Solar Cells Info

Advocates say technology known as concentrating solar power could one day become a chief source of U.S. electricity.
By Steve Raabe, Denver Post Staff Writer /June 29, 2007
http://origin.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_6256331

Colorado’s two largest utilities have agreed to explore the development of a major solar-energy power plant in New Mexico.  Xcel Energy and Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association will join several other power companies and the Electric Power Research Institute to study what could become one of the nation’s largest plants using solar heat to make electricity.
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By Alexei Oreskovic, TheStreet.com Senior Writer /June 26, 2007
http://www.thestreet.com/newsanalysis/techsemis/10365016.html?puc=googlefi

Applied Materials (AMAT – Cramer’s Take – Stockpickr – Rating) moved deeper into the solar energy market Tuesday with its $475 million acquisition of HCT Shaping Systems.  The all-cash deal fleshes out Applied Material’s portfolio of equipment for manufacturing photovoltaic solar cell wafers, supplementing its traditional business providing semiconductor and flat-panel display manufacturing tools.  In a conference call with analysts after Tuesday’s market close, Applied Materials executives said the acquisition adds to the momentum the company is experiencing in the solar energy market.
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Jun 27, 2007 /ABC News
http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/06/27/1963423.htm

The Rainbow Ridge School near Nimbin needs nothing more than some sunshine for its electricity needs.  The school has installed a $50,000 off-grid solar power system updating the previous 12 volt system.  The school administrator, Christina Rubsamen, wants the new system to become interactive by selling solar-generated electricity back to the grid during holiday periods.
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London, UK, and Los Angeles, California, June 12, 2007
Source: Solar Integrated Technologies/press release
http://www.solarintegrated.com/PR_REM_Cert_07.htm

Solar Integrated Technologies, Inc. (AIM:SIT.LN), a leading provider of building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) roofing systems, announced today that its proprietary Renewable Energy Management (REM) software system has successfully achieved certification by the California Energy Commission for performance monitoring and metering.  This recognition confirms that Solar Integrated’s REM system is certified for kWh data collection and reporting under the new California Performance-Based Incentive Program.  The ability to effectively validate the production of solar power is particularly useful where the end customer prefers to purchase solar generated electricity under a long term power purchase agreement, or PPA, rather than purchase, own and operate the solar energy system directly.
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London, UK, & Los Angeles, California, June 29, 2007
Source: Solar Integrated Technologies /press release
http://www.solarintegrated.com/SIT_PR_Sale_of_Coke_Deals_UPC_Solar_June_29_2007_Final.htm

Solar Integrated Technologies, Inc. (AIM:SIT.LN), a leading provider of building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) roofing systems, announced today that it has completed the $4.1 million sale to UPC Solar, a developer of solar energy projects in the United States, of two new solar power projects that were designed and installed on the roofs of two Coca-Cola Bottling Company facilities in Orange and Montebello, California, using Solar Integrated’s innovative BIPV system.
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Mar Lodj, 27 June 2007 /All Africa.com
http://allafrica.com/stories/200706271106.html

Poor planning, maintenance and technical support are amongst the factors threatening to undermine an ambitious effort to electrify Senegal’s remote Sine Saloum Delta using solar energy.  Another major problem is people’s lack of willingness or ability to pay the fees for the photovoltaic systems.
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By Heather Hansman, June 29,2007
Source: Freeskier magazine
http://www.freeskier.com/freeskier/news.php?news_id=1114

The unfortunate truth is that without winter there would be no skiing. Most major ski resorts are beginning to grasp that concept and, in turn, are working towards the sustainability of the ski industry. Aspen Skiing Company, owner of 4 resorts in the Aspen area, has always been at the forefront of the green movement. They run an Environmental Foundation, which is internally funded and operated, all of their snowcats run partially on biodiesel, and half of their electricity is generated by wind power.
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Cypress Provides Solar Panels to Power MIT’s Coral Rehabilitation Project at the Sagay Marine Reserve, Philippines

San Jose, CA, June 28, 2007
http://www.cypress.com/press release
The Cypress University Alliance and MIT Partner to Re-Grow Coral Damaged by Global Warming and Environmental Degradation

Cypress Semiconductor Corp. (NYSE: CY) today announced that it has donated six 90-watt solar panels supplied by its subsidiary, SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR), to power MIT’s First-Step Coral reef rehabilitation project in the Sagay Marine Reserve in the Philippines. The solar panels are powering an innovative coral reef rehabilitation process called BioRock™ which is capable of increasing coral growth rates by up to five times and improving coral survival by over 20 times during bleaching (higher than normal water temperature) events.
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June 27, 2007
http://blogs.business2.com/greenwombat/2007/06/pge-signs-solar.html

Greenvolts_carousol California utility PG&E today announced deals with San Francisco solar startups GreenVolts and Cleantech America to build photovoltaic solar power plants. The projects are relatively small-scale – 2 megawatts for GreenVolts and 5-megawatts for Cleantech America – but represent a move by a major utility to use solar power stations close to urban areas to supply green energy during peak demand. To date, utilities like Southern California Edison (EIX) and San Diego Gas & Electric (SRE) have tended to contract for massive megawatt solar thermal power plants to be constructed in the Mojave Desert far from the cities they will supply. That often means billion-dollar transmission lines must be built or upgraded.
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Reuters News / Houston, June 27, 2007

The Electric Power Research Institute said on Wednesday it will launch a project to study the feasibility of “concentrating” solar power to increase its efficiency at the request of a number of western U.S. electric utilities.

Unlike conventional flat-plate solar or photovoltaic panels, concentrating solar power uses reflectors to generate electricity more efficiently and in larger amounts, EPRI said in a release. The institute said the project will study the feasibility of building a solar power plant in the 50- to 500-megawatt range, much larger than traditional solar installations.
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