Grupo T-Solar and Astonfield Renewable Resources have signed a long-term strategic partnership deal to develop solar PV power plants in India. Site construction is under way on the first project of the collaboration, a 5MW site in Osiyan, Rajasthan, India, which is expected to be commissioned by October.
A glut of modules and PV inverters are to revitalise the German solar market this year as prices are falling to a degree that the makes investing in solar financially attractive again. However, despite a very weak first quarter, installations are set to show strong growth through the rest of the year, peaking in the fourth quarter and exceeding installation figures of 7GW in 2010, according to the latest forecast from IMS Research.
Despite a swathe of competitors experiencing a significant fall in demand for modules in the first quarter, Canadian Solar would seem to have bucked the trend and guided robust sales in the second quarter resulting in sell-out shipments during its recent first quarter analyst call. In that call, Dr. Shawn Qu, Canadian Solar’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer highlighted plans for a new 600MW solar wafer plant that would that would be run as a joint venture operation to reduce capital outlay.
Switzerland looks set to become the latest country to abolish its nuclear energy programme after its Government announced last week that it would be nuclear free by 2034. The news is a boon to solar, which will look to fill the void left by an industry that currently accounts for 39.9% of the land-locked country’s electricity production.
Module manufacturer Solvis has entered into a long-term cooperation agreement with solar system integrator Relatio, which will see Relatio market half of Solvis’ full annual capacity in Germany during 2011 by installing Solvis modules on its roof and field projects.
EOSOL Energies Nouvelles has used 35,000 CS6P modules supplied by Canadian Solar for an 8MW PV power plant now operational in Villeneuve de Marsan, Aquitaine in south western France. The power plant also uses inverters, electrical monitoring systems from Siemens.
Munich-based system integrator SolConTec International has had a 994KW PV power plant connected to the Italian grid by Enel on May 26th and complies with the Conto Energia III tariffs. The Servigliano plant is located in the Marche region of Italy and employs Phono Solar PS-FM190 Watt monocrystalline modules on a 3.2395 hectare site. Siemens supplied the central inverter.
A dramatic u-turn by German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been officially proclaimed with the announcement that all nuclear plants in the country will be shut down permanently by 2021. Initially, eight of Germany’s oldest nuclear plants will shut down immediately and the remaining plants will be phased out over the next 10 years. However, three plants could remain operational until 2022 to allow for the possibility of delays occurring in the addition of new energy sources - mainly renewables - as a replacement.
Solar Power Partners and JCM Capital have signed a deal with Rumble Energy, to provide full development, construction, and long-term equity financing for a 6MW portfolio of commercial-scale rooftop installations located throughout Ontario. The agreement follows the SPP-JCM announcement in December 2010 on the launch of their Solar Fund to develop, finance, own, and operate 200MW of solar projects in Ontario.
Macy’s Goodyear, Arizona online fulfillment center is modeling a new 3.5MW rooftop solar power system. SunPower designed and installed the solar project, which features a SunPower T5 Solar Roof Tile system, and will continue to support the center with operations and maintenance services.
