On April 10^th IHS released its top 10 module rankings by merchant shipments. The below release provides IHS’ rankings for the top 10 module suppliers by production.

iSuppli & IMS Research are now part of IHS. Please use IHS in all references to information contained in this release.

 Solar energy will not become an integral part of the energy supply system in Europe until suppliers, including private residences, have unlimited access to the energy grid. In practice, this would mean that they could supply their self-produced solar energy to the grid at a profitable rate 24/7. This is not yet the case today, mainly due to the limiting price and supply agreements. Consequently, the development of smart grids and energy storage systems will prove decisive in terms of the growth of solar energy in the coming years.

Following a sustained stretch of severe declines from February 2012 through the end of the year, solar polysilicon pricing has stabilized in early 2013, with prices steady in April and early May, and expected to rise slightly during the following months.

An early glimpse into the 2013 Annual Energy Outlook from the US  Energy Information Administration reveals that increased generation from renewable energy is expected to account for 32 per cent of the overall domestic growth in electricity generation from 2011 to 2040. With this insight and reports of global growth forecasts in renewable energy from both financial and market analysts in mind, Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics today announced its strategic initiatives for composite bearings applications in renewable energy markets. 

Soitec (Euronext Paris), a world leader in generating and manufacturing revolutionary semiconductor materials for energy and electronics successfully finalised the ZAR 1,000,000,000 (more than $100 millions) solar financing bond issued by CPV Power Plant No.1 Bond SPV (RF) Ltd, an affiliate of Soitec Solar GmbH.  The bonds will finance the construction of a 44 MWp utility-scale concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) solar power plant in Touwsrivier, South Africa.

SolarWorld AG came to a mutual understanding with creditors of assignable loans (Schuldscheine) representing about 80 percent of the outstanding assignable loans debt with regard to essential economic principles of a concept for restructuring SolarWorld’s financial liabilities. This preliminary agreement is still subject to the approval of all committees. The plan will enable the company to reduce its noncurrent liabilities by approximately 60 percent. As a further component, a capital reduction of about 95 percent in combination with a capital increase against contribution in kind will be suggested to an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting of SolarWorld AG. As part of the capital increase, a significant proportion of financial liabilities (about 60 percent) is to be discharged by a debt-to-equity-swap.

Sacramento International Airport has been awarded the BESTaward by the International Interior Design Association (IIDA), Rocky Mountain Chapter for its groundbreaking interior design. The interiors of the modernized Sacramento International Airport reinvent a “small town” airport and create a true regional air hub through revolutionary interior design that closely aligns with the area’s natural environment.

The solar modules produced by Scandinavian-German manufacturer Innotech Solar (ITS) do not show any signs of potential-induced degradation (PID). This is the conclusion of the PID test conducted by the Fraunhofer Center for Silicon Photovoltaics CSP, which exposes solar modules to more stringent test conditions than many other institutes. The output loss of ITS modules was found to be less than 0.3 percent. To put this in context, for modules to pass the test, their potential-induced degradation must not exceed 5 percent.

The worldwide market for PV storage is forecast to grow rapidly to reach $19 billion in 2017, from less than $200 million in 2012, according to a new report entitled ‘The Role of Energy Storage in the PV Industry’ from IMS Research, now part of IHS Inc.

Following the introduction of an energy storage subsidy in Germany, global installations of PV storage systems are forecast to grow by more than 100 percent a year on average over the next five years, to reach almost 7 gigawatts (GW) in 2017 and worth $19 billion. Germany will account for nearly 70 percent of storage installed in residential PV systems worldwide in 2013.However, opportunities also will exist in other regions and applications in the future and Germany’s share of the global market naturally will fall as a result.

The attached figure shows the IHS forecast for global PV storage system market revenue.

On April 22nd, 2013 the Canadian government initiated anti-dumping and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations into imports of silicon metal from China, following a petition by Quebec Silicon LP (Becancour, Canada).
Quebec Silicon is a subsidiary of Globe Specialty Metals (New York, New York, US). Globe describes Quebec Silicon as Canada's only producer of silicon metal.

