Manufacturing

EMP/solar flare-hardened gear, storage-behind-the-PV-module and Generac made appearances at the Intersolar show in Southern California last week.

It depends. We attempt to do the math. Maybe it doesn’t matter.

Illegally re-badged panels were sold to Senegal, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Morocco, Mauritania, Turkey and Syria. Italian authorities found 60 tons of panels.

In part 2 of our interview, the SunPower brain trust talks about scaling-up its high-efficiency PV technology in a way that it has not been able to do in the past — now that it has cash and a definitive focus.

In sunny San Diego for Intersolar 2020, we’re seeing a new idea on tracking rooftop solar modules, diodes moving to the cell level, two types of building integrated solar products, and some solar hot water.

Amnesty International has denounced cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo for human rights violations and the use of child labor since 2016. This has led LG Chem and other companies to insist on standards for battery cell suppliers.

The efficiency of the cell, made with a standard M2 wafer, was raised 0.7% by using an improved busbar-free screen printing metallization based on heterojunction processes developed with manufacturing equipment provided by Swiss specialist Meyer Burger.

“It’s what we’ve talked about for many years — it makes sense to produce energy where you use it. And it makes sense that it would be intelligent and easily optimized. The new SunPower will focus exclusively on accomplishing that.”

“Hanergy…is not above the rule of law, and this is not China. In abruptly closing the Alta plant, defendants violated the federal and California WARN Acts, which require at least 60 days written notice of termination where a plant is shut down and/or mass layoffs occur.”

The internet’s favorite energy company installed 530 megawatt-hours of battery storage in Q4, beating out the previous record, set last quarter, as well as showing continued improvement in solar installations.