Rise & Shine: November 2, 2009
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
Cupertino Electric Installs Solar System at Orchard School
During its first year of operation, the solar system is expected to reduce the District’s annual electrical costs by an estimated forty percent.
Mercury News Interview: Barry Cinnamon, CEO of Akeena Solar Inc.
Residential sales of rooftop solar systems make up about 90 percent of Akeena’s business.
SunPower’s Werner ‘More Condient’ of Solar Cost Cuts
SunPower, the second-biggest U.S. supplier of solar modules, will meet its goal to reduce production costs to below $1 a watt by 2014, said CEO Thomas Werner.
Cal May Add 365MW in 2009, Still Short of 20% Mandate
California’s utilities are signing gigawatts of renewable electricity contracts, but getting those electrons hasn’t been so easy.
NATIONAL NEWS
SPI: Solar Quandaries and Strategies
Another Solar Power International has come and gone. This year was cautiously optimistic as the industry has begun to recover from a shaky 2008.
Phoenix Park Takes Historic Mill Redevelopment to Next Step with One of Massachusetts Largest Solar Energy Facilities
506kW Solar Rooftop – to be installed by Alteris using Massachusetts manufactured technology – to power green business park.
GE Puts Wind Converter to Work for Solar
The company has turned a 1.5 MW wind converter into a new, 600 kW solar inverter for utility projects, Rick Robertson, an inverter program manager at GE, told us at this week’s Solar Power International.
SunWize Initiates First City-Wide Solar Challenge
Discounts incentivize Corvallis, Oregon residents to take up the cause.
SunWize and SOLON Establish Strategic Partnership
SunWize key distributor of SOLON’s top quality, US-made modules.
Fronius and SunWize Expand Partnership
Residential Power Systems Division increases value to homeowners with IGPlus inverter and monitoring solution.
CSP: Bringing Solar to the Masses
In order to bring solar to the terawatt scale, we’re going to need every solar-electric and solar-thermal technology possible. But the only technology that can deliver large amounts of electricity, heat and hot water at one time is concentrating solar power.
SEPA Offers New Resources for Solar Power Stakeholders
The association unveils new online solar tools and other resources customized for utility executives, employees and solar industry leaders.
MARKETS & MARKET RESEARCH
German Market Exploding to Around 2.4 GW in 2009
After a slow start in Q1 the power of new installations now exceeds 300 Megawatt per month.
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Where Are the Swing Voters on the Climate Bill?
As the Senate environment committee starts to hold hearings on the climate change bill, we think there’s one critical question for the senators: Who are you talking to?
Stimulus Money for Energy Companies Going, Going…
Matt Rogers, Senior Advisor to Energy Secretary Steven Chu, says 85 percent of the selections for grants have been made.
FINANCIAL NEWS & MARKETS
REC Group Reports Third Quarter Results
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to NOK 429 million in the third quarter 2009, a decline of 40 percent from NOK 711 million in the third quarter 2008.
Trony Solar Files for IPO of Up to $200M
The company has applied to list its American Depositary Shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “TRO,” according to the filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Acro Energy Files Interim Financial Statements and MD&A and Announces Private Placement
Acro has filed its interim consolidated financial statements and accompanying Management’s Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) for the three month period ended August 31, 2009.
TECHNOLOGY
Scientists Develop New Material for Solar Cells
A series of joint sub-projects and work-packages has enabled the scientists to develop a new, less expensive grade of raw material for solar cells. And the best news is that the new modules are just as efficient as current solar cells.
Solar Laminate Panels Help Homeowners Go Greener With Less Intrusion
Solar laminate panels are a new way to harness the sun’s energy in order to use solar power, and Metal Master Roofing and Construction is at the forefront of this technology in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Germany’s Mage Solar Opens U.S. Plant
Decision about site location to be made by the end of November 2009.
Terra Mundus Breaks Ground on 5.67MW PV System
Terra Mundus Sueddeutschland GmbH has succeeded in launching the large-scale photovoltaic plant, project “Koeching II”, a 5.67 MW free standing renewable energy plant in the municipality of Aldersbach in Lower Bavaria.
Prosolia and Atersa Sign Module Supply Agreement
Prosolia and Atersa have signed an agreement for the purchase of 14 MW of photovoltaic modules.
Sahara Solar-Power Consortium Plans Advance
An international consortium devoted to creating an ambitious solar-power project in the Sahara Desert took the first formal steps of its plan Friday by forming a closely held company and appointing a chief executive.
Japan Accelerates Purchase of Surplus Solar Homes
The move is Japan’s latest attempt to make photovoltaic generation, which is cleaner in terms of carbon emissions than fossil fuels, more popular at the public level and to step up efforts to fight global warming.
India, Cyprus Ink MoU On Solar Energy
After three days of pomp and pageantry in the UK, President Pratibha Patil commenced her two-day business visit to the island country of Cyprus, which she described as the “South Eastern outpost” of the European Union.
Germany Installs 2.34 GW, FIT to Decline 9-11%
Demand in Germany has picked up since mid-year, and the new ruling coalition seeks to calm fears of a drastic cut to the country’s solar incentives.
Indonesia Sees 40% of Power Programme by Mid-2010
The minister said that by 2025 the target for the energy use mix was 30 percent from gas, 20 percent from oil-based fuels, 30 percent from coal, and to use more geothermal and solar power.
Sanyo to Enter Energy Solutions Market
The company intends to expand the energy solutions market from large-scale facilities such as factories and high-rise buildings to small- and medium-scale users such as retail stores, schools, and homes.
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