Sweden-based solar cell nanowire materials start-up Sol Voltaics said it had achieved a key breakthrough in commercializing its gallium arsenide (GaAs) nanowire film for crystalline silicon solar cells.
Sweden-based flexible CIGS thin-film manufacturing equipment supplier Midsummer said it had almost doubled sales in 2016, leading to a profit for the year.
The theme of this week's Movers & Shakers is international expansion. PAYG off-grid solar provider Azuri Technologies is strengthening its leadership team to target West Africa, while Vancouver, Canada-based Solar Alliance Energy targets US assets and expands its sales team to accommodate for this. ABB appoints new regional heads to ensure direct market contact with Europe and the AMEA region.
Swedish start-up Northvolt, which is run by two former Tesla Motors executives, plans to build a huge lithium-ion battery factory in the Nordic region, giving Tesla and Panasonic's Nevada Gigafactory a close rival within Europe in terms of size.
Sweden announces effective abolition of its solar tax, Etrion and Hitatchi High-Technologies partner on a 13.2MW project in Japan, Wynnertech supplies 20MW of inverters to a project in Iran, and Enel North America and GE Energy enter a JV.
This week's Movers & Shakers features some of the US' biggest integrated solar companies, including Vivint Solar, First Solar and Sungevity. PV Tech also reports on management shuffles in Australia and speaks with new SunShot Initiative director Charlie Gay on what is driving US solar's success.
