Indian module manufacturer Tata Solar is to expand its module manufacturing facility in Bangalore from 125MW to 200MW citing potential new anti-dumping duties as one reason behind its decision.
One of the last remaining a-Si thin-film manufacturing plants in production globally and the last in Germany is to close with the loss of 160 jobs at Masdar PV in Ichterhausen.
PV equipment specialist, Meyer Burger Technology is streamlining its R&D activities at its Roth & Rau subsidiaries technology and product centre in Hohenstein-Ernstthal, Germany with the loss of around 120 positions.
Major monocrystalline wafer producer, LONGi Silicon Materials is entering the PV module market to demonstrate and promote the significant cost reductions achieved in monocrytalline wafer production and highlight the performance and life-time yield superiority of monocrystalline products over multicrystalline.
Non-silicon mono wafer costs are plummeting and could challenge the predominance of monocrystalline silicon wafers, according to the head of a leading Chinese wafer producer.
According to NPD Solarbuzz, Sharp Corporation shipped the highest volume of PV modules in the world in the first quarter of 2014, something it has been unable to achieve in the last five years.
Major tier-1 PV manufacturer JA Solar beat all key financial guidance metrics in the first quarter of 2014, due primarily to strong PV module demand coming from Japan and the UK.
DuPont said that its DuPont Apollo amorphous silicon (a-Si) thin-film module manufacturing subsidiary’s operations would be permanently closed by the end of 2014.
PV module manufacturer REC Solar ASA has confirmed plans to expand capacity at its integrated plant in Singapore by 300MW at a cost of around US$70 million.
Major PV energy provider SunPower has said that demand for its PV modules exceeded supply and that its PV project pipeline has topped 7.5GW, boosted by around 300MW of secured projects through its majority shareholder, the oil giant Total.
