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The Czech government has approved a renewable energy framework plan aimed at curbing the kind of subsidies that have led to a solar boom that ranks as Europe’s third largest, reports Reuters.

Research scientists from Boston University’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering have presented their findings on self-dusting solar panels to the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS).

The French Ministry of Economy, Industry and Employment has announced it will be cutting all feed-in-tariffs (FITs) for new photovoltaics (PV) installations by 12 percent from September 1. Small residential PV systems, with a maximum capacity of three megawatts (MW) or less is the only category not to be affected.

Solar microinverters and DC-DC power optimizers are forecast to generate more than USD$1.5 billion in revenues over the next five years, according to IMS Research. It says that shipments of the devices are forecast to grow over 100 percent per year and will total more than 16 million in the same period.

After years of speculation and waiting, it seems South Africa is set to receive its first renewable energy feed-in tariff (Refit) for solar PV by the end of the year. Representing one of the “biggest shifts in South Africa (SA) in the last few years”, Ryan Hammond director of Solairedirect Southern Africa tells pv magazine that following its successful implementation, he is confident it won’t be long before grid parity is reached. However, he said the proposed incentives could prove to be too attractive.

Scientists at the Zentrum fur Sonnenenergie-und Wasserstoff-Forschung Baden-Württemberg, Germany (Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research, ZSW) say they have achieved a new world record for copper, indium, gallium and diselenide (CIGS) solar cell efficiencies. At 20.3 percent, the Stuttgart researchers state that the new results should “significantly” improve the cost-effectiveness of CIGS thin film photovoltaics (PV) over the medium term.

The U.S. is expected to install around 1.9 gigawatts (GW) of photovoltaics (PV) annually by 2014, according to new research, which states that the country’s market is growing at fast pace, thanks to government support and decreasing installation costs.

A new law has been passed in Illinois, the U.S. whereby Commonwealth Edison and Ameren must begin purchasing solar energy – as part of the renewable energy portfolio requirement – by 2012 instead of 2015. Specifically, the power industry will now be required to purchase .5 percent of its power from solar sources by June 1, 2012; 1.5 percent by June 1, 2013; 3 percent by June 1, 2014; and 6 percent by June 1, 2015, and each year thereafter.

The Ontario Power Authority (OPA) has announced that following a 30-day consultation period, it has finalized the price for the new microFIT ground-mounted solar price category at 64.2 Canadian cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh).??

Solar inverter shipments reached 4.9 gigawatts (GW) in the second quarter of this year (Q2), says IMS Research, growing by 284 percent. More than half of these shipments were for installations in Germany, which grew by 388 percent in Q2 says the company. Consequently, total shipments hit more than eight GW for the first six months of the year – a three-fold increase over the same period last year.