Max Hall
Shipping problems for First Solar but production line expansion is under way
The U.S. manufacturer has started building its third Ohio production base and has also begun ordering equipment to kit out its first factory in India.
SunPower to decide fate of commercial-industrial solar business this year
A quarterly update top-loaded with promising business growth in the company’s residential segment revealed commercial and industrial operations supplied an $8 million loss to the three-month figures, with supply chain issues and project timetables blamed.
Solar on new-build homes has significantly shorter payback period
A report by BloombergNEF and Schneider Electric makes the case for governments to unlock huge rooftop solar potential, citing California’s solar mandate as a shining example.
Record half for clean energy finance, led by solar
A renewables investment report from BloombergNEF noted record growth for solar projects as wind power investment eased. A 1.8% yoy rate of growth was cause for concern, however.
Daqo CEO predicts polysilicon price will keep on rising
Daqo expects another 180-220,000 metric tons of poly production lines to appear next year, enough to supply 240-250 GW of solar modules and 200-210 GW of generation capacity.
China made 14 GW of solar modules in June – and more than 80 GW in six months
The nation produced 57% more solar cells in the first half of this year than in the same period a year earlier.
Europe had just 650 MW of solar cell manufacturing capacity at the end of 2020
The Photovoltaics Report published by Fraunhofer ISE said that Europe had just 1.25 GW of solar wafer production capacity at the end of 2020.
China’s cheap electricity crowds out foreign polysilicon
Imports from South Korea and the U.S. dwindled, year-on-year, ensuring Germany’s Wacker and the Malysian unit of Korean company OCI will supply the bulk of the world’s non-Chinese solar polysilicon this year.
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.
Panasonic says it will exit solar manufacturing
The Japanese brand plans to shutter its Malaysian factory, liquidate its Panasonic Solar Energy Malaysia subsidiary, and lay off staff by March 2022.
