Decision time for the Korean PV industry
The Korean photovoltaics industry is at a crossroads and the next two years will be pivotal for the country in terms of its position in the global solar market. Upcoming elections hold some promise for Korea, if the United New Democratic Party gains power. However, with capacity expansions on hold, and a small domestic installation market, it could quickly be pushed under by other Asian regions, like China. In other news, the industry is said to be shifting its sales focus from the west to the east.
JinkoSolar expands to Singapore
JinkoSolar has announced the opening of its new office in Singapore, which will serve as the company’s regional headquarters.
Grid parity, but at what cost?
The third annual PV Power Plants conference in Vienna continued today with questions being raised about the hidden cost of falling module prices. Specifically, it was asked what kind of R&D will be able to be undertaken by photovoltaic module manufacturers in a price war?
Cell equipment purchases to hit 35 GW by 2017
Yole Développement has predicted that about 35 gigawatts (GW) of new solar cell manufacturing equipment will be purchased by 2017.
UK: RWE & E.ON exit from Horizon nuclear project
Utilities giants RWE and E.ON have decided to drop their plans to develop new nuclear power plants in the United Kingdom. The companies had previously planned on investing billions into these projects.
Germany: Drastic cuts will be made
After weeks of ping-pong energy politics, the German parliament has approved the drastic cuts in subsidies for solar installations. This has been apparently undertaken to curb the pace of solar development in the country.
Germany: Micro smart grid concluded in Berlin
Schneider Electric has collaborated with the Innovation Center for Mobility and Social Change (InnoZ) to complete a micro smart grid at the EUREF-Campus in Germany’s capital city.
Emerging markets in Europes south and east
In the week that the changes to Germanys feed in tariffs (FITs) were passed into law, the third-annual PV Power Plants EU conference in Vienna has heard that there is potential in Germanys near neighbors.
WTO hearing: Canada defends its FITs
The Canadian province of Ontario had its say this week in Geneva at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) hearing.
Japan: Solar Frontier and Japan Asia Group collaborate
Solar Frontier and Japan Asia Group (JAG) have signed a solar energy project promotion memorandum of understanding (MOU) to accelerate photovoltaic projects in Japan with anticipation of a new feed-in tariff.
