The US Department of Energy (DOE) has backed teams working on 11 new solar technologies based on micro-CPV (concentrated PV), awarding funding of between just under US$1 million and US$3.5 million to each.
According to Dutch media reports, Heerlen, Netherlands based solar cell producer, Solland Solar, a subsidiary of Italian industrial firm Pufin Group, has filed for bankruptcy protection.
Taiwan-based CIGS thin-film module producer TSMC Solar, a subsidiary of leading semiconductor foundry Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp is to close its manufacturing plant at the end of August and exit the solar PV market.
Tier-one PV manufacturer JinkoSolar has raised its module shipment guidance for the full-year. The company expects shipments to be in the range of 4.0GW to 4.5GW, up from previous guidance of 3.3GW to 3.8GW.
India is expected to install 2.5GW of solar in 2015, significantly up from the previous forecast of 2GW, under the latest quarterly ‘India Solar Market Update’ from Mercom Capital Group.
Major tier-one PV manufacturer JinkoSolar said it had secured more than US$62 million in a loan agreement with The Export-Import Bank of China (TEIBC) to support long-term fixed assets and mid-term working capital for its recently started Malaysia facility. The company said it had already drawn down the US$62 million loan.
PV module encapsulant producer STR Holdings could be the US front for its parent company, China-based project developer, Zhenfa Energy Group entering the US market.
Singapore-based integrated PV manufacturer REC Solar, recently acquired by Elkem Bluestar, is undergoing site selection analysis for its next major capacity expansion.
Germany-headquartered PV manufacturer SolarWorld has had a record efficiency for a PERC solar cell of 21.7% independently verified by the photovoltaic calibration laboratory (CalLab) of Fraunhofer ISE.
