The Rise & Shine is your daily source for all solar industry-related news.

CALIFORNIA NEWS
Nanosolar to Build 10MW Power Plant
The thin-film startup plans build the 30 million ($42.75 million) facility in the same town in Germany as its previously announced 1MW solar farm and panel-assembly factory.

REC Solar Says “Thank You San Luis Obispo!”
REC Solar is offering residents in San Luis Obispo County a unique opportunity to receive bulk discounts on solar electric systems for their homes and businesses. Customers can also contract with the company’s financing partner SunRun Inc.

NATIONAL NEWS
PPL Renewable Energy Plans 5 Megawatt Solar Energy Project
PPL is working with local officials to receive approvals and permits to begin construction on a 5MW facility, which would be the first utility-scale solar project to be developed in New Jersey.

Feds Ready $50B In Energy Deals
The Energy Department is weeks away from announcing a slate of new contracts that agencies can use to finance up to $50 billion in energy-savings investments over the next decade

CL&P Predicts 2% Rate Increase
Electricity rates for Connecticut Light & Power customers will probably increase 2%in January, but the increase is smaller than originally anticipated because of changes in the way it buys power.

States Aim to Cut Gases by Making Polluters Pay
Ten states from Maryland to Maine are about to undertake the nation?s most serious effort yet to tackle climate change, putting limits on carbon dioxide emissions from utilities and making them pay for each ton of pollutants.

Iowa Guv Talks Solar Power
Iowa Governor Chet Culver called for the state to become a solar energy powerhouse. Culver?s sunny vision is to see solar panels to cover 1,000 acres of land in the state.

Solar Energy Event Scheduled For This Weekend
The Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association is hosting a seminar this weekend called “Go Solar Ann Arbor!”

FINANCIAL NEWS & MARKETS
Bank of Scotland Finances 8MW Solar Project
The Bank of Scotland has completed a deal worth US $89.79M for the construction and operation of an 8 MW solar farm in Toledo, Spain. BP Solar will be in charge of the engineering, procurement and construction of the solar power plant as well as its operation and maintenance.

KfW IPEX-Bank Finances two Spanish Photovoltaic Projects
KfW IPEX-Bank as Mandated Lead Arranger and Sole Underwriter closed the project finance for the San Clemente and Villanueva de la Jara photovoltaic facilities in Castilla-La Mancha/Spain in August, both of which have a capacity of 10.6MWp.

MARKETS & MARKET RESEARCH
New NanoMarkets Report States Manufacturing Capacity for Thin-Film and Organic PV to Reach 20GWp by 2015
Manufacturing capacity for thin-film and organic PV is expected to grow from 2 GWp this year to 29 GWp by 2015 according to a new report from NanoMarkets

Supply Could Be Twice Demand for Solar PV in 2010
The output of the global solar PV industry is expected to grow an astonishing 72% in 2008 and in 2009. In 2010, forecasts suggest that supply could be twice the demand predicted in the global PV market.

GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Dems Propose Energy Tax Breaks
House Democrats outlined $18 billion in tax incentives over 10 years for alternative energy and efficiency improvements Monday, proposing to pay for them by rescinding tax breaks for the biggest oil companies.

TECHNOLOGY
Record Efficiency for Dye Solar Cells
Researchers announced a new record efficiency for dye solar cells at the European PVSEC.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Explosive Growth Reshuffles Top 10 Solar Rankings
The explosion of PVs production across the globe completely reshuffled the top companies in Nomura Securities’ annual ranking of the leading companies, knocking long established Japanese players out of the top spots and putting four Asian suppliers in the Top 10.

Asola in Korean Manufacturing Joint Venture
Asola has signed an MOU to establish a joint venture manufacturing plant in South Korea, to enable production and distribution of high quality, German-designed solar modules in South Korea.

Suntech Breaks Ground on 300MW Solar PV Cell Production Facility
Suntech intends the facility, located in China’s Jiangsu province, to have a production capacity of 300 MW by the end of 2009.

Solar Roof Maker Asola Forms Manufacturing JV
German Asola, maker of solar power systems for automotive applications (including solar roofs for cars), will form a joint venture with Q&Tech / Yongsan to establish a solar module manufacturing plant in South Korea with an annual capacity of 30MW.

South Korea Moves Big Money Into New Energy
South Korea’s President Lee Myung-bak announced the country will invest 3 trillion won (US$2.7 billion) in a “green energy development strategy.”

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 16th, 2008 at 9:50 am and is filed under Solar Industry News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.