Solar Cells Info

Nikkei Electronics Asia, Jun 24, 2009
Source: TechOn
http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp/english/NEWS_EN/20090624/172196/

National Semiconductor Corp announced that West Holdings has become its first Japanese photovoltaic (PV) business partner. In addition, the company announced that it has started shipping its SolarMagic power optimizers in Japan. West Holdings is Japan’s leading company in environment-compatible home remodeling and improvement businesses such as photovoltaic systems, all-electric home appliances and house insulation services. West Holdings began selling SolarMagic power optimizers on June 22 through House Care, one of its member companies. (more…)

Nikkei Electronics Asia, Jun 24, 2009
Source. TechOn
http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp/english/NEWS_EN/20090624/172197/

Shimane Sanyo Electric Co Ltd said it will start up an HIT solar cell production line, in anticipation of an active demand for photovoltaic systems worldwide stimulated by economic packages as represented by the Green New Deal. The production line will be installed on the second floor of Factory Building No.3 and is scheduled to begin operation in April 2010. (more…)

Tetsuo Nozawa, Nikkei Electronics, Jan 26, 2009
Source: TechOn
http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp/english/NEWS_EN/20090126/164568/

Nippon Oil Corp (Eneos) and Sanyo Electric Co Ltd established Sanyo Eneos Solar Co Ltd, a joint company for producing amorphous Si thin-film solar cells and marketing power generation systems, Jan 23, 2009.  The investment ratio is 50:50. Panasonic Corp, which became the parent company of Sanyo, has not made any direct investment at this point.  For the joint company, Sanyo will take charge of the development of manufacturing technologies for thin-film solar cells as well as the production of cells and modules. And Eneos will be responsible for the construction of large-scale power generation systems using the modules as well as the distribution and sale of the products. Eneos will also provide material technologies for gases (eg, hydrogen gas) required in the cell production, the company said. (more…)

Central News Agency, 21 June 2009
Source: Taiwan News
http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?
    id=982331&lang=eng_news&cate_img=35.jpg&cate_rss=news_Business

A ceremony was held yesterday in southern Taiwan to inaugurate the country’s first commercial-grade high concentration photovoltaic (HCPV) solar power system, which will have a total installed capacity of one megawatt once the construction project is completed.   The inauguration marked the first-stage operation of the system, located in the Liuying Environment Science and Technology Park in Tainan County. At present, it can generate 100 kilowatts of clean electricity per hour. (more…)

The European project known as Desertec is nothing if not ambitious.
By TOM ZELLER Jr., NEW YORK, June 21, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/22/business/energy-environment/22iht-green22.html?_r=1&ref=earth

It aims to harvest the sun’s energy — using a method known as concentrating solar power, or C.S.P. — from the vast North African desert and deliver it as electricity, via high-voltage transmission lines, to markets in Europe. Eventually, its backers say, it could satisfy as much as 15 percent of the European Union’s power needs.  The idea, which has been bouncing around for years, arises out of an alphabet soup of organizations, formal multinational partnerships and regional acronyms like TREC, for Trans-Mediterranean Renewable Energy Cooperation; Eumena, or European Union, the Mediterranean and North Africa; the Union of the Mediterranean; and the Club of Rome. (more…)

Rome, Italy, May 24, 2009
Source: Reuters.com
http://in.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idINLO46892420090524

More than 38,000 photovoltaic (PV) installations that turn sunlight into power are currently on stream in Italy with a total capacity of 485 megawatt, the state-run power management agency GSE said on Sunday.  PV installations mushroomed in Italy from about 22 MW in early 2007 after the government launched a new incentive plan, considered by analysts to be among the most generous in Europe.  GSE has issued its closely watched update of PV capacity in Italy during a meeting of energy ministers from the Group of Eight industrialized nations that runs in Rome May 24-25.
(Reporting by Svetlana Kovalyova, editing by Maureen Bavdek)

by Tiernan Ray,  June 8, 2009
Source: Barrons’
http://blogs.barrons.com/techtraderdaily/2009/06/08/
solar-tech-analysts-see-rising-demand-falling-silicon-prices/

Better late than never, I thought I’d mention two solar technology industry reports out today. Reports from analysts last weekfollowing an industry conference indicated demand for solar panel modules was picking up, but concerns about pricing of product has remained a concern. Today, Barclay’s Capital Research analyst Vishal Shah writes that the price of the basic ingredient, polysilicon, could decline to $50 per kilogram from the current $65 to $75 per kilogram by the end of this year as “the next phase of supply ramp” begins in the second half. (more…)

Chipmakers may see benefit of solar market boom
By Dave Hannon, Purchasing.com, 3 June 2009
Source:  http://www.purchasing.com/article/CA6662735.html

Riding a wave of federal stimulus funding, some analysts are forecasting that the solar market will grow by leaps and bounds in the coming years, benefiting not only solar technology developers, but their suppliers as well. Electronics industry researcher IC Insights also said recently it “expects demand for solar installations to come charging back in 2010 as new government incentives in the U.S., Europe, and China gain traction.” The researcher forecasts solar installations of solar equipment to rise 37% in 2010. Research firm Gartner Inc. also forecasts continued growth for the sector, estimating that 114 million solar panels will ship in 2013, up from 32 million in 2009. (more…)

by Donna Kelly, 16 June 2009
Source. Hepburn Advocate
http://www.hepburnadvocate.com.au/news/local/news/
general/sun-sets-on-solar-rebate-for-hepburn-shire-residents/1542192.aspx

THE sudden scrapping of solar rebates caught environmentally aware residents on the hop last week. The Federal Government decided last Tuesday to end its $8000 rebate scheme for domestic solar PV installation – three weeks ahead of schedule.  Sustainable Hepburn Association Renewing the Earth spokeswoman Anneke Deutsch, who co-ordinated a solar panel bulk-buy offer on behalf of SHARE members, said there had been rumours that the offer was “over subscribed”. (more…)

By Jennifer Kho June 9, 2009
Source: Green/New York Times
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/09/solar-showdown-looms-in-california/

Rooftop solarMax Whittaker for The New York Times Some critics in California say too much of this too soon could reduce the stability of the grid and raise costs for other customers.  Solar installations could grind to a halt in California, industry advocates say, unless a legislative proposal, which the state Senate is considering this month, passes.  Some opponents, including electrical and utility workers, disagree.

(more…)