Major China-based PV manufacturer, JA Solar, has had TUV Rheinland verify its PERC cell technology modules have a record-high >17.2% conversion efficiency, producing a standard 60-cell module with a performance figure above 280W.
Ahead of its financial analyst day event, major PV energy provider SunPower has pre-released financial guidance for 2015, while announcing its highly anticipated next wave of manufacturing capacity expansions.
High-tech manufacturing equipment firm, Manz AG reported record revenue for the first nine months of 2014, driven by its Flat Panel Display segment, which generated €179.9 million from the total revenue of €250.9 million.
The largest polysilicon producer, GCL-Poly Energy Holdings and a group of other investors are to take a majority shareholding in bankrupt PV module manufacturer, Shanghai Chaori Solar. The company also announced plans to dispose of its wafer production business, which has recently been expanded to a nameplate capacity of 13GW.
First Solar and Belectric have started construction of one of the UK’s largest solar farms, a 46MW project in Oxfordshire that will bring large-scale PV capacity deployed by the pair in the UK up to 80MW when completed.
First Solar reported third quarter net sales of US$889 million, an increase of US$345 million from the second quarter of 2014. However, project delays would result in full-year revenue guidance lowered by US$100 million to a range of US$3.6 billion to US$3.9 billion.
Samsung SDI and PV inverter manufacturer, Sungrow Power Supply are to team on building and operating a lithium-ion battery energy storage plant in China and the supply of energy storage systems in the country.
Chang Zhou Almaden a major PV glass manufacturer in China is establishing a new manufacturing plant in Dubai to produce 400,000 PV glass substrates per annum.
REC Silicon is to expand polysilicon production at its Moses Lake facility and silane production at its Butte facility, while restarting Silane I production. The company is also undertaking a feasibility study to establish a 20,000MT joint venture polysilicon plant in Saudi Arabia with IDEA Polysilicon.
