The Rise & Shine is your daily source for all solar-industry news. Brought to you by Sweet Solar Home and the Experts at SunRun.

CALIFORNIA NEWS
OPDE and Sacramento-Yolo Port District Plan 24 MW Photovoltaic Project
OPDE U.S. Corporation and the Sacramento-Yolo Port District have entered into an agreement to develop a 24 megawatt solar power generation facility using MECASOLAR single axis tracking arrays manufactured in the United States.

Rudolph and Sletten to Build Solyndra Plant
A unit of construction company Tutor Perini Corp. said Monday it has been awarded a contract to build phase one of a $733 million thin-film solar panel manufacturing facility in Fremont, Calif., for Solyndra Inc.

NATIONAL NEWS
National Solar Conference is Coming to Phoenix
Economic impact of SOLAR 2010 in Phoenix estimated at $3 – 6 million.

New President and New Possibilities for OutBack Power
OutBack Power Systems, Inc., a manufacturer of reliable and durable power electronics products for renewable energy applications worldwide, announced today that Stephen Humphreys has been appointed president and CEO of OutBack Power.

Ascent Solar Signs Portable Power Product Supply Agreement
Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTI), a developer of state of the art flexible thin-film solar modules, announced today that it has signed a direct supply agreement with Goal Zero LLC, a subsidiary of Provo Craft and Novelty, Inc., a consumer products company located in Utah.

Applied Materials Awarded Multi-Year Service Contract from ENN Solar Energy
Through its highly flexible SunFab(TM) Performance Service program, Applied will provide ENN with continuous operating cost reductions while enabling optimal performance from the SunFab(TM) production line at a predictable cost that scales with factory loading.

UTILITY INDUSTRY & REGULATORY NEWS
PSEG Chariman Calls for Action on Climate Bill
Ralph Izzo, president, CEO and chairman of the New Jersey utility PSEG, called for action on climate change legislation that includes a renewable portfolio standard (RPS) this week at a “Climate Week NYC” kickoff event in Manhattan.

Carbon Offsets: A Q&A
Much of the discussion about the landmark climate-change legislation winding its way through Congress has centered on the part of a federal cap-and-trade market where companies would buy and sell permits to discharge carbon dioxide.

Can Countries Cut Carbon Emissions Without Hurting Economic Growth?
As policy makers around the world take action to avoid a predicted climate catastrophe, the debate is turning to the costs of reducing carbon-dioxide emissions.

State Leaders Say Key to Oklahoma’s Energy Future Rests with Renewable Sources
While Oklahoma has abundant supplies of wind power that could give the state an economic boost, policy makers on Monday said there is little political will to mandate the use of renewable energy.

States Can Sue Utilities Over Emissions, Panel Rules
A two-judge panel of a federal appeals court has ruled that big power companies can be sued by states and land trusts for emitting carbon dioxide. The decision, issued Monday, overturns a 2005 District Court decision that the question was political, not judicial.

GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Here Comes the Smart Grid Work Force, Backed by the DOE
During his Monday morning talk DOE Secretary Steven Chu announced that the DOE will allocate $100 million from the stimulus package to train workers to install and work with smart grid technology.

FINANCIAL NEWS & MARKETS
Sungevity Raises $6M to Bring More Solar to the Golden State
The company, which has focused mainly on installing solar in Northern California so far, announced Tuesday it has raised $6 million to expand its business in Southern California and the Central Valley.

SunEdison receives US $37M Credit Facility
NORD/LB has structured a revolving facility for SunEdison LLC for construction of rooftop solar systems & ground mount solar projects across the United States.

4Q Solar Growth Outlook Drive by German – Analyst
Fourth-quarter solar shipments could rise from third-quarter levels, despite typical seasonal weakness, driven mainly by German shipments, said an analyst on Monday as he held to his ratings for First Solar Inc. and SunPower Corp., while maintaining a ”Neutral” rating for the sector.

TECHNOLOGY
Applied Materials Working on Slicing Silicon for Less
On Monday the chip and solar equipment maker announced two new technologies that it claims can reduce the costs of conventional crystalline-silicon-based solar.

Solexant to Take on First Solar on Cost: CEO
Solar cell developer Solexant Corp is starting a new financing round that it hopes will bring its thin-film solar panels to market and take on low-cost leader First Solar Inc.

Honeywell Launches New Material That Improves Solar Panels
Honeywell Electronic Materials has announced a new material that improves the efficiency and power output of photovoltaic (PV) panels.

Konarka Announces Availability of Solar Panels for Portable Charging Applications at European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference
Manufacturing Partner Products including Battery Chargers, Café Umbrellas and Carry Bags Available with Konarka Power Plastic® by Year’s End.

Suntech Launches 60 Cell Module
Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. announced the introduction of a 60-cell multi-crystalline solar photovoltaic (PV) module to be marketed under the product name Wd.

Total, GDF SUEZ, and Photovoltaic Join IMEC’s Silicon Solar Cell Research Program
The two major energy companies Total and GDF SUEZ and their common solar cells manufacturing subsidiary Photovoltech join the IMEC industrial affiliation program (IIAP) on next generations of crystalline silicon solar cells.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Suntech to SolarWorld: Careful What You Wish For
The German company’s CEO Frank Asbeck has rallied for regulations to protect European solar companies against Asian competitors. He is now calling for lowering the feed-in tariff.

Tianwei Signs 70MW Thin Film Deal with Thailand Green Energy
Just three weeks after production officially began, Oerlikon Solar’s Chinese customer Tianwei SolarFilms has signed one of the largest deals in thin film silicon PV history with Thailand Green Energy Co. Ltd.

Iberdrola Awarded Contract for 1.5MW PV System
The turnkey project will be built for BULLFIN SL and is scheduled to be completed next February. Polycrystalline panels will be mounted with installed capacity of 1,716 kWp using three 500 kilowatt inverters.

Opel Constructs 13MW of PV Systems
Opel is expanding its initiative to promote regenerating electricity production by building a solar energy power plant on the roof of its Rüsselsheim and Kaiserslautern manufacturing sites.

SolarWorld to Expand Module Capacity to 450 Megawatts
Solarworld AG is to expand its production capacity for solar power modules in Freiberg in Saxony. The capacity will be tripled to 450 megawatts by the end of 2010.

Scheuten Solar Acquires 21 MW Project Pipeline
Scheuten Solar bought two PV projects located in Italy with a total capacity of 21 MW. Scheuten Solar acquired the projects from Econcern, which was declared bankrupt in June this year.

SunRay and SunPower Partner on Italy’s Largest Solar Power Plant
The 80-hectare Montalto di Castro solar project is being financed by a consortium of primary international and Italian banks and, upon its completion at year-end, will be the largest operating solar power plant in Italy.

Sandvika, Norway: REC and Goldbeck Install PV System for Hugo Boss
The 22,000 square-meter roof-top solar installation is among the largest and most powerful in the country, expected to produce around one million kWh of solar energy each year and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 540 tons.

Centrosolar Secures Finance for Nine PV Systems for ALDI Logistics
The special feature of this solar fund is that investors are investing not in a single solar park, but in a risk-diversified portfolio of facilities at various locations.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009 at 6:21 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.