News

Fire Energy, S.L. (“Fire Energy”), a Spanish PV system integrator and PV devices distributor is to be supplied 16MW of PV modules by Yingli Green Energy in 2009, according to a new supply contract signed between the two companies. This is the second contract both companies have entered into.

Sumitomo Corporation has signed a long-term wafer supply deal with LDK Solar. Under terms of the agreement, LDK Solar will deliver approximately 750MW of multicrystalline silicon wafers to Sumitomo over an eight-year period. The deal starts  in 2009 and extends through 2016.

Dutch solar cell producer, Solland Solar has announced the development of a new photovoltaic solar cell design using the ‘Metal Wrap Through’ (MWT) method. The technique enables the removal of the traditional ‘bus bars’ from the cells front-side, increase the usable area and reduce shading, boosting cell efficiencies. The research was carried out in collaboration with ECN (Energy research Centre of the Netherlands).

LDK Solar has placed a new order with long-term CVD reactor supplier GT Solar, worth $32 million. The reactors will be used in LDK Solar’s manufacturing facilities in Xinyu City, China as it continues to add new capacity to meet market demand. LDK doubled wafer production in 2007, reaching nominal capacity of 400MW. At the beginning of the year, LDK Solar expected to reach a capacity of 800MW in 2008. However, this has been revised upwards at least twice since then and is now expected to reach 1.2GW by the end of 2008. The company has also recently said that it was sold-out through 2009.

To meet its previously stated capacity ramp, Taiwan based, Solartech Energy Corp has secured a five-year contract with LDK Solar for multicrystalline wafers that equates to 110MW supply per annum. The deal starts in 2009 and extends through 2013.

Canadian Solar (CSI) and GCL Silicon Technology have signed new long-term supply agreements, in which GCL will provide 510 metric tons of high-purity polysilicon feedstock over the next two years and approximately 1.8 GW of solar wafers to CSI from 2010-2015.

Solibro has begun to ship its copper indium gallium (di)selenide (CIGS) thin-film photovoltaic modules to customers. The German company, which is a joint venture between majority partner Q-Cells and Swedish firm Solibro, says that it has signed supply contracts for most of its production. Customers include Sunova, HaWi Energietechnik, thermovolt, Hecklogic, and Sunset Energietechnik.

MEMC Electronic Materials has said that it continues to add polysilicon capacity at its Pasadena, Texas facility after several unscheduled disruptions in recent months. The company said in a mid-quarter update that it expects revenues of $560 to $620 million for the quarter, which is in the upper half of its previous guidance.

Suntech Power has signed a new seven-year polysilicon supply agreement with DC Chemical Co. Ltd., worth approximately $750 million from 2010 to 2016. In March, 2008, DC Chemical entered into its first polysilicon supply deal with Suntech, worth approximately $631 million with supply running from 2009 to 2016.

DC Chemical has placed an order with GT Solar worth $173 million with GT Solar for polysilicon CVD reactors as part of DC Chemical’s aggressive production ramp to meet long-term supply contracts. This is the third contract signed between the two companies.