As revealed in Hanwha SolarOne’s recent quarterly financial conference call, the PV module manufacturer is moving downstream to become a project developer and financier. As part of those business changes the company has formed a joint venture with project developer S.A.G. Solarstrom to initially build-out 20MWp of rooftop projects - mainly in Northern Italy - that are expected to be completed by the end of June 2012.
SolarBridge Technologies and NESL-USA have partnered in order to provide an AC module system using SolarBridge’s microinverter. The module is backed by an end-to-end 25-year warranty. The NESL AC module system uses SolarBridge’s Pantheon microinverter in the pre-assembled panel, with the company offering its AC module system up to 250W per panel.
Against a backdrop of many peers reporting lower fourth quarter shipments when compared to the previous quarter, ReneSola held its ground, exceeding shipment guidance for solar wafers and modules. The company reported 2011 revenue higher than guided at US$985.3 million but 18.3% below 2010 net revenue of US$1,205.6 million. Total solar wafer and module shipments in 2011 reached a record 1,294.8 MW, exceeding prior guidance and an increase of 9.5% from 1,182.8 MW for the full year 2010. However, management guided a significant increase in solar wafer and module shipments in 2012 to be in the range of 1.8GW to 2.0GW. Emphasis was placed on module shipments increasing as well as doubling capacity to 1GW.
Volker Böhm, insolvency administrator of the bankrupt Solar Millennium in Erlangen, has sold PV Power Holding shares to Bavaria-based Schoeller Renewables. Solar Millennium held 50% in PV Power Holding, a developer of PV projects in Italy.
The US Department of Commerce has once again postponed the deadline for issuing a preliminary ruling on SolarWorld’s anti-dumping arraignments against Chinese solar manufacturers. May 16 has been earmarked for the hearing, with March 19 set for a preliminary ruling.
Solar Power Technologies (SPT) has announced that its Clarity solar monitoring system is ETL-certified and will be listed in the Intertek database of certified products, for use in the USA and Canada.
Solar IV, the first solar plant in Vineland, New Jersey, has been completed and begun commercial operation. Vineland Solar IV, developed on 38 acres in Delsea Drive by OCI Solar Power, contains more than 13,000 PV modules and the project generates a total of 3MW. The energy is sold to the Vineland Municipal Electric Utility and will power local homes and businesses.
Canadian Solar and Lightsource Renewable Energy have announced the completion of joint projects in the UK. Ground-mounted PV plants were built in Cornwall (Bodmin), Lincolnshire (Spalding) and Somerset (Taunton), with a combined capacity of 6.4MW.
AEG Power Solutions, part of parent company 3W Power, has updated its guidance for its financial performance for 2012. The company, which is currently the subject of a friendly takeover bid by Andrem Power, which is itself wholly owned by Nordic Capital Fund VII, expects its revenue to grow to between €430 and €460 million from €428 million in 2011. However, profitability margins are expected to fall as a result of economic factors.
The Guardian has reported Israel’s plans to demolish solar panels in Imneizil in Area C of the West Bank. The two €30,000 panels, constructed by Spanish NGO Seba in 2009, have been labelled “illegal” by Israeli authorities due to building work carried out without a permit.