Conergy announced today the completion of a 4.5MW solar farm at the end of March for the UK’s largest solar PV developer, Lightsource Renewable Energy. Conergy was the general contractor, responsible for engineering and layout, construction and component supply for the plant, which will be owned and operated by Lightsource for the next 25 years. Connection to the grid comes only weeks after Conergy supplied four other solar farms with a total capacity of 15 megawatts in the UK, which is experiencing rapid growth in large-scale solar deployment.

SoloPower, a CIGS thin-film solar firm looking to build flexible PV panels, is closing a factory and pulling back from its ambitions of building hundreds of megawatts of PV in Portland, Oregon.

The firm is a recipient of significant venture capital and state subsidies, as well as a $197 million DOE loan guarantee which has not yet been used.

The government is planning to build 36 new solar power plants across Indonesia, especially in isolated and border areas, an official said on Thursday.

Alihudin Sitompul, the director of renewable energy and energy conservation at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, said that the government was targeting to increase the number of solar power plants to 153 this year, up from last year’s 117.

A European research consortium has launched a planning project towards a pan-European electricity transmission grid through 2050.

The e-Highway2050 plan will look at the expansion and conversion of current grids towards the pan-European network. A key focus will be moving large amounts of electricity from renewable energy sources long distances.

JinkoSolar Holding Co. and First Solar Inc. (FSLR) were among solar companies that surged after four U.S. senators introduced legislation that would let renewable- energy projects qualify for a tax-advantaged corporate structure currently used by oil, natural gas and pipeline projects.

Knowledge provider Solarpraxis AG and Z-One Holding have set up a joint subsidiary, Solarpraxis MENA LLC. The new company offers expertise and services in the engineering, conferences and publishing sectors in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Yasser Gamil from Egypt has been appointed as Solarpraxis MENA LLC’s managing director, while the company’s majority shareholder is Solarpraxis AG. The new company is headquartered in the Dubai free trade zone in the United Arab Emirates.

aleo solar AG successfully expanded its authorised partner association, the aleo power network, and was able to win more than 400 new customers worldwide in 2012. The company now supplies solar modules and system components to more than 2,100 international partners. 

30 Advanced Energy (AE) 500 kW 1kV DC Utility PV Inverters at PG&E's 15 MW Westside Solar Station successfully passed multiple low voltage sag events. This site's inverters are equipped with Voltage Ride-Through (VRT) capabilities and are connected to a Pacific Gas & Electric substation outside of Fresno, CA.  By integrating AE's inverters into its solar systems, PG&E was able to mitigate 4 low voltage events in March; as well as maintain power production during a connected substation's 50 percent voltage sag.  This paper covers how these events successfully demonstrated the VRT capabilities of AE's Utility inverter and its ability to limit the system's downtime and lost revenue. 

The U.S. commercial PV market is primed for significant growth. According to GTM Research, the officialresearch arm of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the segment is expected to see a 25 percentannual compound growth rate from 2011 to 2016, clearly indicating the market’s potential. While much ofthe growth has been attributed to plunging module prices, a new focus on inverter technology and designinnovation in balance of system (BoS) components promises to drive the generated cost of solar electricityeven lower.

This paper unlocks solar's potential through smart distributed PV technology and discusses its technical merits from a T&D utility perspective. Learn about a proposed a methodology to quantify the economic opportunity of a smart solar investment along the solar value chain, and the sensitivity of this economic opportunity to various utility economic and technical drivers.

 Paddle shifters take on new meaning in the Cadillac ELR, the brand’s first electric vehicle with extended range capability that goes on sale in early 2014.

Unlike traditional performance vehicles where the steering wheel-mounted paddles allow drivers to upshift and downshift the mechanical transmission, Cadillac ELR’s paddle shifters enable the driver to temporarily regenerate energy and store it as electricity in the battery pack for later use.

This month, Symantec is celebrating Earth Day by exploring our commitment to environmental responsibility. Today we hear from Kelly Shea, Symantec's global sustainability program manager, on the successful LEED certification of our 20th office facility.

Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co. have signed an agreement under which both companies will jointly develop an all-new generation of advanced technology 9- and 10-speed automatic transmissions for cars, crossovers, SUVs and trucks.

