Author

James Ayre

's background is predominantly in geopolitics and history, but he has an obsessive interest in pretty much everything. After an early life spent in the Imperial Free City of Dortmund, James followed the river Ruhr to Cofbuokheim, where he attended the University of Astnide. And where he also briefly considered entering the coal mining business. He currently writes for a living, on a broad variety of subjects, ranging from science, to politics, to military history, to renewable energy. You can follow his work on Google+.

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First Solar Sold Out Of Solar Panels Through 2015

by James Ayre August 12, 2015

written by James Ayre

First Solar has already sold out of solar photovoltaic (PV) module capacity for 2015, and for most of 2016, according to the most recent figures.

Overall, the company beat analyst predictions pretty handily — coming in with net sales of $896 million for the second quarter, accompanied by a 1:1 book-to-bill ratio. This amounts to a rise from the first quarter of nearly $427 million in net sales, mostly due to “increased revenue recognition on the Silver State South project and the sale of majority interests in the North Star and Lost Hills-Blackwell projects.”

The company saw 537 megawatts (MW) of new order bookings — resulting in year-to-date bookings rising to 1.4 gigawatts (GW). Amongst these, are the 200 MW booking for the second phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum project in Dubai, and the 100 MW booking for a project with NV Energy.

Second quarter GAAP earnings came to $0.93 per fully diluted share, as compared to a drop of $0.62 in the first quarter.

Greentech Media provides a bit more:

The solar module engineering and manufacturing part of the company had a fleet average module conversion efficiency of 15.4%. Its best production line is now shipping solar modules with efficiencies of 16.2%. The CEO said he expects the entire fleet to be running at that level by the end of the year. Modules built at the company’s Malaysian facility have a cost of less than 40 cents per watt. First Solar has visibility on 16.7 gigawatts of potential bookings.

First Solar’s CEO Jim Hughes stated during a recent earnings call that there was likely to be some “softness in the US market in 2017,” before going on to note the expectation of further growth in the Middle East, India, Japan, Turkey, and Latin America.

August 12, 2015 0 comment

Going Solar PV Rooftop Solar Solar $

SunPower + Dominion Enter New Jersey

by James Ayre August 11, 2015

written by James Ayre

SunPower and Dominion Retail (a subsidiary of Dominion) are partnering to begin offering SunPower’s high-performance solar energy systems to homeowners in New Jersey via a new sales program, according to a recent press release.

The various options for consumers, and other program details, are being made via a marketing campaign this summer via Dominion Energy Solutions. After this initial outreach, SunPower reps will then be made available to help those interested determine the best purchase/financing option. Among the options available, homeowners have the choice to purchase a system outright, get a lease with no associated upfront costs, or get a loan for the system.

“New Jersey is one of the fastest growing solar markets in the US. To serve that demand, we’re pleased to offer high-efficiency SunPower solar power systems to qualified homeowners in the state,” stated Mary Doswell, the senior vice president of Dominion Energy Solutions. “With financing options including lease, loan or cash purchase, this program makes it easy for homeowners to go solar, maximizing electricity cost savings while reducing the family’s carbon footprint.”

“We are pleased to work with Dominion to make solar power more accessible to New Jersey homeowners,” stated Howard Wenger, SunPower president, business units. “SunPower offers industry-leading solar technology that generates 70% more energy than conventional panels over the first 25 years, as well as superior reliability and aesthetics. Dominion’s customer-centric business model and SunPower’s 30 years of experience delivering high performance solar solutions is a powerful combination.”

Image Credit: SunPower

August 11, 2015 0 comment

PV Solar Projects

E.ON Solar Completes 1st California Solar Project

by James Ayre August 11, 2015

written by James Ayre

The noted solar energy company E.ON Solar (a subsidiary of E.ON) has finished the development of its first solar energy facility in California, according to recent reports.

The new facility — dubbed “Alamo,” a 20 megawatt (MW) facility in San Bernardino County near the town of Oro Grande — is also the first facility owned by E.ON Solar to be sold in the US, as the company already sold the project to Dominion.

“E.ON Solar is very proud of Alamo, our first project completed in California,” stated Steve Trenholm, the president of E.ON Solar. “We intend to build more solar projects in California that create jobs as well as clean energy that doesn’t use water in the production of electricity.”

“The Alamo Solar transaction demonstrates E.ON’s continued ability to deliver high-value renewable energy projects, either solar or wind, that attract the interest of world-class energy investors like Dominion,” commented Nathanael Esposito, vice president, Partnering, North America, E.ON.

