Rise & Shine: November 3, 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
Solar’s Picture Brightening with Power-Purchase Deals
PPAs are really the motor behind making solar projects happen in America. Welczeck figures 80 percent of the market for big systems – 800 kilowatts or more – are financed this way.
Mountain View Considers Cutting Commercial Solar Fees by 75%
After a recent survey found Mountain View was charging businesses much more for solar permits than other Bay Area municipalities, the city is poised to cut its fees by 75 percent.
NATIONAL NEWS
Sanyo Electric Opens New Solar Panel Plant in Salem
Black solar cells between two panes of glass cover the front walkway. And on a dim Oregon morning, the solar panels can collect sunshine from both sides, making them more efficient — and more expensive — than other brands.
Why Solar Power Needs a Manufacturing Revolution, Not Just New Materials
Inventing disruptive manufacturing innovations is every bit as hard as inventing new materials. Solar power, if it’s going to compete on cost with coal and other fossil fuels, needs both.
Solar Calculator Add-on for the Web Released
SolarInsure, a green energy insurance brokerage in Southern California, has created a comprehensive solar calculator that allows industry specialists and customers the ability to calculate the cost of going solar in a matter of minutes.
UTILITY INDUSTRY & REGULATORY NEWS
Utilities Slash Solar Incentive Programs
Solar panels may be getting cheaper, but rebates are also being slashed.
MARKETS & MARKET RESEARCH
Will Solar Crash the Smart Grid?
Utilities don’t have much time to revamp their grids to accommodate the growing popularity of rooftop solar. Here are some technologies that could help.
What Solar Shakeout? And China Firms Say There’s Room for All
When California’s SunPower and China’s Suntech strode onstage at an industry conference last week, onlookers braced themselves for a bit of sabre-rattling, or at least an animated debate about two global superpowers’ role in solar energy.
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Federal Officials Debate Placement of Power Grid
Democratic congressional leaders and the Obama administration indicated Monday that they will push for greater federal authority to locate electric transmission lines, saying the current power grid stands in the way of developing alternative energy sources.
Senate Committee Tackles Kerry-Boxer Climate Bill
The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) held three marathon hearings this week, featuring more than 50 witnesses discussing the revised draft of the climate legislation introduced by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-Mass.) and EPW Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.).
FINANCIAL NEWS & MARKETS
GT Solar Gives Early 2Q Profit Look, Changes CEO
The maker of equipment and technology for the solar power industry said it expects to earn $9 million to $10 million, or 6 to 7 cents per share, for the quarter that ended Sept. 26. It expects revenue between $100 million to $105 million.
Entech Solar to Host Third Quarter Conference Call on Nov. 9, 2009
Entech Solar will host a conference call at 10:00 a.m. Eastern on November 9, 2009 for the third quarter ended September 30, 2009.
TECHNOLOGY
Taking a Tip from Floor Tiles: Solarmation Makes Concentrating Solar More Modular
The technology could cut the total cost per kilowatt-hour of solar electricity in half, Caferro said.
Nanostructures Produce Hidden Photovoltaic Cells
By growing zinc oxide nanostructures on optical fibres coated with dye sensitised solar cell materials, researchers have developed a new type of 3D photovoltaic system.
Solar Power When the Sun Goes Down?
A Santa Monica, Calif., company called SolarReserve has taken a step to making that a reality, filing an application with California regulators to build a 150-megawatt solar farm that will store seven hours’ worth of the sun’s energy in the form of molten salt.
DuPont, Silicon Energy Make Glass-Glass c-Si Modules
DuPont Photovoltaic Solutions and Silicon Energy say they have made the world’s first glass-glass polycrystalline silicon (c-Si) PV modules, using a new ionomer-based encapsulant instead of EVA polymer.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Israeli Solar Gets its Moment in the Sun
Deals for companies by GE and Siemens give Israel’s solar technology new credibility and further its goal to become a leader in renewable energy.
TerniEnergia Acquires Capital Energy srl
The acquisition is aimed at developing 6 new photovoltaic plants of industrial size, whose total power amounts to 6 MWp, that are in an advanced phase as far as authorizations are concerned.
AT&M and Odersun AG to Form Thin Film Joint Venture
As recent renewable energy support schemes drive significant growth in the photovoltaic sector in China, both companies now join forces to address the fast-growing market by forming this joint venture.
Germany: Q-Cells Terminates Agreement with LDK Solar
The original agreement specified the supply of solar wafers on the basis of a contractually fixed amount of silicon totalling 43,000 tonnes for the years from 2009 to 2018, with wafer supplies on the basis of approximately 1,000 tonnes of silicon relating to 2009.
Oerlikon Solar Appoints Interim Chief Executive Officer
Jeannine Sargent, who took over responsibility for the Oerlikon Solar business in 2007, is leaving the company.
Germany’s Mage Solar Opens U.S. Plant
Mage Solar GMBH, part of the globally operating Mage Group, announced at Solar Power International last week that it plans to construct a production site for Mage Powertec modules in the US.
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