SMA Solar Technology issues a rather dire outlook for 2013, noting that because of the large subsidy cuts for PV, and the expected European downturn because of the cuts, the company’s managing board anticipates sales to drop to somewhere between €0.9 billion and €1.3 billion in 2013.
Power-One advised that it will be taking its partnership with Cologne-based wholesaler Energiebau Solarstromsysteme to international markets. Energiebau will offer Power-One’s Aurora Uno and Trio inverters, as well as the Aurora Assure Plus service, to a more comprehensive network of installers in Germany. The offerings will be available immediately.
Allied Building Products, distributor of roofing materials, is now offering Siemens microinverters to solar contractors in the US, with stocking locations in Hawaii and New Jersey.
A new initiative is being launched by micro-inverter pioneer, Enphase Energy to boost the use of its technology in commercial PV projects at SPI 2012. The new program includes cash rewards for installers undertaking commercial-scale PV projects.
IBC Solar announced that it has added Sungrow Power Supply’s PV inverters to its porftfolio. IBC Solar expects for the collaboration to allow it to offer its domestic and international clients a wider product range of PV inverter products that better meet their needs.
Thirty-one of Power-One’s Aurora PVI-12.5-Tl-FS inverters have been delivered for use at a new PV test facility at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in the Netherlands. The 400kW installation was provided by Solartechno, in cooperation with The Grounds, a platform for innovative applications for sustainable airports.
Eltek announced that Underwriters Laboratories (UL) has given the company’s THEIA HE-t grid tie solar inverters the highest ratings in its product safety certification. The UL certification qualifies them for sale in the North American market, with Eltek advising that the product line is available immediately.
Chinese inverter manufacturer GoodWe Solar Inverter has proposed plans to rebuild its logistics system in the UK, Ireland and other countries, yet to be specified, in cooperation with DSV, an international logistics company. The partnership involves logistics service, bonded warehouse and product delivery in the UK and Ireland.
Independent, bank-approved engineering firm BEW recently gave Tigo Energy a positive bankability report, which casts Tigo Energy’s PV optimizer as suitable for deployment in commercial and utility-scale bank-owned solar systems.
The latest global PV inverter market report from IMS Research paints a mixed business environment for the sector that has more than 150 active suppliers. Although having defended reasonably well against price declines, compared to the rest of the supply chain, the market research firm is forecasting inverter sector revenues to only increase by 3% in 2012, while shipments increased nearly 25%.
