Solar PV manufacturing in 2016 has seen the highest capex (capital expenditure) levels for years, and a return to capacity expansion plans. Furthermore, many of the companies announcing the capacity expansions are doing so for the first time, especially at the cell and module stage.
India has sanctioned plans to implement 10 ‘Solar Zones’ each consisting of at least 10,000 hectares of land to encourage solar PV project developers, manufacturers and investors to help achieve the country’s massive 100GW by 2022 solar targets.
Canadian Solar has introduced a new suite of 1500V system voltage monocrystalline and multicrystalline solar modules in 60-cell and 72-cell configurations as well as a T4 field-installable PV connector portfolio for commercial and utility-scale PV power plants. The products were launched at Intersolar North America 2016.
After the 630 installation rush, enterprises, industry experts and investors began to think about the next trend for Chinese PV industry. It is predicted by senior staff from an investment company, that 2017’s plant development would be tripartite by the top runners (leading group) projects, distributed systems and poverty alleviating PV programmes.
Indian solar PV manufacturing is beginning to make headway after a significant module capacity increase in the last year. PV Tech caught up with Ivan Saha, president and chief technical officer of India-based manufacturer Vikram Solar for an industry update.
A forecasted fall in solar PV module prices due to an emergent oversupply in China will aid the Indian solar sector in time for its largest capacity additions set for Q1 2017, according to the latest update from consultancy firm Bridge to India.
Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Morgan Solar is one of the industry's last remaining concentrated PV firms. It recently appointed Celestica's Mike Andrade as its new CEO, who discussed with PV Tech the place for such technologies, that are traditionally more expensive and harder to scale than conventional PV.
The solar segment is not short of new hires and comings and goings, with solar industry stakeholders responding to the shifts in a dynamic global market. In our inaugural Movers & Shakers segment, PV Tech attempts to bring the industry back to its roots and rounds up key career moves of the last fortnight.
The main event this year at Intersolar North America was the installation demonstration of Beamreach Solar’s new ‘Sprint’ lightweight PV module system for flat commercial rooftops.
A significant decline in the cost of PV modules and project construction, as well as a shift from small-scale projects to cheaper capex utility-scale projects, is a main driver for an clean energy investment slowdown in 2016, says Bloomberg News Energy Finance (BNEF).
