October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Solar | No Comments
An announcement has been made that Solar Power will be executing a second supply agreement with German company Bayer and Raach, which serves the residential and commercial market segments in Germany and Southern Europe. Under the agreement, Solar Power will provide 1.5 MW of SPI's 200-watt modules to help meet initial-phase requirements for a 5-megawatt system being installed in Bavaria by Bayer and Raach. The construction of the project will take place in phases over the span of 2009 and 2010, and this will call for a total of 5 megawatts from SPI's 200-watt modules.
Bradley Ferrell, President of SPI's Commercial Sales Division said, "Bayer and Raach have placed orders with us in excess of 3 megawatts so far this year. We look forward to continuing to provide Bayer and Raach with our top performing modules and innovative racking products as they pursue their business development activities throughout Germany and Southern Europe. This agreement further validates our international business development strategy as we continue to build other relationships with strategic clients similar to Bayer and Raach."
The planning and installation of photovoltaic systems and renewable energy consulting are the primary engagements of Bayer and Raach. The location of the German company is ideal for selling SPI's products throughout European market area, serving Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic and Slovenia. Solar Power is in continuous advancement of its sales internationally, selling its top performing modules and proprietary commercial systems = solar canopies SkyMount and Peaq.
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Solar | No Comments
Suntech Power Holdings (STP) has unveiled Reliathon, utility solar platform that would be working toward lowering costs and accelerating the path to grid parity. More power will also be guaranteed, about 13.8%, over the lifetime of the system, and Reliathon will reduce the total costs of the system by 10% and will offer increases in revenue potential.
Reliathon combines module innovations from Suntech, a new utility-grade warranty for the Suntech module, and preferential pricing and business terms on pre-agreements with companies leading the market like Advanced Energy, Array Technologies, Satcon, Siemens Industry and SMA. This is Reliathon's way of improving the industry's current approach to designing large-scale systems.
A combination of product and business terms is summed up with the creation of Reliathon by Suntech. The information needed for this move was developed from specific feedback from customers and dozens of utility industry experts.
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Solar | No Comments
Solar Trust of America announced that it has engaged Citigroup Global Markets and Deutsche Bank Securities as advisors to assist in securing more than $6 billion in financing for construction of multiple solar thermal power plants across the southwestern United States.
Solar Trust of America will bid to secure the competitive award of U.S. Department of Energy loan guarantees and develop models for debt and equity project financing for its proposed solar thermal power plants in California and Nevada. The company has already applied for certification with the Department of Energy and expects to begin construction in 2010.
Solar Trust of America currently has solar thermal energy power plants in advanced stages of development, among them Ridgecrest, Palen and Blythe in California and in Nevada's Amargosa Valley. In addition, the company has power purchase agreements (PPAs) in place with Southern California Edison (SCE) for development and construction of two 242-megawatt power plants, with an option to include a third 242 megawatt plant, for a total of up to 726 megawatts of capacity. These solar thermal power plants are expected to begin operation between 2013 and 2014. Solar Trust of America also has in place a Memorandum of Understanding with Nevada Energy for development and construction of at least one 242-megawatt solar thermal power plant.
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Solar | No Comments
First Solar announced recently that after the market closed on October 15th, the company's common stock was added to the S&P 500 Index.
This represents an important turning point for the solar industry as First Solar is the first pure play renewable energy company that has been added to the index.
First Solar creates comprehensive PV system solutions and advanced semiconductor technology. The company is also working hard on decreasing the costs of manufacturing and thereby making solar power a cheap and environmentally friendly alternative to fossil-fuels.
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Solar | No Comments
Technipower Systems, formerly Solomon Technologies, has established an Instant Solar distributor in Europe by expanding its existing distributor relationship with UK's EnviroBoat Developments. As part of the promotional plan, EnviroBoat will demonstrate a 1.8kW Instant Solar system in a high visibility UK location with further demonstrations planned across Europe.
Commenting on the announcement, Technipower's Dan Connors said: "We are moving quickly on our Instant Solar launch with the international markets being an integral part of the plan. Using our existing international sales channels is extremely helpful in quickly bringing this new product to market. The synergy with EnviroBoat's existing renewable energy focus is strong and the European market is acutely attuned to the need for clean, non-fossil fuel energy sources. We look forward to shipping the first units internationally this quarter."
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Biomass | No Comments
Newly published research from the University of Idaho and U.S. Department of Agriculture shows a strong energy balance for biodiesel produced from soybean oil – for every unit of fossil energy needed to produce biodiesel, the return is 4.5 units of energy.
The USDA/Idaho study finds key drivers that continue to make biodiesel an efficient fuel choice:
- New seed varieties and management practices are upping soybean yields.
