Solar Millennium’s week has started with a low as the company revealed that its US subsidiaries and investment filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Furthermore, the company’s former CEO, Utz Claassen, is suing the company, and certain of its subsidiaries, for US$265 million, claiming harm by defamatory statements to the public and press after he retired in March 2010.
Phoenix Solar advised that it had recently amended its restructuring plan, including its business development plan for the next few years, due to cuts in FiTs for solar power in several of its key markets. Due to the changes, the financial negotiations have been put on hold and the moratorium that was agreed to with the syndicate banks and other bilateral lenders and guarantors, including trade credit insurers, was extended at the end of last month to allow financing negotiations to continue.
As per the modifications to the German Renewable Energy Act last week, effective April 1st, 2012, new feed-in tariff payments for rooftop PV plants smaller than 10kW will be €0.195/kWh (USD$0.261/kWh). The rates for rooftop PV up to 1MW will be €0.165/kWh (USD$0.221/kWh) and rates for ground-mounted and rooftop PV of 1-10MW in size will be €0.135/kWh (USD$0.180/kWh).
Yingli Green Energy and FC Bayern Munich are jointly hosting the FC Bayern Youth Cup finals. The tournament comes after Yingli Green became an official sponsor of the FC Bayern last year, amidst a flurry of Chinese sponsorship in German football clubs. Yingli’s 3 year sponsorship deal with the club will give them marketing rights to areas such as tickets, advertising and public relations. It is hoped the event will help provide underprivileged children with the opportunity to play football and showcase their talents.
Clenergy, PV mounting system manufacturer, has moved its European headquarters to Cologne. The offices were formerly located in Frankfurt but the company decided on the strategic move to Cologne in order to optimize logistics and human resource planning. The company’s European warehouse will also be relocated from Southern Germany to the new location in Cologne.
The German Bundestag has voted in favour of cuts in solar incentives and approved new guidelines for renewable energies. With a majority of votes from the coalition, the law to change regulation regarding renewable energies (17/8877) passed the Bundestag on Thursday.
SAG Solarstrom’s sale of the 48MW Serenissima PV plant in Italy to an unnamed European investor will be concluded shortly, the company has announced. The completion of the sale was delayed by contingent high administrative efforts.
The Italian PV association, Gruppo Imprese Fotovoltaiche Italiane (GIFI), had previously demanded the government provide verification for the drafts of the new energy bill to replace Conto Energia four floating around the internet. However, market research company Jefferies, following its attendance at a photon conference has advised caution to its investors to not believe a fifth energy bill has already been released. The government is to announce its decision either late spring or early summer.
German EPC company Solea has developed and completed construction of a 7.7MW ground-mounted PV project in record time.
On February 23, the German federal environmental ministry released a proposal for its new renewable energy laws, including cuts in FiTs by 30%, effective March 8, 2012.
The University of Seville, the Social Council and the Focus-Abengoa Foundation have awarded the 9th “Javier Benjumea Puigcerver” research prize to Eduardo Fernández Camacho for his applied research on the increase in performance of solar-thermal plants through predictive control. The prize was awarded to the university professor on the basis that his submitted work was of “extraordinary scientific value” to the globally important issue of energy supply.
