Manufacturing equipment firm Manz AG has raised around €26.9 million (US$36.6 million) an increase in cash capital, to be used for the ‘internal and external growth of the company’.
Fraunhofer ISE said it had developed a low-cost rear contact Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact ‘TOPCon’ n-Type solar cell that has achieved a conversion efficiency of 24%.
R&D centre, imec has implemented a laser doping process to its i-PERC solar cell that pushes conversion efficiencies to 20.2%, while claiming lower processing costs that could result in faster commercial adoption.
PV equipment supplier Spire Corporation said that it had completed the installation of a turn-key module assembly line for an unidentified customer in Eastern Europe.
Updated. Market research firm, IHS has reiterated growth projections for PV installations in 2013 of 35GW, while forecasting growth of only 15% to just over 40GW in 2014.
Silicon Valley manufacturer, Solexant, has announced a relaunch as Siva Power and a transition to focusing exclusively on CIGS thin-film PV technology.
JinkoSolar has said it will expand module capacity to at least 2GW in 2014, due to solar modules sales being virtually fully booked through the first half of the year.
The German arm of Nanosolar, the US based thin-film company which closed in July this year, was relaunched at the beginning of November as Smartenergy Renewables Deutschland.
Updated. PricewaterhouseCoopers, Suntech Power Holdings' appointed liquidators in the Cayman Islands have claimed that Wuxi Suntech is owned by Power Solar System Co., a direct subsidiary of Suntech Power Holdings, casting doubt on the deal to sell the PV manufacturer's Chinese arm.
Specialist encapsulant supplier, STR Holdings, continues to struggle following the loss of its major customer, First Solar, last year, as third quarter sales continued to decline, forcing further plant closures and restructuring efforts.