At Folsom Lake State Recreation Area on Saturday (April 13), PG&E President Chris Johns helped to repair a split-rail fence. Johns, wearing his “Power of Blue” T-shirt, was joined by his wife and about 80 other PG&E volunteers who picked up trash, removed non-native species and painted curbs and fences.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has once again been named to the 100 Best Corporate Citizens list – a comprehensive ranking of Russell 1000 publicly held U.S. companies that best advance corporate responsibility and sustainability through disclosure, policy and performance. This is the sixth consecutive year that PG&E has been included in the 100 Best Corporate Citizens list.

Can you remember the last time you had an amazing conversation?

Until now, electric motors and drive units – the heart and soul of electric vehicles – have been mostly imports. General Motors today commemorated becoming the first U.S.-based automaker to manufacture these key parts in America for the new Chevrolet Spark EV at its Baltimore Operations plant in White Marsh, Md.

The Tower Companies announced today that U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has Re-Certified The Tower Building and 1909 K Street LEED® Gold under Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Existing Buildings: Operations and Management ("EBOM"). Notably, The Tower Building was the region's first new green office building when built in 2001 and 1909 K was DC's first green renovation in 1999. Both green properties were completed before the USGBC standards were established.   

On April 22, Caesars Entertainment and its properties across the U.S. will once again observe Earth Day to demonstrate the company’s commitment to operate in an environmentally responsible manner. Caesars recognizes problems facing the planet demand real action today and that awareness of these issues is a critical part of the formula for change. Many of Caesars Entertainment’s U.S. resorts and casinos will host CodeGreen events this month designed to encourage outdoor recreation and environmental conservation.

The new 2014 Chevrolet Cruze Clean Turbo Diesel, delivers an industry best EPA-estimated 46 MPG on the highway – better than any non-hybrid passenger car in America. It will be available in certain cities this spring and nationwide and in Canada in early fall.

An analytical thinker and automotive enthusiast, Cal State engineering graduate student Chris Reid has been nurturing his passion for engineering for many years.

So when he walked into the EcoCAR 2 Winter Workshop, he was fully prepared for five days of focus.

This Earth Week, LG Electronics USA and PTO Today – an organization serving parent-teacher organizations from schools across the country – have teamed up with Team ENERGY STAR to educate American youth and families about saving energy at home.

he 2014 Chevrolet Spark EV is the industry benchmark in retail electric vehicle efficiency with a combined city/highway EPA estimated range of 82 miles when fully charged and an EPA-estimated combined city/highway 119 MPGe fuel economy equivalent.

Avista successfully restored two channels downstream of their Upper Falls Development on the Spokane River to look much the way it did long ago, before the channels were altered to divert water to numerous flour and lumber mills, as well as for hydropower generation.

Kyocera Corporation  (NYSE:KYO)(TOKYO:6971) today announced its consolidated financial results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013, as summarized below. Complete details are available at: http://global.kyocera.com/ir/financial/f_results.html  

ABB today reported its first-quarter 2013 results, highlighting revenue growth and improved operational profitability² despite a weak business environment. 
“Given the continued uncertainties in the global economy, this is a satisfactory start to 2013,” said ABB Chief Executive Officer Joe Hogan. “We continued to execute well, successfully balancing solid cost discipline with targeted growth in businesses and regions where we have competitive advantages, especially in areas like industrial efficiency, power reliability and renewable energy".

First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) today announced it has sold the 139-megawatt(MW) Campo Verde Solar Project to Southern Company subsidiary Southern Power and Turner Renewable Energy. Under the terms of the agreement, First Solar will complete construction of the project and will operate and maintain the power plant for 10 years. Construction of the Campo Verde project began in December 2012 and commercial operation is expected in fall 2013.

Capitol Hill veteran Christopher Mansour, who has nearly three decades of experience in the legislative and executive branches of government, has joined the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) as vice president of federal affairs.

Renewable Energy Corporation ASA (REC) reported first quarter 2013 revenues of NOK 1,278 million and EBITDA of NOK 46 million. EBIT was negative NOK 159 million. REC's cash position improved by NOK 0.1 billion to NOK 2.0 billion. 
REC experienced improved demand for solar panels in the first quarter 2013 compared to the second half of 2012. The slowdown observed in the largest solar markets in Europe is being offset by growth in other markets, in particular in Asia. Despite the recent price stabilization, the global production capacity is still excessive throughout the solar value chain, and significant demand growth or supply reduction is required to improve pricing. 

