Overcapacity in the c-Si ingot/wafer supply chain has forced materials specialist, Cookson to close one of its two ingot crucible production plants in China, with immediate effect. The company had closed a similar plant in the Czech Republic in July 2012, which has supplied crucibles, primarily to the European market. Major European-based ingot/wafer producers such as PV Crystalox are down below 30% capacity utilization on the back of weak demand.
Executives from American solar manufacturers, distributors and installers testified before the International Trade Commission demanding Chinese manufacturers be held accountable for the “unmistakable causes of damage to the American solar industry.” They added that without relief, including the application of duties for the surge in imports after the cases were filed, it is unlikely that the American industry can survive.
Australian renewable energy firm Epuron has acquired the 1MW Uterne PV plant — which is said to be Australia’s largest tracking solar power plant — from US PV manufacturer SunPower Corporation. The acquisition was financed by Australian financial services company Commonwealth Bank, making it the country’s first major bank to support a solar project of this size.
Sumitomo Corporation of America (SCOA) and its parent company Sumitomo Corporation have invested in the 550MW Desert Sunlight Solar Farm which is currently under construction in the Californian desert in the US. As a result, the companies have acquired a 25% share in the project.
Over a three-year period, Gestamp Solar intends to develop 300MW of solar power in Japan, focusing on rooftop projects. Bloomberg reported that the company is forecasting the cost at US$5,000 per kilowatt, which according to Jorge Barredo, CEO of Gestamp Solar, would be an investment of US$1.5 billion.
PSEG Solar Source advised that its 25.2MW DC (19MW AC) Queen Creek Solar Farm has reached commercial operation. Located in Queen Creek, Arizona, the solar plant is built on 148 acres of land and uses nearly 90,000 crystalline solar panels, which operate on a single axis tracking system.
Bloomberg has reported that GCL-Poly Energy Holdings and Foxconn Technology Group plan to cohesively work on building and operating a solar plant in China’s Shanxi province. The 310MW plant will use GCL’s solar cells, which will be assembled by Foxconn, with both companies agreeing to share the revenue produced from selling the electricity to the government utility.
Head of FiTs of the UK’s Department of Energy and Climate Change, Alisdair Grainger, told participants at Solar Power UK in Birmingham that 98.2% of installations in the UK are now from PV. The government minister made a very strong attempt to reassure the audience that cuts to and degression of the FiT in the UK was a good thing.
Flexopower Energies a South Africa based system integrator is using PV modules from ET Solar and a range of rooftop projects in the country. The projects include both residential and commercial rooftops which are expected to be completed this quarter.
The German Federal Network Agency has reported that PV installations in Germany were significantly sluggish in August, with the country adding only 330MW of new PV capacity during the month, compared to 612MW in August 2011 and 543MW in July 2012.
