Solar Cells Info

Source: EV World Blog, July 19, 2009
http://evworld.com/blogs/index.cfm?authorid=12&blogid=780&archive=1

Dr. Richard Komp sent the following report from Pakistan today. Since he’s been a guest in my house and I’ve spent a fair amount of time with him when he was here in Omaha, I thought I’d share his email with you. You can watch the multi-part video I shot of one of his presentations at the King Magnet School on YouTube.

The monsoons have arrived. For days now it had been hot and muggy (Like southern Indiana in the summer) but on Friday the rains started. Just sprinkles at first but Friday night a big storm came in with lots of thunder and lightning and torrential rain. On Saturday, Faizan’s father Irfan and I went out looking for the thin, tin plated copper ribbon we use to solder the solar cells together to make the PV modules we are building. There was flooding at some of the intersections but it wasn’t too bad getting around when we started out. (more…)

by Suman Chakraborti, TNN. Calcutta, 20 July 2009
Source: Times of India
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS-City-Kolkata-
Centre-gives-Rs-15-cr-for-solar-lanterns/articleshow/4796590.cms

The Centre has cleared Rs 1.5 crore for distributing 14,000 solar lanterns in the Aila-affected areas. This will give a major boost to the state government’s efforts to redevelop the affected villages in the Sunderbans.  West Bengal Green Energy Development Corporation (WBGEDC) managing director S P Gon Choudhuri said this was the first time the Centre has approved 100% grant for introducing solar lighting in a particular area. (more…)

By Yuliya Chernova (of Dow Jones Clean Technology Insight),
New York, July 14, 2009
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090714-708396.html

Solar panel maker Suntech Power Holdings Co. (STP) signed nonbinding agreements with four Chinese provinces and cities to develop up to 1.8 gigawatts of solar projects.  Projects resulting from these agreements could be installed between 2010 and 2012, Steve Chadima, Suntech’s spokesman, said in an email.  Suntech agreed to develop 300 megawatts in Shaanxi province, 500 MW in Shizuishan city, located in Ningxia province, 500 MW in Qinghai province, and 500 MW in the Panzhihua city of the Sichuan province. (more…)

byNuying Huang, Taipei; Adam Hwang, DIGITIMES 18 June 2009

Major Taiwan-based solar cell makers Motech Industries, E-Ton Solar Tech, Gintech Energy, Neo Solar Power and Solartech Energy have recently seen significant increases in utilization rates, according to the companies.

Major Taiwan-based solar cell makers’ current utilization rates
Company   —   Utilization rate, Remark
Motech   —70-80% in Taiwan, 100% in eastern China ,
Utilization in Taiwan expected to rise in July
E-Ton   — About 80%  , Utilization likely to rise in 3Q09
Gintech –  Nearly 100% , May reach full capacity in July
Neo Solar  –  Over 80% ,  May reach full capacity in July
Solartech  –  About 50%, Utilization expected to reach 70-80% in 3Q09
Source: Companies, compiled by Digitimes, June 2009

By SiliconIndia news bureau , 19 July 2009, Bangalore
http://www.siliconindia.com/shownews/Solar_Semiconductor_to_establish_solar_cell_plant_at_Fab_City_-nid-59511.html

Solar Semiconductor, a Hyderabad-based photovoltaic (PV) modules manufacturer has announced that it will set up a solar cell plant at its Fab City campus. The company plans to invest $100 million (Rs. 490 crore) in this plant. According to Ravi Surapaneni, Vice-President of the company, initially the plant will have a capacity of 30 Mw and subsequently it will be ramped up to 60 Mw.  At present, Solar Semiconductor has a photovoltaic module-making capacity of 200 Mw a year, including 130 Mw at the Fab City and 70 Mw at Kompally. Both the facilities are dedicated to the export markets in the U.S., Germany, Spain and Italy. The solar cells manufactured at the new plant will be utilized by the company’s PV module-making plant at the Fab City. (more…)

Japanese electronics company Sharp is seeking tieups overseas, improved technology, and ramped-up business at home to boost its solar power business
By Kenji Hall, Asia /July 20, 2009,
(BusinessWeek’s technology correspondent in Tokyo)
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2009/gb20090720_163441.htm

In late 2007, not long after stepping in as president of Sharp, Mikio Katayama learned an important lesson about the energy industry. Katayama was meeting with diplomats in Japan and government officials overseas to discuss Sharp’s business producing photovoltaic solar panels. He had figured mounting evidence about global warming would be a wake-up call for countries to invest more in clean energy technologies. But instead, officials talked about solar energy in terms of national security. “That’s when we realized that it wasn’t just about saving the environment,” he recalled in a recent interview. (more…)

By Kim Tong-hyung, Staff Reporter, 29 June 2009
Source: KoreaTimes
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/tech/
tech_view.asp?newsIdx=47591&categoryCode=129

A team of South Korean researchers suggested a new approach that enables dramatic improvement in the low-cost, thin-film solar cells now being developed in laboratories around the world.  The new technique could improve the power conversion rates of dye-sensitized solar cells by more than 50 percent of the current level once commercialization is made. (more…)

by Ucilia Wang,  June 25, 2009
Source: GreenTechMedia.com
http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/
suntech-power-plans-to-start-u.s.-panel-production-in-early-2010/

The Chinese solar company is now choosing among four sites for its first, 100-megawatt factory to build solar panels in the United States, says an executive. Suntech Power plans to announce in a few weeks the site of its first factory in the United States, and expects to start production in the first quarter of 2010, said Roger Efird, president of North American sales for Suntech Thursday. (more…)

Tokyo, 29th June, 2009
Source: JapanToday.com
http://www.japantoday.com/category/technology/view/
showa-shell-saudi-aramco-plan-joint-solar-power-project

Showa Shell Sekiyu KK will embark on a multibillion yen solar power generation project with Saudi Arabian Oil Co, a state-run firm known as Saudi Aramco, in 2010. The project, which will also involve the Japanese oil distributor’s wholly owned subsidiary, Showa Shell Solar Co, will seek to deliver electricity to families and schools, for example in regional areas in the oil-rich nation that lack sufficient power infrastructure, Showa Shell Sekiyu officials said.

Source: Environmental Leader.com, June 22, 2009
http://www.environmentalleader.com/2009/06/22/
toyota-tries-to-keep-wraps-under-solar-car/

Toyota reportedly is developing a car that would be charged solely by solar, reports the Associated Press. The futuristic car is years away from market, however, the report notes. From a story originally published in the Nikkei newspaper and not verified by Toyota, the automaker’s solar car would get some of its power from solar cells on the vehicle, and the rest from solar panels on the rooftop of the home where the car is parked. (more…)