The western Indian state of Rajasthan recently became the second state to have an operational solar power capacity of over 500 MW. Last year, another western state, Gujarat, achieved this milestone with its aggressive solar power policy.

International Finance Corp., the World Bank’s private-sector financing arm, plans to lend as much as $50 million to an Indian solar developer for building and operating power projects.

Acme Solar Energy Pvt. will use the proceeds for a 25- megawatt grid-connected photovoltaic power plant in the state of Madhya Pradesh, according to a statement on the IFC’s website. The funding may be extended to other Acme projects in the states of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, according to the statement.

Southern  announced today that it, along with partner Turner Renewable Energy, has acquired First Solar's 139 MW Campo Verde solar farm. This marks the utility's fifth solar acquisition, and its first in California.

China’s solar panel manufacturers are in trouble, and not all will survive the shakeout. But China Development Bank, the country’s biggest state-run policy bank, seems to be placing a bet on the outcome. Yingli Green Energy announced today that it had secured a $165 million loan from the bank to “to complement its working capital needs and support the procurement of raw material.”

Solar energy services provider SunEdison says its MEMC Singapore affiliate has entered into a photovoltaic module manufacturing services agreement with Fox Energy, whereby Fox Energy will manufacture up to 350 MW of solar modules for SunEdison. The modules will be produced in a manufacturing facility located in Juarez, Mexico.

The first two generations of photovoltaics, wafer-based and thin film devices, have seen mass market adoption in recent years, with different technologies characterized by varying degrees of success. Crystalline silicon platforms are by far the most successful, holding over 80% of market share, but are currently characterized by low profitability. Thin films have found success in markets where large land areas are available (e.g. solar farms) or in parts of the world where weather conditions limit the power output of silicon modules (e.g. humid, hazy regions).

Isolux Corsán has been awarded a contract for the construction of the Molloco hydroelectric power plant located in the southern region of Arequipa (Peru). This is the company's first hydroelectric project in the country.

The opening session of the first edition of the Global Solar Summit (May 8^th and 9^th, Fiera Milano-Rho, Italy), the annual international conference on solar energy promoted by the Global Solar Alliance, will focus attention on one of the most relevant and topical issues for the solar community at the global level. The spokespeople of the main trade associations in Europe, the United States and China, such as Epia, Sepia, EU ProSun and Afase, together with the manager of the photovoltaic sector of the Chinese chamber of commerce, will give speeches on Creating a level playing field: governing business cycles and resolving trade disputes. Through a positive and constructive debate, the meeting aims to provide the photovoltaic industry with strategic guidelines to help understand and govern the various economic cycles and better manage trade with foreign countries.

Belectric Solarkraftwerke GmbH (Kolitzheim, Germany) has completed a 128 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in the German state of Brandenburg, as the largest thin-film PV plant in Europe.

A unit of Japanese refiner Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K. (5002) and Development Bank of Japan will build a solar power station with New Kansai International Airport Co.

The station at Kansai International Airport near Osaka in western Japan will have 11.6 megawatts in capacity and is expected to start running early next year, the companies said in a statement today.

His comments came after ABB said it would buy renewable energy firmPower-One Inc for around $1 billion to step up its presence in the growing solar power inverters market.

Tata Power plans to set up a 28.8 MW solar plant near Satara, Maharashtra this fiscal, as a part of its strategy to meet its clean energy capacity target, a top company official has said.

Enel Green Power SpA (EGPW), a unit of Italian utility Enel SpA (ENEL), may invest about 80 million euros ($105 million) in solar parks in Romania in the next four years, Ziarul Financiarreported today.

If the U.S. ceases to burn coal, shuts down a quarter of existing nuclear reactors and trims its use of natural gas by 2050, the resulting increased reliance on wind, solar and other renewables will not result in a less reliable electricity grid, according to a new report prepared by Synapse Energy Economics Inc. for the nonprofit Civil Society Institute.

The world's biggest supplier of industrial motors and power grids said on Monday it had agreed to pay $6.35 per share in cash for Power-One, the second-largest maker of solar inverters that allow solar power to be fed into grids.