- Farmers have minimized cultivation of the soil, which reduce tillage practices that have cut how much fuel they need to grow soybeans.
- Modern soybean varieties have reduced the need for pesticides.
- Today's soybean processing and biodiesel plants are more energy efficient.
And that's just the beginning. Full report is available from this page (click on "Papers and Reports").
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Solar | No Comments
The largest crystalline silicon photovoltaic (PV) module manufacturer in the world, Suntech Power Holding, has announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Pakistan's Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) as a means to help Pakistan fill its energy shortage and as a step towards making the use of solar energy technologies more widespread.
Suntech, the public sector and private companies in Pakistan need to collaborate in order to implement solar programs like the AEDB Rural Electrification Program, and this is what the MOU is working towards.
Dr. Zhengrong Shi, Suntech's Chairman and CEO said, "We are proud to collaborate with the Alternative Energy Development Board to bring the latest in crystalline silicon solar technology to Pakistan. This is a clear example of the promise of solar energy in meeting growing demands for electricity in the developing world in an environmentally friendly way. With rapid improvements in solar energy technology and operational efficiency, solar energy is establishing itself as a crucial, cost-competitive part of the global energy mix."
The agreement was set upon the principle of both parties in concern with the project and activities related to it; the MOU plays the role of setting it forth. Both parties can negotiate the final agreement and it is to be executed among the parties.
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Wind | No Comments
The 45m Stealth blade was tested at North Pickering
In Norfolk, over the past week, testing has been going on to see if a "stealth" turbine blade is invisible to radar.
Vestas is the manufacturer of this 45m blade, which was installed on Tuesday for a week of testing, by QinetiQ, a defense company. The testing is taking place in North Pickering near Swaffham, at a wind farm owned by Enertrag UK.
In the past, MOD facilities had objections to wind farms, because the blades show up on radar screens from time to time, when moving quickly, and they are hard to differentiate from small planes. Though this has not been an obstacle in the creation of wind farms, manager of projects at Enertrag UK, David Linley, says that these types of problems can lead to a "montage of complaints" which could hinder the formation of further wind farms.
QinetiQ has worked toward combating any possible problems like this with the development of Radar-Absorbing Mater (RAM), a material that can be added to the structure of the turbine blade. One of the composite's glass cloth layers can be replaced with the material, which can then absorb more than 99% of incidental radar.
The idea is simply being explored at this point by Vestas and QinetiQ, but there are hopes to present some more conclusive findings next week at the BWEA conference.
[Via: NewEnergyFocus]
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
General | No Comments
Solar field of a parabolic trough power plant in the Mojave desert.
Thermal power company Solel Solar Systems is soon to change hands with Siemens acquiring the majority stake. Ecofin, an investment firm based in London, and another major shareholder held the majority stake up until this point.
Solel Solar Systems is among the top two leading suppliers of solar receivers in the world, with a workforce of 500. Solar receivers are the key component of parabolic trough power plants. In the first six months of its current fiscal year (January 1 to June 30 2009), the company posted a revenue of about $90 million. The planning and construction of solar fields are also a strong point of the company. The purchase price of the majority stake is around $418 million, and the proper authorities need to approve the transaction. The closing of the deal is expected to take place by the end of this year.
Solel has seen a lot of success in the solar power sector, and the company already has decades of experience in developing and manufacturing solar field equipment as well as the construction and planning of solar fields. Solel has also made itself present on the Spanish market by supplying solar thermal power plants with key components to 15 power plants that account to capacity of 750 megawatt. The U.S. market is one of the most important in the world, and Solel is also very active there…
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October 23rd, 2009 | Posted in
Solar | No Comments
A $23 million funding round to support SolarEdge's development of residential and large-scale photovoltaic sites has been made by GE Energy Financial Services.
GE Energy Financial Services is investing in Israel for the first time, and this announcement was made at the GE Global Research, during a media forum on clean tech venture capital investing, at the GE's research and technology development center in Niskayuna, New York.
The energy output and cost efficiency of solar PV units is maximized with SolarEdge's holistic power harvesting and monitoring technology. BP Solar, Schott Solar, Isofoton, HaWi Energitechnik, Gehrlicher solar are among some of the companies that the company has been working with to embed their technology into solar panels, increasing their power output by 25% and providing superior monitoring and control, without an increase in cost.
Alex Urquhart, President and CEO of GE Energy Financial Services, said at the GE venture capital media forum, "Our investment in SolarEdge reflects our confidence in the company's ability to thrive in the growing global solar industry. SolarEdge is a smart company, with smart technology that fits well with GE's ecomagination program to help customers meet their environmental challenges. We view this investment as the beginning of a broader collaboration between GE and SolarEdge that could include joint product development and distribution."
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