Morning Brief: massive PacifiCorp renewable energy RFP excites developers, China’s energy storage boom falters
Also in the brief: First Solar will supply Geronimo Energy with 415 MW of Series 6 modules, a D.C. circuit court hears about a vital FERC energy storage order, the Midwest Solar Expo will not be postponed and more.
Q Cells takes top share of the US distributed solar module market
The company claimed 25.2% of the residential solar module market, while controlling 13.3% of the commercial and industrial market, according to WoodMac’s Q1 2020 U.S. PV Leaderboard. The achievement marks the first time Q Cells has topped both markets, as well as the first time any company has held a residential market share of 25% or greater.
Fitch rates 550 MW First Solar-installed Topaz project notes at ‘C’ despite superb performance
The credit rating of the Topaz project has been at “C” since 2019 because of the liability of having a bankrupt offtaker — PG&E. In the meantime, the ratings document affords some insight into mega-project finance and power generation performance.
First Solar signs PV-plus-storage PPAs with community choice aggregators
The First Solar-developed Rabbitbrush project will provide electricity for these two community choice aggregators for 15 years.
On the road to high-value recycling, storage is ahead of solar
Solar lags, at least in part, because the major components of panels — glass and silicon — while highly recyclable, are not as valuable as the lithium, cobalt and nickel in batteries.
Morning Brief: 215 MW Fresno County project using First Solar Series 6 panels starts construction
Also in the brief: High albedo ground cover for bifacial installations, Peak Clean Energy sells its solar development pipeline to hep global.
First Solar manufacturing unaffected by Covid-19 measures
The U.S. thin-film solar company says its production lines in Ohio, Malaysia and Vietnam have thus far been able to carry on operations. The company says measures have been taken to protect its workers at all of its premises.
Morning Brief: Longroad acquires 160 MW of First Solar projects, Glidepath Ventures sells 887.5 MW PV portfolio
Also in the brief: Pollinator-friendly solar projects in Virginia, register for the Energy Storage Grand Challenge and more.
First Solar announces surprise Q4 loss, considers sale of its development business
“First Solar, at its core, is a technology and module manufacturing company,” said Mark Widmar, CEO of First Solar. “Given the significant evolution of developing utility-scale PV projects in the United States, we believe now is an appropriate time to evaluate our options with respect to our U.S. project development business line.”
Jinko Solar, China dominate module shipment totals again in 2019
Jinko shipped 14.2 GW of modules in 2019, up 33% from the previous year, the high mark in another year dominated by Chinese manufacturers.