The European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition (EU PVSEC) and the International Photovoltaic Equipment Association (IPVEA) present the PV Production Forum 2013 on Wednesday, 02 October 2013 during the 28th EU PVSEC in Paris, France.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) industry module revenues are forecast to decline 20% in 2013 to $20.5 billion from $25.5 billion in 2012. While revenues will remain below 2012 levels during 2013 and 2014, they are set to increase from 2015 onward. According to the NPD Solarbuzz 2013 Marketbuzz report, PV module revenue is expected to reach $32 billion by 2017.

9REN announces it has connected to the grid its first solar PV installation in Israel. The solar plant, mounted on the roof of a cow-shed in the Hafetz Haim Kibbutz in central Israel, has a capacity of 500 kilowatts (kW) and will generate more than 810 megawatt-hours (MWh) a year of electricity.

Silicon Valley-based Solar Junction, a developer of high-efficiency multi junction solar energy cells for the concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) market, is in contract negotiation along with IQE – the leading global supplier of semiconductor wafers – for the development of next-generation satellite solar cells for the European Space Agency.

Toshiba Corp. (6502), the maker of flash- memory chips and atomic reactors, will work with a unit of MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (WFR) to build solar plants in Japan.

Toshiba and MEMC’s SunEdison LLC agreed in December to jointly develop power plants, Atsushi Ido, a spokesman for the Tokyo-based company, said by phone today.

ABB (NYSE: ABB), the leading power and automation technology group, and Power-One, Inc. (NASDAQ: PWER), a leading provider of renewable energy and of energy-efficient power conversion and power management solutions, today announced that their boards of directors have agreed to a transaction in which ABB will acquire Power-One for $6.35 per share in cash or $1,028 million equity value.

While reducing its carbon footprint and environmental impact may not be one of the biggest issues facing companies this year, research analyst firms report that reducing expenses and increasing efficiency are most likely on the list. From paperless documentation software to free print cartridge recycling and the virtualization movement, going green is easier and cost effective. 

 Ikaros Solar announces the completion of 2 large scale projects in the United Kingdom. These solar parks, with a total capacity 6.4 MWp are based in Devon and Hampshire and were grid connected prior to 31st March 2013. In Andover (Hampshire) a former World War II Airfield was transformed in a 4.3 MWp solar plant. In Langlands (Devon) a 2.1 MWp ground solar plant was built on farming land. Both projects were completed on time despite exceptionally cold and wet weather. 

KhepriCoat^® anti-reflective glass coating is an IP protected product, developed by the DSM Innovation Center. The coating is primarily targeted at solar applications. The coating – a thin nano porous layer with a thickness of approximately 100 – 150 nm – is applied on the cover glass of solar modules and strongly reduces the reflection of sunlight. The result is an increase in the energy output of these modules up to 4%. KhepriCoat^® is marketed through DSM Advanced Surfaces, one of the new growth platforms developed within the DSM Innovation Center.

Duke Energy has purchased a 21-megawatt California solar PV project from SolarWorld, and for buyer and seller the deal is a sign of the times -- and perhaps of things to come.

For Duke, it’s about bringing more renewable energy into the mix when the returns justify it, which appears to be happening with greater frequency. Duke invested $500 million in renewable energy in 2012 and says it has pumped $2.5 billion into renewables since 2007. The purchase of SolarWorld’s Highlander 1 and 2 -- arrays in close proximity near the Joshua Tree National Park in Southern California that will be run as a single operation -- brings Duke’s solar capacity to more than 100 megawatts at fifteen plants. Neither company divulged the terms of the deal.

Eternal Sun’s Large Area Steady State Simulators (LASSs) appear to represent a major advance in solar panel testing because they allow test labs to do a combination of things that they have not been able to do before.

This week we talk with Raghu Belur, Co-Founder and Vice President of Products and Strategic Initiatives at Enphase Energy, about the solar market, the role of microinverter solutions in residential and commercial PV installations, and how the U.S. solar market is evolving in 2013.

Vivint Solar's CEO Tanguy Serra has "stepped down as CEO" and will remain with the company as an advisor. Alex Dunn has replaced Serra as CEO. Vivint was recently acquired by Blackstone for $2 billion.

The science might work, but everything else remains to be proven about the new Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) process for using heat from concentrating solar power (CSP) to convert natural gas to syngas.

The solar industry in Arizona is beginning to register the hurt from aggressive policy decisions made by the state’s energy commission, as Greentech Media heads to Phoenix for its sixth annual Solar Summit, April 22-24.

