Markets

In a positive announcement, the French government has said a feed-in tariff (FIT) bonus of 10% will apply to photovoltaic rooftop systems, which have been manufactured in Europe. Furthermore, tariffs for eligible systems will be boosted by 5%.

On the back of increased trade tensions, including the AD and CVD debates currently raging in the U.S. and Europe, a number of leading industry players have joined forces to call for the establishment of free trade regulations for the cleantech industry.

The latest figures from IMS Research indicate that China will see newly installed photovoltaic capacity reach 5 GW by the end of 2012. While the market has seen a slow start, it predicts an enormous end of year surge.

As part of its ongoing reorganization process, centrotherm photovoltaics AG has announced a number of management and supervisory board changes. Of particular note, Chief Restructuring Officer (CRO), Jan von Schuckmann will become the new CEO and CTO, Peter Fath will step down from the management board.

By 2030, photovoltaics will be a mainstay of the European electricity market. Against a backdrop of falling prices, the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) anticipates a photovoltaics market share of 15 to 25%. In its latest report, “Connecting the Sun”, EPIA has outlined several scenarios to demonstrate how the European power supply system can be adapted to the rapidly increasing supply of solar. pv magazine spoke with Secretary General, Reinhold Buttgereit about the new findings.

A 10 MW photovoltaic power plant has begun feeding electricity into the grid, near the city of Geraldton in Western Australia (WA). While not on the scale of solar parks under construction in the U.S. or already in place in Europe, the power plant is the first of its kind to be completed in Australia.

Aleo solar AG has announced it will not extend its temporary worker contracts in a bid to reduce inventory. It is expected that production will again be ramped up early next year.

Applied Materials Inc. has announced it will cut between 900 and 1,300 jobs in a bid to realign its global workforce.

According to the latest figures, venture capital (VC) funding in the solar industry has plummeted in Q3 2012, leading it to become the first sub-$100 million quarter since 2008 for the industry. On a positive note, solar leasing is said to be strong.

Spanish company Gestamp Solar has partnered with Kankyo-Keiei for the development of solar projects in Japan, with a focus on rooftop installations. The projects are to be undertaken over a three year period.