Apple plans to sell excess electricity generated by solar panels on the roof of its new Cupertino, California HQ in efforts to trade on the energy market.
China-based integrated PV manufacturer Hareon Solar has recently signed an MOU with partners to build and operate a 160MW cell and module plant in Morocco with a total investment of around US$114 million.
The North American single-axis tracker market has increased by over 100%, year-over-year, to reach US$1.2 billion in 2015, and is forecasted to grow 20% to US$1.4 billion this year – according to new analysis by IHS.
Photovoltaik-Institut Berlin (PI Berlin) now has the capability to troubleshoot faults in PV power plants using a precision LED solar simulator. This device is the first of its kind to allow laboratory standard solar module power measurements to be taken in the field without the need to dismantle modules.
Leading PV manufacturing equipment supplier, Meyer Burger has secured a CHF 22 million (US$22.5 million) order from Russia-based integrated solar module manufacturer to convert to heterojunction (HJ) and bifacial cell production and ‘SmartWire’ module assembly.
Hanwha Q CELLS is launching a 72 cell solar module, the ‘Q.PLUS L-G4.2,’ which is specifically optimized for large scale deployment with power classes of up to 340 watts and is UL and IEC 1500V certified. The utility-scale module incorporates Hanwha Q CELLS' proprietary Q.ANTUM technology based on the rear side passivation of solar cells and utilizes additional features to optimize the efficiency and performance of the PV cells to reduce the LCOE (Levelized Cost of Electricity) for the US market.
Monocrystalline cell and module manufacturer LERRI Photovoltaic Technology (LERRI Solar), a subsidiary of major monocrystalline wafer producer Longi Silicon Materials has signed a strategic technology partnership with materials giant, 3M.
Post SNEC 2016 exhibition reports are starting to raise concerns over a looming collapse in downstream solar PV demand in China in the second half of the year that could lead to wider implications of both solar cell and module overcapacity and subsequent ASP declines hitting the global solar industry.
PV Tech’s preliminary analysis of global PV manufacturing capacity expansion announcements in April, 2016, revealed nearly 9GW of planned future expansions of thin-film modules, solar cells and module assembly production, up from over 7.3GW in the previous month and the third consecutive monthly increase.
Solar Frontier has expanded its portfolio of CIS (Copper, Indium selenium) thin-film module-based ‘PowerSets’ for residential rooftops, introducing the new ‘PowerSet Mini’ and ‘PowerSet Maxi’ to supplement its ‘PowerSet Turbo’ product offering. By expanding its PowerSet product line, the company is addressing growing demand for standardised PV systems that better suit various roof and system sizes.
