At the start of each year, when market observers do their annual look at the year ahead, there is normally always a vague statement about some type of widespread consolidation of companies set to unfold.
Leading thin-film specialist First Solar will transfer its existing business development resources in Turkey to Turkish industrial conglomerate Zorlu Solar and will close its Istanbul office.
China-headquartered solar cell and module manufacturer China Sunergy (CSUN) said in a joint statement with the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) that it was establishing a solar module assembly facility at the McClellan Business Park near Sacramento, California.
Plenty of uncertainty surrounds the potential effects of India’s forthcoming Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill, but the cost of solar could go up by as much as INR4.5 million/MW (US$67,000), according to a new study from the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW).
News in brief: Enel Green Power provides PV modules to power a new surgery in a Ugandan hospital, California's LA Solar Group announces new rooftop solar programme, Borrego Solar completes a new commercial PV system in San Diego, California and Hannon Armstrong secures a new US$144 million investment for more than 690MW worth of new solar projects, and more.
US-based start-up WattGlass has secured a Series A round of funding led by material sciences firm, DSM that was said to support its efforts to commercialise its anti-reflective and anti-soiling coating for PV panels.
As part of the US Department Of Energy’s (DOE) Sunshot Initiative and led by SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly), the U.S. Photovoltaic Manufacturing Consortium have announced the launch of the Solar Energy Optimization Testkit, a new set of evaluation capabilities for photovoltaic systems.
Integrated PV manufacturer SolarWorld is to shift its production focus to monocrystalline PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Contact) cells and modules and away from multicrystalline to build economies of scale with high-efficiency only products. With the realignment of production to mono PERC products, including bifacial modules, around 400 jobs would be lost by the end of 2019.
PV manufacturing equipment specialist M10 Industries said its new ‘Kubus MTS 5000’ stringer tool has been installed and commissioned at Emmvee's Bangalore module assembly plant, providing a 340MW increase in capacity at its existing facility.
