Three sales agreements that total approximately 42MW of PV module sales in Germany for delivery in 2009 have been announced by Trina Solar. One deal with Bull Solar GmbH is worth 12MW of modules, Trina said. The sales were all signed in the first quarter of 2009.
Great strides in solar cell efficiency are the name of the game as Suntech has teamed up with an Australian university to focus on the development of solar cells that boast twice the efficiency but half the cost of conventional cells. Joining research forces with Swinburne University of Technology of Melbourne, Suntech’s CEO Dr. Zhengrong Shi will lead the collaborative effort with the University’s Centre for Micro-Photonics Director, Professor Min Gu.
Suntech Power Holdings said it is "routinely" using the Pluto technology to produce solar PV cells with conversion efficiencies of approximately 19% on monocrystalline silicon cells and 17% on multicrystalline cells. The company also confirmed that third-party test results from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Germany show conversion efficiencies of 18.8% for monocrystalline cell and 17.2% for the multicrystalline cells manufactured on Suntech's 34MW Pluto production line.
Webel-SL Energy Systems Ltd. has, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal, revealed it is to invest approximately 1.8 billion rupees ($35.7 million) to build a second cell and module manufacturing facility in Kolkata, eastern India. The facility will bring Webel’s annual manufacturing capacity from 12MW to 42MW.
Yingli Green Energy, a photovoltaic product manufacturer, has appointed Dr. Dengyuan Song as Chief Technology Officer, replacing Dr. Guoxiao Yao, who resigned to pursue other interests. Dr. Song will lead Yingli Green Energy’s research and development initiatives.
BP Solar has reported a production capacity decline for the fourth quarter of 2008. The reasons for this were a combination of the running down and expected closure of its 50MW photovoltaic cell and module manufacturing plant in Australia, as well as a fire at its joint venture production plant in India, Tata BP Solar. BP detailed the production disruption and decline in MW capacity in its latest quarterly financial filings.
Digitimes reports that the Taiwan-based crystalline silicon solar cell producer E-Ton Solar Tech has received an order for 50MWp of solar cells from a previous client, with shipments to occur this year.
Dyesol recently opened its newest facility in Shotton, North Wales only a few weeks after its Australian materials manufacturing and equipment design and assembly facility was unveiled. The new photovoltaic accelerator facility is a continuation of the partnership between Dyesol and Corus to step up the commercialisation of Dye Solar Cell (DSC) technology onto steel sheeting building products.
Dyesol, the Australian owned company that makes Dye Solar Cells (DSC), has officially opened its new manufacturing facilities in Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Australia. This facility will enable Dyesol to fast track its commercialisation strategy.
Polysilicon and multicrystalline wafer manufacturing start-up, Prime Solar, headquartered in Perth, Australia has selected CDI Corp to undertake detailed engineering design work for the construction of a polysilicon manufacturing facility near Leipzig, Germany. The contract was signed with CDI Engineering Solutions, a division of CDI Corp.