A recent press release provides a bit more:

E.ON’s global experience enables it to build quality, economical solar projects on schedule and on budget, whether E.ON or another entity is the owner or operator. In 2014, Tucson Electric Power (TEP) selected E.ON Solar to build an array on the US Army’s Ft Huachuca base in Sierra Vista, Arizona, after seeing E.ON’s industry-leading capabilities up close.

The 14 MW (AC) photovoltaic project is the US Department of Defense’s largest solar array on a military installation. In early 2015, E.ON brought the Ft Huachuca solar project, which has 57,000 panels and serves approximately 25% of the base’s electricity needs, into service. TEP also purchases power from two E.ON facilities, Valencia Solar and Tech Park Solar, located near Tucson.

“E.ON Solar is rapidly expanding its development pipeline across the country with a flexible business model that allows us to work with utilities and others to own and operate projects, or build turn-key projects. This is an exciting time for the US market and E.ON is at the forefront of delivering clean energy that doesn’t require water to produce electricity,” Trenholm continued.

Worth noting here is that E.ON Solar has already begun work on a new solar energy project in California, currently expected to be completed later this year.

Image Credit: E.ON Solar

August 11, 2015 1 comment

New Technology PV Rooftop Solar Solar Modules Solar PV Manufacturing

SolarCity Gigafactory Ceremony Includes Governor Cuomo

by James Ayre August 11, 2015

written by James Ayre

The much ballyhooed SolarCity “Gigafactory” under construction in Buffalo, New York, recently saw a new milestone passed in its development — with the “topping off” ceremony for the 1.2 million-square-foot facility recently taking place, and seeing the attendance of a wide range of important figures.

As part of the ceremony, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed one of the steel beams used in the construction of the large facility at the RiverBend site in South Buffalo — a facility that is expected to enter service in the first quarter of 2016, and to create over 5,000 jobs in the state. Considering that the construction on the project broke ground just 11 months ago, the new milestone suggest that things are running smoothly and are on track.

Once completed, the SolarCity facility is expected to be biggest of its like in the whole of the western Western Hemisphere — altogether possessing 1 gigawatt (1,000 megawatts) of annual solar capacity once at full capacity.

“Today, Buffalo has reached a new high,” Governor Cuomo stated. “On the gravesite of the old economy, where Republic Steel once stood, now rises a beautiful monument to Buffalo’s future. This community built back from difficult conditions and hard times, and now, as the new RiverBend takes shape, it has become a national model of resurgence. This project shows the heart and skill and ability that made Buffalo great, and I am proud to be joining you as we move forward into a brighter future for Western New York.”

Now that the core and shell of the facility is finished, work is set to begin on the interior — which will see the installation of various types of solar panel manufacturing equipment. To give a better idea of what the above-stated 1 gigawatt capacity means, the facility is expected to produce roughly 10,000 of Silevo’s high-technology Triex solar panels per day once at full capacity.

The CEO of SolarCity, Lyndon Rive, commented: “Governor Cuomo, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, and the citizens in Buffalo are making history for clean energy today. We are especially grateful to the construction crews whose tireless work will enable us to complete our manufacturing facility on time.”

Congressman Brian Higgins had some interesting words to say as well: “The rising of SolarCity along the Buffalo River represents the new Western New York, one that embraces our manufacturing roots and trademark dedicated workforce but evolves to meet the demands of today’s economy. More than one hundred years ago Buffalo earned the nickname ‘City of Light’ as one of the first cities turning water into power. Now, as home to SolarCity’s manufacturing hub, Buffalo is again at the forefront of clean power production, turning the sun’s energy into economic opportunity.”

August 11, 2015 0 comment

Other Renewable Energy PV Solar Projects

Minas Gerais Implements Tax Exemption For Large Solar

by James Ayre August 9, 2015

written by James Ayre

The Brazilian state of Minas Gerais will see its large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) sector aided by a new extended tax exemption for companies dealing in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity, according to recent reports.

It’s expected that this new tax exemption — which provides the aforementioned industries with protection from ICMS taxation (a tax on goods + services) for the first 20 years of production — will allow for a faster-than-previously expected deployment of large-scale solar PV projects. The exemption enters into effect in 2018, and is an increase over a previous 10-year exemption.

The government of Minas Gerais has reportedly committed to providing BRL25 million ($8 million) for the exemption plan. As the tax exemption will effectively lower operating costs for utility and development companies via the increase in the tax-free period to 20 years, the expectation is that developers will be able to keep their bids lower during tenders.

