The China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group (CECEP) has announced plans to build a five megawatt (MW) utility-scale PV power plant in Inner Mongolia using silicon-based thin film solar modules.

Over a billion euros must “urgently” be invested into research and development (R&D) for the photovoltaics (PV) industry, says the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA), so that it can compete with traditional power generation.

The number of U.S. solar manufacturing plants is expected to “skyrocket” within the next few years. Cell capacity is also predicted to reach four gigawatts (GWs) by the end of 2012.

Façades with integrated photovoltaics (PV) systems could be cheaper than traditional construction materials, according to the first Bodensee Symposium on Architecture and Solar Technology, which took place in Konstanz, Germany.

SEMI PV Group has announced that the first annual North American Fab Managers Forum will be held at Intersolar North America 2010 in San Francisco, California on July 12.

A U.S. industry consortium is investigating the viability of concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) technology for terrestrial power generation in Hawaii, the U.S.

The Panasonic Group has announced its plans to launch its HIT(R) 215 Series household solar power generation systems on July 1, thus highlighting the company’s aim for a “full-scale entry” into the solar cell business.

More than 80 applications for solar and wind power plants have been submitted by developers in the state of Arizona, which are valued at tens of billions of dollars, reports The Arizona Republic.

Astronergy, also known as Chint Solar, has announced that reinsurance company Munich Re will be covering its crystalline silicon and thin film photovoltaic (PV) modules.