Constellation Energy will be developing a 5.2MW DC solar PV system with Johnson Matthey and Preferred Unlimited on the Johnson Matthey facility in West Deptford, New Jersey. Constellation Energy will not only own the system, but also be responsible for its financing, operation and maintenance. In turn, Johnson Matthew will be able to purchase the electricity produced on the site under a 20-year PPA.
Sempra Generation agreed to a 20-year power purchase agreement with PG&E during which it will sell 150MW of solar power produced at its Mesquite Solar I project. The Mesquite project is the first phase of Sempra’s solar complex in Arlington, Arizona and is expected to begin construction in 2011 with completion in 2013. The PPA awaits final approval by the California Public Utilities Commission.
Once the agreement is finalized and the governmental incentives approved, a former strip-mining site next to a nature conservancy in southeastern Ohio will host what will be one of the largest solar PV power plants in North America. American Electric Power Ohio has signed a memorandum of understanding with New Harvest Ventures and Agile Energy for a 20-year power purchase agreement for the electricity generated by the 49.9MW Turning Point Solar project. In a related deal, Spanish solar manufacturers Prius Energy and Isofoton will set up factories in the region and supply components for the array.
Possible changes to the recently introduced feed-in tariff (FiT) in the UK are being mooted, according to media reports. The Solar Power Portal, sister-site to PV-Tech and dedicated to the UK PV market, has heard rumors about the possibility that cuts may be made to the tariff prior to the 2012 official review and has produced this update. A Financial Times article published on Friday 24th September alludes to the fact that at this weeks Liberal Democrat conference apparent back room talks have taken place.
Global solar inverter shipments are expected to surpass 23.3 million units by 2014, up by a factor of nine from 2.6 million in 2010, according to a new report from iSuppli Corp. Revenue will subsequently increase to US$8.9 billion in 2014, up from US$5.3 billion in 2010. This would result in solar inverters sales becoming one of the highest-volume ruggedized electronic systems sold, according to report author Greg Sheppard. Despite such soaring demand, the average price per watt for inverters worldwide will decline by 13.5% this year. In particular, Asian suppliers are trying to drive prices down with lower costs, Sheppard noted, even though they have been challenged to deliver bankability.
The Czech government announced recently that it was about to take special measures against the ongoing solar boom in the country. These measures are to limit the rapid construction of solar power plants, which would otherwise lead to a dramatic increase in the price of electricity in the future. One of these measures maybe a brand-new tax imposed on producers of solar power.
ESA Renewables is to provide a 1MW turnkey photovoltaic system in Culberson, NC, approximately 200 miles southwest of Charlotte, NC. The electricity generated by the system will be sold to Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) under a 10 year power purchase agreement (PPA).
Premier Power Renewable Energy and Regeneration Finance were recently selected by the Douglas County School District in Colorado to construct 3MW of solar electric power projects at 31 different sites at the school district’s 30 schools and one athletic stadium. The school district signed a PPA with REgeneration, who will own and finance the power projects. Premier Power will be responsible for the project’s design, construction, operation and maintenance.
Local press reports in France have pointed towards feed-in tariff cuts for solar power installations. The French government is expected to follow the trend in solar slashing to keep its policy in line with the massive price drops apparent across the industry.
Suntech saw revenues and shipments grow to record levels during the second quarter, but the Chinese solar manufacturer experienced a net loss for the period because of impairment charges related to the shutdown of its thin-film PV efforts and prepayment provisions as part of its stake in the Shunda solar-wafer venture. Because of continuing strong demand, the company has raised its PV module shipment guidance for 2010 by 200MW and has increased its targeted production capacity to meet the larger shipment number.
