Kristen Ardani of the National Renewable Energy Labs studies soft costs in US PV markets, and she recently joined us for a webinar to present her findings, in advance of a full report (to come in a few weeks). A pdf of the presentation is here (pdf) or watch the full recording in all its glory. (more…)

General Electric has halted construction of what would have been the largest solar factory in the U.S. due to the falling price of photovoltaic modules globally and says it will focus instead on developing the next generation of cadmium-telluride thin-film technologies for the developers of solar plants. (more…)

The scope of solar power application is enormous and a new portable solution has caught our attention.

The product of the imagination and ingenuity of an engineer called Mark Turczynski from Western Illinois, Powershed is a portable shed with solar panels fixed to the top so that it can be used in the (more…)

A new record has been set by the high concentration photovoltaic (HCPV) solar module industry. A module made by Semprius, a company in which Siemens invested as a strategic partner in June 2011, reached 33.9 percent, breaking the previous record of 32 per cent. The module was tested by the Instituto de Energía Solar at the Universidad (more…)

Gehrlicher Solar, a German solar energy company that entered the U.S. market in late 2010, has already completed two systems and has six more under construction. The company is headquartered in Springfield, NJ.

“The expansion into the U.S. market has been an (more…)

International fuel designer and manufacturer, Quantum Technologies, recently signed a memorandum of understanding with German solar company, Asola, to establish a manufacturing plant in Ontario.  The joint venture have the two companies team up with Canadian partner, Evergreen Power Ltd, to produce and distribute high quality solar modules (more…)

Since 2007, the French photovoltaic market has been booming, with close to 500 megawatts of installed capacity expected this year, up from a mere 40 megawatts three years ago.

Most of this growth first stemmed from residential installations that benefited from high feed-in-tariffs for producers and substantial tax rebates for households. Since last year larger installations have also been skyrocketing.

On September 14, the French government released a draft regulation detailing the upcoming changes regarding photovoltaic electricity feed-in-tariffs in France. This draft is pending approval from the Conseil Supérieur de l’Energie (Energy Supreme Council) until late September.

(more…)