Solar Energy
Articles related to Solar Energy
August 19, 2010
Ontario had ample opportunity to learn from past experience and its Renewable Energy Subsidy Policy is on the whole quite good.However one part of the FIT program which gave a very generous 80.2c/KwH to micro installations of solar projects under 10 KW was faulty.It led to 160 MW of project applications which were ground mounted with very high production as they used trackers.There was no discrimination between roof and ground mounted micro installations leading to this problem.Note its not possible to install trackers on roofs which can increase the energy by 30-35%.The large number of applications were not factored in by the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) which proposed to retroactively cut those tariffs by 27% for ground plants.
August 18, 2010
Now Blackstone has decided to gamble on India's Power Deficit Story by investing $300 million for an undisclosed stake in the company.With investment plans of $6.5 billion and parent company sinking under loads of debt,Moser Baer Projects desperately needed equity which has been provided by Blackstone.Its previous track record in Solar and Optical Media does not inspire a lot of confidence.But India's 8-9% Growth Rate is like a Rising Tide which will lift all sorts of Boats.Blackstone is perhaps gambling more on that rather than on Moser Baer.
August 18, 2010
TSMC has made a smart entry into the Solar Energy space through investments into CIGs technology.Beside investing in a solar fab in Taiwan using Technology from […]
August 17, 2010
The 10.8c/KwH Tariff will be almost 35% lower than the earlier project awarded in the Ningxia province.For comparison 10.8c/KwH is generally given to Wind Energy which has considerably lesser costs than Solar Energy.Parts of USA and Europe have electricity tariffs of greater than 20c/KwH at present.Such low tariffs may not be useful as they might lead to project delays if not cancellations.
August 16, 2010
A Number of new Solar Companies have followed Motech into this industry and are currently challenging it for Pole Position.Gintech,Neo Solar,DelSolar are some of biggest Solar Cell Producers in the world now gaining from the worldwide boom in solar demand in 2010.These companies have reported sold out capacities in 2010 and strong profits benefiting from the generous European subsidies for Green Energy.However these companies are vulnerable to demand fluctuations as they lack the vertical integration capabilities of mainland Chinese companies like Trina and Yingle
August 16, 2010
China has come under a lot of criticism recently from conglomerates like GE and Siemens over discrimination being practised against non-Chinese companies.Massive implicit and explicit subsidies are bolstering Chinese companies against the Western ones as the government pushes the creation of National Champions in Green Technology.Through clever use of regulations and subsidies,Chinese companies are even challenging Western and Japanese companies in their own turf.
August 15, 2010
Sikhism’s most Holy Shrine the Golden Temple situated in Amritsar,Punjab will be now a part of the Green Energy Movement.The Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) has […]
August 12, 2010
USA losing Green Jobs as Solar Companies shut US plants and Outsource Production to Mexico and China
This trend goes contrary to what US administration is advertising as the creation of a large number of Green Jobs due to the Stimulus.The Senate has given up on the Climate and Energy Bill while EPA's regulation of carbon emissions is also uncertain.Big investors are shunning the USA while putting money into Green Manufacturing and Investments as China takes over the Global Green Energy Leadership .
August 12, 2010
The competition has been extremely high for these projects leading to zero to negative returns for investors.This is due to a) low electricity rates on offer b) Aggressive bidding leading to even lower rates.This new phase of projects seems to be repeat of the old program.Giant state utilities can easily bid to win even if they lose money in the process.
August 5, 2010
Thailand has proposed to generate 20% of its electricity from Renewable Energy by 2022 and has implemented an "adder" electricity tariff for Green Energy plants.This "adder" tariff is similar to the Feed in Tariff (FIT) schemes prevalent in other parts of the world which gives a higher electricity payment to Renewable Energy Power Generators.Under this policy Thailand is set to give the "adder" tariff for 500 MW of plants till 2020 after which the tariff might be reduced
August 5, 2010
United Kingdom has been a laggard in climate change and global warming issues especially compared to its European neighbours.While countries like Italy,Germany and Spain have installed […]
August 4, 2010
Taiwan and South Korean Companies have been making massive investments in the Solar Energy Space through both greenfield and brownfield expansion.South Korean Hanhwa has used the […]
August 3, 2010
South Korean Conglomerate Hanwha subsidiary Hanwha Chemicals has taken a controlling 49.99% stake buying 36 million shares fro m Solarfun at $10.72 (4.6% premium) and the complete shareholding of promoters Good Energies (controls German Q-Cells as well ) and Chairman Mr. Yonghua Lu .Solarfun is the 4th largest Chinese company which has been executing well on a vertical integration strategy.
