Storage

Major polysilicon producer Wacker Chemie said its capacity could reach around 80,000MT by 2017 as it optimises production in Germany and ramps its new plant in Tennessee.

Germany-based PV materials manufacturer Heraeus is to open new R&D centres in mainland China and Taiwan.

Semiconductor equipment makers Applied Materials and Tokyo Electron have agreed to terminate plans for a merger after the US Department of Justice (DoJ) warned about loss of competition from the procedure.

Following recent news that Holland’s Orange Solar will open a module factory aimed at “reviving” European PV manufacturing, BIPV specialist Onyx Solar will begin work on a factory in Spain.

Wuxi Suntech the PV module manufacturing arm of Shunfeng International Clean Energy (SFCE) has confirmed the development and testing with Taiwan Carbon Nanotube Technology Corporation (TCNT) of a high-strength, lightweight carbon and glass fibre composite PV module frame, the first such development of its kind in the PV industry.

Taiwan-based solar wafer producer Green Energy Technology (GET) reported March 2015 sales almost flat with the previous month.

US-Based ‘Direct Wafer’ producer 1366 Technologies has attracted a new investor from China and a new customer in Japan.

Major tier-1 PV manufacturer JA Solar said its chief technology officer Yong Liu had resigned from the company, effective March 31, 2015.

Research into energy storage and related technologies has been given a boost in the US in the past few days, with a major utility company committing funding in Indiana for renewables integration and New York’s governor announcing the creation of a research facility.

One of Japan’s largest trading companies, Marubeni, which is already involved in both upstream and downstream sectors of PV industry, has entered the domestic market for residential solar.