Solar Cells Info

Palo Alta, CA & New Delhi, India, June 7, 2007
Source: Signet Solar.com / press release
http://www.signetsolar.com/in%20the%20news/index.htm

Signet Solar today announced plans to establish significant thin-film solar module manufacturing capabilities in India. Signet Solar’s India announcement follows plans unveiled lastmonth for a manufacturing and development plant in Dresden, Germany. Signet Solar is a global company founded to design, develop and manufacture large area, low cost, thin-film silicon solar photovoltaic (PV) modules. Signet Solar’s first production line in India will have a capacity of 60 megawatts (MW); expanding to 1 gigawatt (GW) in annual production over the next ten years.

Signet Solar’s India production facilities will tap into India’s manufacturing and engineering talent to establish high tech, high volume thin film solar module production. “The announcement by Signet Solar to expand its production capacity will significantly contribute to our plans to accelerate semiconductor and information technology (IT) hardware manufacturing in India,” states Thiru. A. Raja, India’s Honorable Union Minister of Information Technology. “Combined with our highly skilled
workforce, India has an opportunity to be a leader in using technology to address pressing global energy needs.”

Worldwide solar PV installations have grown at an annual rate of nearly 40 percent over the last five years, with demand expected to continue similar growth. In India, the Ministry of Renewable Energy has set a target to produce 10 percent of the country’s power requirements through renewable energy sources by 2012. “Signet Solar’s plans to establish manufacturing operations in India are very timely,” states Shri Vilas Muttemwar, India’s Honorable Minister of New and Renewable Energy.

“Our electric power demands will continue to increase as India’s economic growth accelerates. Cost effective alternative power generation technologies and power plants will be essential to help manage peak power demand and distributed power for rural electrification, while being sensitive to the environment.”  “We are convinced that India is ideal for manufacturing the world’s lowest cost solar modules,” said Dr. Prabhu Goel, Chairman and Founder, Signet Solar. “With its manufacturing prowess and vast need for energy, we consider India key to bringing Clean Affordable Renewable Energy, via thin film solar modules, to our customers.”

Applications for the company’s thin film solar modules include solar farms, large commercial installations, building-integrated photovoltaics, remote habitation, and irrigation. Thin film modules are expected to play a vital role in peak power production
and stand-alone applications by avoiding massive investments in power infrastructure. Signet Solar is poised to significantly expand existing markets for Clean Affordable Renewable Energy™ and create vast new opportunities in emerging economies.

Signet Solar customers will include PV system integrators and installers of solar farms for power generation. The large glass substrates and relatively lower cost of thin film modules are ideal for large scale PV system installations, building-integrated
photovoltaics and remote habitation.

About Signet Solar
Signet Solar, Inc. is a global company established in 2006 to bring Clean Affordable Renewable Energy™ to people and countries worldwide. Headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif., the company has been founded to design, develop, manufacture and market thin film silicon photovoltaic modules. For more information, please visit www.signetsolar.com.

Source: BBC News / 5 June 2007
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6725109.stm

The Vatican is considering solar panels on other buildings,.  Pope Benedict XVI is to become the first pontiff to harness solar power to provide energy for the Vatican, engineers say.  The deteriorating cement roof tiles of the Paul VI auditorium will be replaced next year with photovoltaic cells to convert sunlight into electricity. The cells will generate enough power to light, heat or cool the hall, the Vatican engineers say.
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By: Elena Balan, Communications News Editor
Source: News Softpedia.com
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Telefonica-Will-Use-Solar-Panels-for-Power-56411.shtml

The Telefonica project
Telefonica’s office complex situated in Madrid has developed a building concept that is meant to save a great amount of energy. Their solution comes in the shape of solar panels mounted on the entire surface of the building. The need for saving energy and reducing pollution has pushed Telefonica into setting an example. The mobile telecommunication company will build an office complex that will have over 16,000 solar panels displayed on the building’s rooftops. This technology will be capable of providing a total of 3GWh per year, with approximately 3 MW peak power.
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From Leslean Arshad, Osaka, May 25, 2007
Source: Bernama
http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=264138

Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said that Malaysia should intensify efforts to develop alternative energy sources, especially solar power, by emulating Japan in this field.  Impressed by the widespread use of solar energy in Japan including for street lighting, the prime minister said that its usage should be widened as it could save money. (more…)

The New Delhi Municipal Council hopes to make a difference with ‘brainy’ streetlamps that sense ambient conditions to adjust brightness, run without recharging for five days
Tenzing Lamsang, New Delhi, June 3, 2007
Source: ExpressIndia
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=239403

THE New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) aims to save electricity, become more eco-friendly, reduce power theft, and do away with some of the headache of wiring — all at one go. The civic body is planning to replace all streetlights with solar-powered ones.  It will be the first in the country to go ahead with the plan on a large-scale. Already, a pilot project that began in the Chanakyapuri area in November 2006 has, despite some hiccups, proved a success. NDMC has tentatively set a 2010 deadline for replacing all streetlights.
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by Alison Luke on Tuesday, 29 May 2007
Source: ArabinaBusiness.com
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13428&Itemid=1

A solar waterproof membrane from Spanish-based Intemper Espanola has been awarded a product innovation prize at the Construmat 2007 Awards.  The firm’s Evalon Solar waterproof membrane with photovoltaic modules was singled out for recognition in the insulation and floor and wall coverings products category. The product is a polymeric waterproofing membrane that includes flexible and light photovoltaic modules for roof-integrated photovoltaic installations. It has previously won the Batimat Gold Award for Innovation.
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Cologne, Germany, June 1, 2007
Source: United Press International
http://www.upi.com/Energy/Briefing/2007/06/01/

Germany-based Rheinland Group announced plans to expand its operations in Asia.  Around 70 percent of all solar module manufacturers have their products tested for durability and energy efficiency at the TUV Rheinland Group’s Cologne laboratory. The global service provider for quality and safety will invest about $4.7 million in the further development and expansion of new laboratory capacities in Asia by the end of 2008, Carbon Free News reported.
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Lyss, 31.05.2007
Source:3S Swiss Solar Systems AG press release
http://www.3-s.ch/en/news/

On 31st May, Aleo solar AG is inaugurating its new factory in Santa María de Palautordera, close to Barcelona. Via its Spanish subsidiary Aleo solar España S.L., the company manufactures and distributes high-quality solar modules with which electricity is produced from sunlight.  The solar modules are produced on a laminating line with a hybrid heating plate from 3S Swiss Solar Systems(ISIN CH0022678822). The laminating line forms the heart of all solar module production. In lamination, the solar cells are encapsulated between a backing foil and a glass plate or between two glass panes. The lamination process is decisive for the life expectancy of the solar modules.
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Lyss, June 6th, 2007
Source: 3S Swiss Solar Systems AG, press release
http://www.3-s.ch/en/news/

3S Swiss Solar Systems AG (ISIN CH0022678822), the world’s technological market leader for manual and semi-automatic production equipment for the manufacture of solar modules, has won an award within the framework of the Innovation Prize 2007 from the “Initiative Mittelstand”.  The innovation prize has been awarded by the “Initiative Mittelstand” for industry since 2006. An independent jury of experts and specialist editors awards the prize to companies which offer innovative products, services and solutions with high benefits for medium-sized businesses.
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System is expected to generate an estimated 46,000 kWh per year
Baraboo, WI, May 18, 2007
Source: Kyocera Solar, Inc. /press release
http://www.kyocerasolar.com/news/news_detail.cfm?key=383

Kyocera Solar, Inc., a world renown producer and supplier of solar energy products, announced the completion of a 39.6 kW solar electric system atop the Aldo Leopold Legacy Center. Installed by H & H Solar Energy Services, the solar electric system is the second largest in the state of Wisconsin to date. The largest system, the Urban Ecology Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was also supplied by H&H and Kyocera Solar.
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