Given that the state of São Paulo also offers such an incentive, and the two states are at the top in Brazil in terms of total contracted projects obtained via the 2014 solar energy auction, the approach seems to working in that regard. The states that have incentives allowing for lower bids, unsurprising, can generally undercut those in the states without access to such support.

Presumably, this means that a wider embrace of the strategy would allow for a more evened out playing field.

Image Credit: Public Domain

August 9, 2015 0 comment

PV Solar Projects

Solar PV Flamingos In Utah

by James Ayre August 9, 2015

written by James Ayre

The flamingos at the Tracy Aviary in Salt Lake City are now neighbors with two large pink Spotlight-Solar-made installations featuring solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, which are intended to resemble the flamingos themselves, presumably.

The installation also serves, of course, as a show of Tracy Aviary’s interest in renewable energy, and solar energy in particular. The two new structures were actually unveiled on Earth Day 2015, so our reporting is perhaps a little late (but better late than never).

“We are proud to be able to introduce this innovative approach to capturing and creating solar energy at Tracy Aviary,” commented Tim Brown, the executive director of Tracy Aviary, while discussing the installations. “These solar trees directly align with our conservation and education mission. Thanks to Rocky Mountain Power, Spotlight Solar and Creative Energies, we are able to educate people about solar power in a unique and very visual way.”

Solar Power World Online provides some further details:

The pink solar structures will build awareness about the benefits of solar energy among Tracy Aviary’s 130,000 visitors. The artistic structures feature 24 Lumos LSX frameless solar panels, which are capable of producing up to six kilowatts of electricity. Annually, the installation will generate approximately 9,300 kilowatt hours, enough to supply the yearly electricity usage of an average US home.

The solar trees are Tracy Aviary’s third solar project in five years. The aviary also has LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certified buildings with solar panels on the roofs of its South American Pavilion and visitors center.

“This is the most intriguing application of our solar structures so far: in a flamingo habitat and pink!” stated Craig Merrigan, the co-founder and CEO of Spotlight Solar. “The reason we created this product is to bring visibility to solar technology, so more people come to understand it and consider clean energy for their own homes and businesses. We are thrilled to partner with Tracy Aviary and Creative Energies to bring solar more visibly into the community of Salt Lake City.”

Spotlight Solar currently is working on several other such “distinctive” solar projects, so keep an eye out — you might see something interesting like this in the near future near you.

Image Credit: Tracy Aviary

August 9, 2015 0 comment

Other Renewable Energy PV Solar Projects

Brazil Solar Power Auction Gets 20.6 GW Of Proposals

by James Ayre August 9, 2015

written by James Ayre

The upcoming national renewable energy auction in Brazil has received 20.593 gigawatts (GW) of solar energy project proposals (across 649 different bids) to date, according to recent reports.

This means that solar project proposals have managed to eclipse wind energy ones by a fair bit — as wind project proposals total 17.964 GW (across 730 proposals), a notable occurrence for wind energy–loving Brazil. I think this means that the “solar revolution” in Brazil is now starting to really gather pace.

Both solar and wind energy bids have been heavily oversubscribed, though, so it remains to be seen how many projects actually move forward. It’s not yet clear by how much the auctions were oversubscribed, though, as the Brazilian Ministry for Mines and Energy has yet to reveal that. Given that the auction’s not being held until November 13th, we may have to wait a bit until we find out more.

Brazil’s first national solar energy auction was held just last year, and that one saw over 1 GW of new solar energy projects started in the heavily solar-insolated country — which currently “only” possesses around 15 GW of cumulative solar energy generation capacity.

Under the terms of the auction, winning bidders need to have their projects fully operational by November 2018 in order to receive their 20-year power purchase agreements (PPAs).

Amongst the bidders, the region of Bahia tops the list with 192 different proposals, altogether totaling 6.05 GW of potential generation capacity, as well as 243 wind energy proposals — also for a total of 6.05 GW of potential generation capacity.

The region of Rio Grande do Norte saw a fair number of proposals as well, with 97 different solar energy proposals, totaling 3.315 GW of proposed capacity and 184 different wind energy proposals (for a total of 4.333 GW of proposed capacity).

The November auction is being presaged by a solar-energy-only auction set for later this month (August 28), which has 382 registered proposals (altogether totaling 12.528 GW of proposed capacity).

