Day4 Energy has signed a deal with Austrian solar module manufactuer PV Products to provide the equipment and technology to upgrade its 30MW production facility for the manufacture of solar panels featuring Day4 DNA crystalline-silicon cells. The upgrade of PVP's automated 30MW production facility to Day4 technology is scheduled to begin immediately, with production anticipated to start in early September, the companies said.
Daniel Matloff has joined 1366 Technologies as its new CFO and is charged for strengthening the company’s financial strategy and managing all finance and accounting transactions as it prepares to commercially-scale its direct wafer technology. Matloff comes to 1366 from Hittite Microwave where he was the corporate controller and previously held various positions at Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Thermo Fisher Scientific and PricewaterhouseCoopers. He is a CPA and graduated from Bentley University.
US Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has greenlighted the Desert Sunlight Solar Farm, a 550MW (AC) solar power project to be developed, built, and operated by First Solar on 4100 acres of public lands in the California desert outside Joshua Tree National Park. Construction on the site could begin within days.
Saint-Gobain disclosed its plans to acquire the Solar Gard Specialty Films unit from Bekaert, which will be housed under Saint-Gobain’s Performance Plastics division. The agreement, which did not expose the price of the purchase, includes production facilities in San Diego, California, Zulte, Belgium and Suzhou, China, as well as operations under development in China and all global sales and service centers.
Under Upsolar’s new acceptance into the PowerWrap Systems Performance Guarantee Program from PowerGuard Specialty Insurance Services, developers using Upsolar modules will be able to benefit from discounted rates on PowerWrap’s insurance policy guarantee for the output of the entire solar project system.
LDK Solar and Datang International Power Generation are planning to build a 20MW solar power plant in Qinghai, China. Work on the first 10MW installation phase will begin later this month, with the entire project scheduled to be completed by the end of September. LDK will carry out engineering, procurement and construction on the site.
Enel Green Power commissioned three new solar power plants in Italy, the largest of which is the 9MW Adrano plant in the Catania, Sicily province. The project sits on the same site that the company installed the first concentrated solar power plant in 1981. Installation was additionally completed on a 4.8MW plant in San Gillio and a 500kW plant in Sesto Campano. Together the three plants hold an installed capacity of 14.3MW and will generate 21,000,000kWh of electricity per year.
Steve Iyer will be joining the executive team of 8minutenergy Renewables as its new vice president of development. With 23 years of experience in developing large-scale power generation projects throughout North America, Europe and Asia, Iyer will focus on end-to-end project development for originated projects. Additionally, he will oversee that 8minutenergy’s developed projects undergo a seamless transition to the company’s partners. Iyer will also be tasked to assist with sourcing from Asia and risk identification and management.
Jonas & Redmann is expanding its presence in Asia by setting up a subsidiary in Suzhou, China. From August 1, Jonas & Redmann (Suzhou) will be responsible for all of the company’s sales and customer service activities in China.
Activ Solar has completed the first two phases of its record-breaking 80MW PV project in Ukraine. When all four stages are completed, the power station, located on 160 acres of land in Ohotnikovo, will be the fourth largest development in the world.