Risen shines: Manufacturer starts work on 2.5 GW cell and module factory
The Chinese manufacturer is forging ahead with a new gigafactory despite a regulatory decision last year which halted its plans to raise a significant chunk of the costs by issuing convertible bonds. Risen expects to be back on the upswing when it confirms its first-half figures.
Tesla will rent you a solar array for $50/month
Elon Musk is trying just about everything to reimagine the solar business. But will this one work?
Hanergy Thin Film set to lose crucial hydropower project stakes – which could be auctioned off to Hanergy Mobile Energy
Troubled thin film manufacturer Thin Film will see a 51% controlling stake in a hugely profitable hydropower project auctioned off after a move by creditors. Hanergy Thin Film owner Li Hejun’s Hanergy Mobile Energy business in China says it will be among the bidders.
The weekend read: Unsteady progress of a potential MENA solar superpower
With a combination of scale, a growing population, outstanding irradiation, and available capital, solar PV should be a ‘no brainer’ for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. But early explorations of the technology have soured expectations, and progress has come in fits and starts.
Singyes finally publishes details of last year’s annus horribilis
The collapse in business for the solar EPC provider after last year’s 5/31 policy announcement by Beijing has left the company’s future depending on the progress of a Chinese state bail-out. Provided that is, the business does not end up being wound up by Deutsche Bank first.
Solargiga issues profit warning
The manufacturer has been unable to get its new mono ingot and wafer making facilities up to full speed and says the delay in confirming Beijing’s new solar policy this year also affected its bottom line.
All smiles as Canadian Solar quarterly figures PERC up
The module manufacturer and project developer struck a bullish tone as it announced further project sales, higher module selling prices, a transition to entirely PERC module output and ramped up production capacity.
Meyer Burger abandons plan to relocate operations to China
The Swiss equipment maker is instead preparing to commit its future to PV in its European heartland and will start with plans to help Norwegian module maker REC Solar embark on a gigawatt-scale production expansion.
Commercial solar at grid parity in China but a hard line is needed on soft costs
Deploying commercial and industrial PV in China without subsidy is already profitable in some areas, according to a new study, but prohibitive soft costs and cheap electricity are the main barriers for such installations in areas where grid parity remains out of reach.
Thinktank says India must prioritize a vertically integrated solar supply chain
To develop cost-competitive solar modules the nation must adopt a phased program and set up 15 GW of silicon-ingot-to-solar-module manufacturing capacity by 2024, according to The Energy and Resources Institute.