A new 225-page report from GTM Research finds that, over the next three years, leading PV inverter suppliers will be pinched by shifts in global demand and the continued swing toward low-price market segments and geographies. This swing will push PV inverter prices down, from a global blended average of $0.22 per watt in 2012 to just $0.14 per watt in 2016 -- a compound annual reduction of 10 percent.

Last year, the Solar Foundation issued a census of the solar industry showing 119,016 jobs spread around the country. Today the organization has updated that resource with aninteractive map detailing where around the country those solar jobs are located.

As Greentech Media heads to Phoenix for its annual Solar Summit, April 22-24, it will find an Arizona solar industry in bipartisan tumult. Arizona Public Service (APS), the state’s dominant investor-owned utility, proposed doing away with the Arizona renewables standard (RES) distributed generation (DG) carve-out and net metering.

It’s the utilities vs. rooftop solar, and with PV becoming more accessible and installations soaring, the fight is heating up.

In San Antonio, the municipally owned CPS Energy last week said it will slash the value of the credit for solar produced from rooftop installations. Its claim is a central one made by the utilities: as more people produce their own power through rooftop solar -- and reduce their electricity bills -- utilities are left unable to meet their cost of maintaining the energy infrastructure. CPS Energy said it had two options: reduce the amount it credits solar households for rooftop-produced solar, or raise rates for everyone.

After years of work to get net metering policies on the books in 43 states, we are seeing anonslaught of utility-backed measures to weaken or completely dismantle this important solar customer privilege. Surprisingly, the latest attack comes from Vote Solar’s 2012 “Utility Solar Champion,” San Antonio’s municipally owned utility, CPS Energy (CPS). Last week CPS unveiled its plan to dismantle net metering -- effectively eliminating solar as a customer option, and putting the brakes on the local solar distributed generation market.

ABB acquiring Power-One (PWER), the number two global PV inverter company, for $1 billion is certainly a dramatic way to open Greentech Media's Solar Summit starting today in Phoenix, Arizona.

Construction has been halted at First Solar's 230-megawatt Antelope Valley solar power plant due to air standards issues.

After multiple delays in construction throughout 2012 due to violations of the project’s conditional use permit (CUP), Antelope Valley Solar Ranch One (AVSR1) started delivering electricity to the Southern California Edison grid at the end of the year and now has 150 megawatts of its planned 230-megawatt nameplate capacity on-line.

Our current centralized energy and financial systems often fail the poor. In order to meet the energy needs of people in less developed countries in a sustainable way, a distributed energy framework is necessary.

SolarWorld was able to win its fight to have tariffs imposed on Chinese solar panels -- but relief from unfair Chinese trade practices may not come soon enough for the German firm.

The financially troubled solar panel manufacturer is working on a deal with an investor from Qatar, according to Reuters. The plan will have creditors assume ownership of the company "in a debt-to-equity swap." According to reports, shareholders could end up with less than 5 percent ownership in the firm in a deal requiring a minimum of $250 million to secure the debt.

IEA-RETD has announced the release of a report providing best practice for renewable energy communication campaigns. IEA-RETD commissioned the scoping study with the objective to provide ideas, techniques and case studies on how the benefits of renewable energies can be better communicated to and by policy makers, decision makers and other stakeholders.

Spanish module manufacturer and PV power plant operator T-Solar SA plans to lay off 170 employees at its factory in San Cibrao das Vinas, located in the northern Spanish region of Galicia. According to Spanish newspaper El Pais, local trade union Federacion del Metal de UGT will soon meet with the government of Galicia to discuss the future of the workers and the company. T-Solar started insolvency proceedings in March, according to Spain’s Official Journal.

According to the latest statistics released by Spain’s National Energy Commission (CNE), 59,810 grid-connected PV systems – representing 4,503 MW of installed capacity – had access to FITs in February 2013.

The Global Energy Prize, one of the world’s most prestigious awards recognizing outstanding achievements across the world in energy research and technology, on Thursday announced this year’s two honorees for their important contributions and research in rechargeable batteries and physics.

aleo solar AG will close the first quarter of the year 2013 with an EBIT of approximately EUR –16.3 million (first quarter 2012: EUR –8.2 million) based on preliminary calculations. The turnover amounts to approximately EUR 31.1 million (first quarter 2012: EUR 74.6 million).

