Washington

Scientists in the United States have developed a carbon nanotube method of fabricating a lithium-ion battery with a silicon anode. The device reportedly demonstrated better than 87% capacity retention after 1,500 cycles. The developers say their discovery overcomes many of the obstacles to the use of silicon as an anode and could open up the use of other materials for electrodes in lithium-ion devices.

Finnish lender Nordea has called in a NOK150 million indemnity loan thought to have been taken out by REC Silicon ASA as a result of the bankruptcy of its Norwegian wafer manufacturing arm seven years ago.

A technique based on optical imaging has been used by an international research team to illuminate strains in lead halide perovskite solar cells without harming them. The scientists claim the approach helped them discover misorientation between microscopic perovskite crystals was the main cause of the strains.

The Norwegian polysilicon and silane gas producer has announced it will listen to offers for its production facility in Butte Montana after mothballing its other manufacturing operation – at Moses Lake, Washington – in the summer.

The Norwegian polysilicon supplier – which has most of its manufacturing operations on U.S. soil – cannot give any estimate on when its solar material production lines will return, and has been left entirely dependent on the semiconductor products made by its Montana facility.

The Norwegian manufacturer has delayed full shutdown of its U.S. polysilicon operation until mid July as President Trump and his Chinese counterpart are scheduled to hold talks in Osaka in two weeks’ time.

Stock in the polysilicon manufacturer appeared to be recovering in early trading on the Oslo exchange this morning after it cancelled plans for a private placement of as many as 50 million shares.

The campaign of Democratic presidential contender Jay Inslee says the Democratic Party has also told the governor of Washington state if he participates in anyone else’s climate change debate he will be barred from future hustings.

With the deadline set by the Trump administration for avoiding a rise in further penalties on Chinese imports having passed without resolution last night, the Ministry of Commerce in Beijing reportedly warned of countermeasures, a threat which will raise fears among members of the Norwegian firm’s U.S. workforce.

The company has reported declining revenues and increasing losses in its first-quarter update. A plan to reduce polysilicon production will begin in a week’s time and if access to the Chinese market is not restored, a complete shutdown could be in place by the end of June.