A 2006 long-term wafer supply deal between Suntech and MEMC has been ‘mutually terminated' at a cost to Suntech of approximately US$212 million. Suntech said that the decision to cancel the wafer supply deal was due to ‘rapid changes in the market for silicon wafers.’ Suntech also announced that it was stopping investment in CSG Solar's research and development operations, which focused on crystalline silicon thin-film technology. MEMC remains a wafer supplier to Suntech under other supply agreements.
Australia’s Sunshine Coast Regional Council has granted planning permission to Energy Parks Australia (EPA) for its new solar plant in Valdora, Queensland. With a capacity of 10MW, the development dwarfs Australia’s current largest system – Liddell’s 3MW concentrating solar power (CSP) facility – and will cost AU$40 million (US$43 million) to build.
Just one small euro million below the half-billion euro mark was reported by Fronius for revenue in 2010. The Austrian inverter manufacturer grew sales by 52%, compared with the previous year. Although sales in the PV inverter segment were not given separately, 2010 was characterised as a record year for inverter sales by market research firms.
Building upon its success with its 20MW Starwood SSM1, completed in October 2010, and the 30MW Starwood SSM2, expected to be completed during 2011’s third quarter, Starwood Energy Group Global has finalized the financing for the final 10MW of its Starwood SSM3 solar project. The combined 60MW project in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario is contracted under the Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program with its development overseen by the Ontario Power Authority. The project will be connected to the local PUC Distribution grid and is said to be the second largest solar project in North America.
The Avignonet-Lauragais solar park in the Midi-Pyrenees region of France was officially commissioned by Boralex with town and company officials on hand to celebrate. The 4.5MW solar park is the first solar farm that Boralex has completed and sits beside a 12.5MW wind farm making the Avignonet-Lauragais site one of the first mixed renewable energy spots in France.
A new research report by GTM Research, Solar PV Balance of System (BOS): Technologies and Markets, is reporting that in 2012 balance of system costs will surpass PV module costs on a cost per watt scale. The report, written by Manhal Aboudi, identified BOS costs in 2010 at US$1.43 per watt, or 44.8% of a standard, utility-scale crystalline silicon (cSi) solar project. As solar PV module prices continue to drop, GTM suspects that in 2012 the BOS cost for the same project will increase to 50.6%.
Serbia will soon become the latest member of Europe’s burgeoning PV industry after state utility EPS began construction of the country’s first solar power plant. The 5MW system, located in the western Zlatibor region, is the first of 50 renewable ventures planned by EPS as it attempts to revamp the Balkan country’s energy network.
The Massachusetts Town of Athol will be benefiting from a 3MW solar project under a newly signed PPA with Smart Energy Capital. Neither the company, nor the Town revealed any financial details under the PPA, but Smart Energy Capital advised that the solar energy the 3MW project produces will be bought by Athol and will meet nearly 90% of the Town’s electrical needs.
First Solar’s AV Solar Ranch One project has come up against some last-minute concerns voiced by local residents, according to a report on Greentech Media. Plans to begin construction of the Antelope Valley, CA, solar plant in early July could be pushed back if townspeople of nearby Fairmont file an injunction to delay the effort.
QSolar revealed that its Spraytek 79 solar PV modules had been selected for use in Oregon’s Rendata project. The US$3.25 million order will see QSolar deliver 2.5MW of its PV modules to the project once it receives Underwriters Laboratories (UL) certification, which is expected to occur during 2011’s fourth quarter. Once UL certification has been achieved, the company plans to supply modules for two sample houses followed by volume deliveries, which are anticipated to begin in early 2012.
