Solar Cells Info

Nuying Huang, Taipei; Esther Lam
Source: DIGITIMES, 11 September 2008
http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20080910PD216.html

While more new thin-film solar cell players from Asia are entering into polysilicon volume production in 2009, many of them have noted that their capacity has already been fully booked. However, their claimed success does hide potential risks as compared to the achievements made by leading players. Given that leading player First Solar has already introduced its cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film solar modules into volume production, smaller-scale players have looked into the segment more closely. (more…)

by Nuying Huang, Taipei; Adam Hwang
Source: DIGITIMES, 12 September 2008
http://www.digitimes.com/bits_chips/a20080912PD211.html

Taiwan’s Bureau of Energy under the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) is planning to invite Chinese government officials responsible for making renewable energy policies to attend a solar energy symposium tentatively scheduled for early 2009 in Taiwan, in an attempt to foster cooperation with the China government to promote the development of Taiwan’s solar energy industry including Taiwan-based solar energy makers’ investment in production in China, according to industry sources. (more…)

New materials for high-performance cells could make solar power affordable.
By Kevin Bullis, September 23, 2008
Source: MIT TechnologyReview.com
http://www.technologyreview.com/Biztech/21405/

A cheap new way to attach mirrors to silicon yields very efficient solar cells that don’t cost much to manufacture. The technique could lead to solar panels that produce electricity for the average price of electricity in the United States. Suniva, a startup based in Atlanta, has made solar cells that convert about 20 percent of the energy in the sunlight that falls on them into electricity. That’s up from 17 percent for its previous solar cells and close to the efficiency of the best solar cells on the market. But unlike other high-efficiency silicon solar cells, says Ajeet Rohatgi, the company’s founder and chief technology officer, Suniva’s are made using low-cost methods. One such method is screen printing, a relatively cheap process much like the silk-screen process used to print T-shirts. (more…)

Silicon Valley, CA, Sept 19, 2008
Source: Sunpower Corp. press release
http://investors.sunpowercorp.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=335603

Applied Materials (Nasdaq: AMAT) and SunPower Corporation (Nasdaq: SPWR) today announced completion of two SunPower solar power systems totaling 2.1 megawatts at Applied Materials’ corporate facilities in Sunnyvale, Calif. The systems represent the largest solar power deployment at a corporate facility in the United States.  “This is another exciting milestone in the adoption of solar power in California,” said Mike Splinter, president and chief executive officer of Applied Materials. “More companies are realizing the wisdom of integrating solar as a non-intrusive, clean, silent form of energy generation into our businesses and communities. We’ve converted our parking lots to power plants and we encourage others to join us in making solar power a meaningful part of the energy supply.” (more…)

Success in Trial Manufacture of BN/Si Heterodiode Solar Cell
September 04, 2008
Source: National Institute for Materials Science NIMS, Japan press release
http://www.nims.go.jp/eng/news/press/press080904-1.html
Abstract
1. A team led by Dr. Shojiro Komatsu, Group Leader of the Wide Band Gap Semiconductor Group, Advanced Electronic Materials Center of the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS; President: Teruo Kishi) succeeded for the first time in the world in trial manufacturing a solar cell using high density boron nidtride (sp3-bonding BN), which is transparent to visible light and is one of the strongest of materials (high temperature refractory). (more…)

by Windsor Genova – AHN News Writer, New York, September 12, 2008
Source: AllHeadNews.com
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7012276449

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon took a solar-powered cab to work on Friday to raise awareness about climate change and to promote environmentally-friendly technologies.  The ride on the Swiss-built Solartaxi took Ban from his home in New York to the UN Secretariat building. Louis Palmer, the Solartaxi’s inventor, drove him to his office. (more…)

by Maulik Pathak, Ahmedabad September 17, 2008
Source: Business Standard.com
http://www.business-standard.com/india/storypage.php?autono=334659

After unveiling its plans to harness wind energy, ONGC, the country’s leading crude and gas producer, now plans to foray into solar and geothermal energy. The company is in talks with four companies, including a US-based firm, for setting up a photovoltaic (PV) cells unit.  The oil and gas major is also exploring geothermal energy for which it is in talks with Iceland government. All these projects will be carried out under its ONGC Energy Centre housed at Rajiv Gandhi Urja Bhavan, New Delhi. (more…)

by Nuying Huang, Taipei; Steve Shen
Source: DIGITIMES, 15 September 2008
http://www.digitimes.com/bits_chips/a20080915PD210.html

Taiwan Glass Industrial (TGI) plans to invest an additional NT$2 billion (US$62.7 million) in the next three years in its plant in Changpin Industrial Park in central Taiwan to produce glass products for the solar cell industry, according to data provided by the Industrial Development Bureau (IDB) of Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

The new investment will call for the production of super white PV (photovoltaic) glass, TCO (transparent conductive oxide)-based glass substrate for thin-film solar cells as well as glass fibers for windmill generators, the data showed. Currently, super white PV glass accounts for 3-4% of overall production costs of silicon type solar cells, whereas TCO glass substrate accounts for 15-20% of production costs of thin-film solar cells, the IDB noted.

San Francisco, CA and Wuxi, China, Sept 16, 2008
Source: Suntech Power Holdings, Co. Ltd, press release
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/
suntech-announces-groundbreaking-of-pv-cell-production-facility-in-yangzhou-china,542086.shtml

Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (NYSE: STP), one of the world’s leading manufacturers of photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules, today announced the groundbreaking of a new PV cell production facility in Yangzhou, Jiangsu province, China. Suntech intends to complete the facility with a PV cell production capacity of
300MW by the end of 2009. The new production site will facilitate Suntech’s capacity expansion plans to reach 1.4GW by year end 2009 and 2GW by year end 2010. (more…)

by Motonobu Kawai, Nikkei Microdevices, August 6, 2008
Source: TechOn
http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp/english/NEWS_EN/20080806/156124/

Sanyo Electric Co Ltd held an opening ceremony of the “Shiga Plant,” a new production base of solar cell modules, whose annual production capacity is expected to reach 40MW by the end of fiscal 2008. Following the opening of the plant, Sanyo’s annual production capacity of solar cell modules will become 340MW at the end of fiscal 2008, including the capacities of the Tokyo Plant, the Nishikinohama Plant, the Hungary Plant and the Mexico Plant. (more…)