US-based PV installer RGS Energy (RGSE), which acquired exclusive rights to Dow Chemical’s third generation (3.0) solar shingles under the ‘POWERHOUSE’ brand, but using conventional crystalline silicon solar cells rather than the original CIGS (Copper, Indium, Gallium, Selenide) thin-film substrates, has included China-based PV manufacturer, Risen Energy as a key supplier.
The Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS) at the National University of Singapore (NUS) has set a new R&D goal to develop a commercially viable thin-film-on-silicon tandem solar cell with 30% conversion efficiencies.
‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member Hanwha Q CELLS said it had discontinued its ingot and wafer manufacturing operations in the fourth quarter of 2017, due to the wafer operations being unprofitable.
Leading integrated high-efficiency monocrystalline module manufacturer and ‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member LONGi Green Energy Technology set a new solar industry R&D expenditure record in 2017, not only surpassing the two historical leaders, First Solar and SunPower, but also spending more in one year than any PV manufacturer to date.
PV CellTech 2018 saw Chief Technology Officers and senior executives from the world's top solar cell manufacturers and equipment suppliers give key indications of which cell technologies will be driving the industry in the coming years.
Leading ‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member JinkoSolar has said that it was named Energy Yield Simulation Winner - Polycrystalline Group at the 4th ‘All Quality Matters’ Solar Congress, recently hosted by TÜV Rhineland in Wuxi, China.
Inline solar cell measurement equipment specialist Aurora Solar Technologies (AST) has secured a new Collaborative Research Agreement (CRA) with the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS), which includes the previous work planned on heterojunction (HJ) cells but also creates opportunities in the growing R&D market for solar cell design and qualification.
China headquartered PV thin-film equipment and module producer Hanergy Thin Film Power Group (Hanergy TF) has created a completely new business model in 2017 that provides new industrial parks a selection from a portfolio of a-Si, CIGS, GaAs and c-Si heterojunction (HJ) turnkey production lines to provide local governments access to solar technology and attract other hi-tech companies to new industrial parks.
PV materials specialist DuPont Photovoltaic Solutions is collaborating with China-based wind turbine manufacturer, Envision using its Energy IoT platform, EnOS for analytical investigations into PV module degradation and failures, across a number of real world field studies.
German-based monocrystalline PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Cell) PV module manufacturer SolarWorld Industries has filed for bankruptcy a second time in less than a year.
