Berkley Labs will lead DOE effort to find breakthrough materials for solar panels
Under the direction of Anubhav Jain of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, five DOE labs will work to accelerate the development and development of innovative materials for PV modules.
ITRPV: PERC, n-type mono and copper wire interconnection to gain ground (with charts)
VDMA’s guide to technology trends in the PV industry expects rapid change in the cell and module space.
From the editor: Price collapse
I have focused in recent weeks on political issues at the state and national level for my editorials. However, not all of the solar industry’s concerns have to do with politics. At least not directly.
Tesla breaks into the black in Q3 results
The EV and battery maker maintains that its battery gigafactory will be ready to support Model 3 rollout in H2 2017, three weeks before a shareholder vote on the acquisition of SolarCity.
Tesla gigafactory to combine Silevo, Panasonic HIT solar technologies
Panasonic will operate the Buffalo “gigafactory”, and sell modules to Tesla/SolarCity.
SolarWorld to miss 2016 forecasts
The German PV manufacturer announced that although it is set to achieve its shipment forecast for 2016, it is unlikely to meet its revenue and operating income forecasts for the year, and has already begun to point the finger at Chinese companies.
Stunning price falls could spark another gold rush for U.S. solar market
A Deutsche Bank report has predicted “sharp declines” in U.S. solar module and inverter prices that it says could drive payback periods down to less than five years and spark a “final ‘gold rush’” in the American residential, commercial and industrial markets, starting in 2017.
Trina Solar breaks multicrystalline silicon solar module efficiency record
The Chinese PV manufacturing heavyweight achieved an aperture efficiency record of 19.86%, which is up a significant 0.7% from the previous record of 19.14%, as the trend in the industry is for continuing efficiency improvements across all solar cells and modules.
Panasonic to take over PV cell, module production at SolarCity gigafactory in Buffalo
The two firms have signed a non-binding letter of intent to collaborate on the production of solar modules and cells at Tesla’s Buffalo facility, and to source Panasonic cells. The deal rests on completion of Tesla’s SolarCity acquisition.
Mercom: Partial recovery in solar investment during Q3 (with charts)
Mercom Capital’s Q3 report shows a significant increase in investment levels from last quarter, but funding is still down across the board compared to a year ago.
