Creating an alternative PV supply chain in the US is no cakewalk
The US Solar Energy Industry Association in late 2020 launched a campaign against forced labor and said it was “strongly encouraging” member companies to adjust their supply chains by June. Here is what will likely happen.
GE chooses Australia to launch new line of solar inverters
Just as Australia thought its pioneering days were over, it has become the first country in the world to sell General Electric’s new solar inverters.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: Thinner wafers, rising profits and new solar ambitions for Yunnan Province
Goodwe and Irico have both announced rising revenue and profits for the fiscal year 2020. Zhonghuan Semiconductor intends to produce thinner wafers to respond to increasing polyisilicon prices. The southwestern province of Yunnan wants to add another 15 GW of clean energy to its power generation mix.
Enphase to issue $1bn senior notes
The inverter business will use some of the proceeds to buy back notes due to mature in 2024 and 2025.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: Another massive glass order and a broken partnership
Jinko Solar secured another 338 million square meters of PV glass from Flat Glass. Tongwei and Trina Solar have left the monocrystalline wafer production joint venture they set up with Longi.
Solaredge records pandemic progress despite tough final quarter
Full-year revenues nudged up despite tough comparisons with the end of 2019 for the final quarter of last year. The inverter maker expects to log revenues of $385-405 million in the current three-month window.
SolarEdge to supply electric powertrain units, batteries for Fiat EV
SolarEdge e-Mobility will supply Fiat with full electrical powertrain units and batteries for the automaker’s E-Ducato light commercial vehicle.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: Tongwei and Jinko team up, as NEA sets new 2030 targets
China’s National Energy Administration expects renewables to represent 40% of the nation’s energy consumption by 2030, and proposed new targets for local and regional government authorities. On the manufacturing side, Tongwei and JinkoSolar announced plans to deepen their strategic cooperation, and Huadian Group has launched its first tender this year for 7GW each of modules and inverters.
Enphase closes 2020 with a strong Q4
After a Covid-19-stunted Q2, the company reported improved revenues for a second straight quarter, and closed 2020 with revenues north of $770 million.
Brazil’s PV module demand reached almost 5 GW in 2020
According to a recent report from Brazilian consultancy Greener, the country imported 4.76 GW last year. Domestic PV module makers had a 3.8% market share with around 190 MW in shipped modules. The analyst also revealed that prices for distributed generation PV systems rose by 20% in 2020.