August 3, 2010
a-Si technology has much lower efficiency in the range of 7-9% compared to the mainstream crystalline solar technology.a-Si cost advantages over the c-Si technology has also disappeared with falling polysilicon costs.This makes a-Si only feasible for utility sized plants as a-Si's larger area requirements makes unsuitable for residental and commercial segments.The IPP JV is a good move as it will provide captive demand for Sharp's a-Si modules.
August 2, 2010
Spain has been in the media spotlight for its proposed retroactive solar subsidy cuts which were strongly opposed by the Solar Industry Association in Spain.These Feed […]
July 29, 2010
SMC seems to have made a strategic call to focus on the thin film Cadmium Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGs) Technology instead of the mainstream crystalline silicon (c-Si) technology.Note CIGs technology is the most promising thin film technology with yields much higher than the other technologies like Cadmium Tellurium (CdTe) used by First Solar and amorphous Silicon (a-Si) which was used by AMAT's Subfab division.
July 28, 2010
According to the German Federal Agency,Germany added 1.7 GW of Solar Energy in the month of June.This bring the cumulative installed capacity for 2010 to 3.4 GW capacity compared to the 3.8 GW capacity installed in the entire 2009.The reduction in Feed in Tariffs in July 2010 has propelled the developers to finish all the projects by June 30 in order to qualify for the much higher electricity rates.
July 21, 2010
Applied Materials has finally shut down its SunFab Thin Film division after continuous losses in the last couple of years.The Solar Thin Film Technology has seen […]
July 20, 2010
ABB, the European Giant which was formed by merger of Asea and Brown Boveri in 1989 is increasing its lead in the Smart Grid Industry.The company […]
July 18, 2010
Chinese Green Companies are being forced to look at overseas market for Profits as their Domestic Market is being ravaged by fierce price wars.Wind,Solar and even […]
July 17, 2010
India’s Western state of Gujarat is one of the most developed regions in the country and has shown tremendous economic growth over the past decade.The state […]
July 14, 2010
General Electric or GE as it is popularly known is one of the biggest players in the Green Industry globally.It generated $18 billion in Ecomagination revenues […]
July 14, 2010
LG and Samsung have already committed themselves to billion dollar investments into crystalline solar manufacturing.Not to be left behind South Korea’s Hyundai Industries which is known […]
July 12, 2010
Italian Solar Feed in Tariff Cuts to be More Moderate than Market Expectations The German government allowed a face saving gesture to the Upper House by […]
July 12, 2010
German Feed in Tariffs Cut Passes with Minor Change The German Solar Feed in Tariff Cut was finally passed after byzantine twists and turns over a […]
July 6, 2010
The German Solar Feed in Tariff Reduction got another twist as the Upper House Bundesrat refused to pass the proposal into Law.This threw a spanner into […]
July 6, 2010
Spanish Government Facing a Tough Fiscal Situation;Plans Green Energy Subsidy Change The Spanish Government has been facing a tough budgetary situation due to sovereign debt problems […]
July 5, 2010
Solar Energy in India has the potential to be one of the biggest opportunities in the Energy Sector in the 21st Century.The government’s strong backing through […]
July 3, 2010
President Obama declared $1.85 Billion in Combined Loan Guarantees to Concentrated Solar Power Giant Abengoa and Cadmium Tellurium startup Abound Solar.These huge guarantees is nothing new […]
July 2, 2010
Sharp,the Japanese Zaibatsu known more for its Electronics Products is also the world’s No 1 Company in terms Solar Module Revenues.Sharp has been the solar world […]