward the widespread uptake of building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), Dow Chemical has unveiled the Dow Powerhouse solar shingle. The BIPV technology incorporates solar panel capability in the form of a building material.
Satcon has signed a collaborative deal with Canadian Solar that will see the companies market their products to customers as a “best-in-class system solution”. Canadian Solar’s solar PV systems will be marketed with Satcon’s solar inverters, providing a single solution for rooftop solar energy generation. The agreement also complies with the Ontario government’s domestic content requirements in its recently announced feed-in-tariff program.