On April 8, 2013, Go Solar California published an updated PTC rating list and out of almost 11.500 eligible modules rated, WINAICO high performance modules have ranked highest among their peers. The WINAICO 250W, 255W and 260W polycrystalline modules have earned PTC ratings of 229.6, 234.3 and 239.0 respectively. They outperform well-known competitors like Trina, Canadian Solar, Mage, SolarWorld and Suniva. 

SolarWorld AG constructed and sold large-scale solar projects in Germany and the United States comprising an overall capacity of 46 megawatts, enough energy to cover the needs of about 40,000 people. All projects exclusively feature quality modules made by SolarWorld in Germany and in the United States.

A spokesman for German solar company SolarWorld AG confirmed that the company is considering buying solar assets from Bosch Solar, a unit of German industrial group Robert Bosch GmbH. SolarWorld is particularly interested in acquiring Bosch Solar’s cell production assets. The spokesman declined to provide further details concerning the potential acquisition.

Soitec (Euronext, Paris) announced today that subject to the approval from the South African Department of Energy and other customary conditions precedent, CPV Power Plant No.1 Bond SPV (RF) Ltd intends to list R1 000 000 000 11% fixed rate senior unsecured registered bonds on the interest rate market of the JSE Limited in South Africa.  CPV Power Plant No.1 Bond SPV is a wholly owned subsidiary of CPV Power Plant No.1 (Pty) Ltd, the South African subsidiary of Soitec Solar GmbH which is engaged in the development of the Touwsrivier solar project in South Africa.

The Japan-based BIJ Corporation, the Italian finergia advisory & finance s.r.l. and the Swiss MEECO Invest AG have successfully formed a joint company on April 10, 2013 in Zug, Switzerland.  The creation of the joint company, oursun Japan Holding AG, is a consequence of the initial Memorandum of Understanding signed in February in Yokohama.

The Environment and Energy Ministry is planning to impose an extraordinary levy on photovoltaic systems on rooftops used for the production of electricity (not water heaters) as a result of pressure from the country’s international creditors to bring the electricity market’s deficit down to zero by 2014.

ReneSola Ltd ("ReneSola") (NYSE: SOL), a leading global manufacturer of solar photovoltaic ("PV") modules and wafers, today announced it has agreed to provide Enerparc AG ("Enerparc"), an internationally oriented and dynamically growing provider of solar power plant installation and operation services, with 43.6 megawatts ("MW") of solar modules, 35 MW of which will be delivered through original equipment manufacturers ("OEMs") in Poland and India.

The Management Board of SolarWorld AG (ISIN DE0005108401) notifies that a loss has occurred in the amount of one half of the nominal share capital (§ 92 sec. 1 of the German Stock Corporations Act - AktG). According to current estimates, the equity capital for the 2012 fiscal year in the individual financial statements prepared according to the German Commercial Code (HGB) will amount to approximately negative EUR 20 million to negative EUR 50 million.

The Bosch Group expects slightly improved economic growth. Under these circumstances, the supplier of technology and services expects its own sales to grow by two to four percent in the current business year. These figures were announced by Dr. Volkmar Denner, the chairman of the Bosch board of management, at the annual press conference. "We have taken many measures in order to improve earnings this year. At the same time, we will seize our opportunities for growth, both in established areas of work and in setting up new areas of business," Denner said. The company still sees considerable economic risks as a result of the high level of sovereign debt in the U.S. and Europe. For the European economy, Bosch expects the recession to end, but anticipates the economic developments there will stagnate this year. Against this background, Bosch Group sales developments were subdued in the first quarter of 2013.  

The Green Power Partnership works with a wide variety of leading organizations — from Fortune 500® companies to local, state and federal governments, and a growing number of colleges and universities. The following Top Partner Rankings highlight the annual green power use of leading Green Power Partners within the United States and across individual industry sectors.

Masdar (Abu Dhabi, UAE) has completed a 15 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania, as the largest PV plant in the continent of Africa.
The USD 32 million Sheikh Zayed Solar Power Plant represents 10% of the capacity on the nation's grid, which is mostly powered by diesel generators. The plant comprises 29,800 micromorph thin-film PV modules, mounted on a novel support structure based on piles instead of concrete.