Rise & Shine: November 20, 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
HelioPower Partners with SunRun to Offer California Homeowners Solar for as Little as $1,000 Down
SunRun purchases home solar systems designed and installed by HelioPower for its customers, who pay only a low one-time installation fee, and then a low fixed rate for the solar electricity produced by their system.
NATIONAL NEWS
SunPower Signs Contract for 4MW of Italian PV Installations
SunPower will design and construct the plants, and provide operations and maintenance services.
Solar Electric System Put in Service in West Tenn.
LightWave Solar Electric said it installed the 16.5-kilowatt photovoltaic system for Steve and Doris Denton at their home just west of Somerville in Fayette County.
JB Moving Services Inc. Goes Green with Installation of Solar PV System
The solar array, mounted on the roof of the company’s storage facility, consists of 220 solar panels and is expected to supply approximately 55 percent of the facility’s required electricity.
SolarTech Launches Solar Industry “permitting Challenge” to Showcase Integrated Solutions for Online Permit Applications
Not-for-profit consortium eliminates barriers to solar photovoltaic (PV) market growth.
SunEdison Rolls Out Enphase Microinverter System
SunEdison has completed the installation and commissioning of a solar energy system using the Enphase Microinverter System at one of their New Jersey power plants.
UTILITY INDUSTRY & REGULATORY NEWS
Lesson Learned from the PG&E Smart Meter Suit It’s a Communication Problem
Smart grid technology and smart meters don’t represent new or risky or bleeding-edge technology. t’s just being used in a new industry: electricity.
Al Gore: The Smart Grid is Key
Gore highlighted three benefits that the smart grid will provide: a connection to link renewable assets to areas that need it, a way to empower consumers, and a way to drive technology innovation in much the same way the Internet has done.
Utility Shut-Offs Soar for Poor PG&E Customers
The number of low-income households cut off by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. after they fell behind on their utility bills jumped 75 percent this year, according to a state report released Thursday.
MARKETS & MARKET RESEARCH
When it’s Cheaper to Buy Than Manufacture
In many cases it is much cheaper to outsource or toll than it is to manufacture product in-house.
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Solar Manufacturing Jobs Creation Act Will Create and Keep American jobs
Solar Energy Industries Association President and CEO Rhone Resch released the following statement today in support of the Solar Manufacturing Jobs Creation Act, which was introduced in the U.S. House by Representatives Mike Thompson (D-CA), Dave Camp (R-MI), Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), and Patrick Tiberi (R-OH).
FINANCIAL NEWS & MARKETS
Suntech Power Tops Expectations with 3Q Ear.ings
Shares of Chinese solar energy company Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. closed up 6 percent Thursday as the company signaled improving demand despite a drop in quarterly earnings.
Shares of Solarfun Jump after 3Q Profit
Shares of Solarfun Power Holdings Co. Ltd. jumped Thursday, a day after the Chinese solar cell maker posted a third-quarter profit.
Trina Solar 3Q Profit Rise 25%; Shares Jump
Chinese solar power company Trina Solar Ltd. on Thursday said its third-quarter earnings climbed 25 percent to a record high and beat expectations, pushing its shares up in morning trading.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Jiawei to Supply Modules to 3.5MW of Golden Sun Projects
Jiawei has announced that their modules have been chosen for China’s Golden Sun Project. 3.5 megawatts of Jiawei solar modules will be supplied to two electrification projects in Wuhan.
Soltec Completes Tracking PV System in Puglia
The SA60 trackers installed in Puglia will produce more than 1,555,000 kWh per year and will avoid the annual emission of 850 tons of CO2.
Bosch Solar Energy Enters Partnership with Allianz Climate Solutions
The companies have signed a cooperation agreement to this end. The large-scale systems set to be built will have an output of at least one megawatt.
CNPV Signs 100MW Module Supply Contract with Czech’s STAND-BY Europe
CNPV has entered into a long-term strategic partnership sales agreement with STAND-BY Europe, a well-known Czech Project development and distribution company.
Bulgaria to Become European Leader in Solar Energy
Sofia Bulgaria can pass the Czech Republic as Eastern Europe’s most lucrative solar energy market if the government removes legal pitfalls blocking investment in the country’s strong sun potential, experts say.
Drastic Cuts to Subsidies for Solar Energy Remain Contentious
Critics say government subsidies for solar technology are too high.
Cabinet Approves Solar Power Programme
India’s cabinet on Thursday approved its first solar power plan, pledging to boost output from near zero to 20 gigawatts (GW) by 2020 as part of its plan to fight global warming.
Billion Dollar Polysilicon Plant to be Built in Saudi Arabia
Bahrain-based First Energy Bank has announced construction of a major polysilicon production facility, the first of its kind and scale in the region, which is to be located in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Ontario Green Energy Act Could Create CAN $4.5B Market
The report on the Green Energy Act’s short and long-term impact is the outcome of an independent study conducted by Hatch Management Consulting over the last year.
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