Image by Eduardo Amorim (some rights reserved)

August 9, 2015 0 comment

PV Rooftop Solar

SunPower X Series Solar Panels Coming To Japan

by James Ayre August 9, 2015

written by James Ayre

One of the top solar energy technology companies in the world, SunPower Corporation, will begin offering its X-Series Solar Panels in the Japanese market starting sometime in the early part of 2016, according to a recent press release.

The announcement — which was made originally at PV Japan 2015 — means that the well regarded product line, with a nameplate solar conversion efficiency of 21.2%, will now be available to rooftop installers in yet another new territory. As compared to conventional offerings, the X-Series solar panels provide roughly “8-10% more energy per rated watt and approximately 70% more energy production over the first 25 years.”

“Elegant, all-black solar panels from SunPower Corporation offer superior aesthetics, and the high efficiency of our panels is ideal for customers with limited roof space,” stated Howard Wenger, SunPower Corporation president, business units. “Building owners may achieve faster return on investment by generating more power per square meter on the roof, and they can count on the long-term reliability of solar panels by SunPower Corporation.”

For those with a somewhat skeptical nature, it’s probably worth a reminder here that the X-series panel performance (solar conversion efficiency) has been verified by the US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), as well as by the Japan Electrical Safety and Environment Technology Laboratories (JET).

The X-Series panels are also made for long-term reliability, being composed of third-generation Maxeon solar cells built on a solid copper foundation. This foundation is intended to greatly reduce corrosion and cracking, thereby extending product life. This expectation of durability is reflected in the company’s (and industry’s) first combined 25-year product + power warranty.

Here are some further qualities:

Superior low-light and spectral response, generating electricity earlier in the morning and longer in the evening than conventional panels
Excellent performance at high temperatures, allowing for more electricity generation on hot rooftops
Enhanced energy production, compared to conventional panels, in conditions of partial or temporary shading or soiling

The first offering in Japan will reportedly be a 345-watt panel. Those looking for more information are directed here.

Image Credit: SunPower

August 9, 2015 0 comment

Rooftop Solar Solar Modules

Panasonic N285 Solar Module Launching In European Market

by James Ayre March 5, 2015

written by James Ayre

Panasonic recently announced the launch of its high-efficiency N285 solar module into the European market, with an official presentation at the currently ongoing Ecobuild show in London (March 3–5, stand S4154).

The announcement of the release of the “industry-leading” product from Panasonic Electric Works Europe isn’t in any way surprising, as the N285 solar module features a reduced length designed specifically for the European residential + commercial rooftop markets.

Following the fair success of Panasonic’s HIT N240 and N245 products, this new integration of HIT (heterojunction with intrinsic thin layer) technology into a shorter panel design makes a fair amount of sense — allowing for the installation of an additional module row on most small or mid-sized rooftops, potentially allowing for increased total system output as a result.

A recent press release provides more:

The N285 is optimally suited to the thriving UK market and the country’s 4 KWp residential feed-in tariff (FiT). Based on the rooftop space required by the average UK residential solar PV system of 3 kWp, a comparable N285-based array will have an installed capacity of 3.99 KWp, thus aligning with the FiT requirements and maximizing the energy and earnings generated for the typical UK homeowner.

“The N285 represents the latest manufacturing achievement of our bourgeoning solar division,” stated Daniel Roca, UK country manager at Panasonic Eco Solutions Europe. “Having thoroughly analyzed the parametres of Europe’s residential and commercial rooftop market, the N285 has been designed to provide an optimum solution for both sectors. By incorporating our industry-leading HIT technology into this new design, we’ve launched a product that can help tap the massive potential of Europe’s residential and compact-roof commercial PV markets.”

With the UK rooftop solar market looking set to continue its recent strong growth, the release looks likely to pay dividends for the company.

Image Credit: Panasonic

March 5, 2015 0 comment

Solar Projects

SunPower Nearing Completion On 579 MW Solar Star Project — “World’s Largest Solar Power Plant”

by James Ayre February 28, 2015

written by James Ayre

One of the top solar energy companies in the world, SunPower, is close to completing what will be the “world’s largest solar power plant” in Southern California, according to recent reports.

The 579 megawatt (MW) Solar Star project is now mostly online, and is on track for “substantial completion” during Q2, based on recent comments made by SunPower president and CEO Tom Werner during a 2014 earnings presentation.

Werner put it pretty clearly: “Construction of the 579 MW (AC) Solar Star Projects for Berkshire Hathaway Energy and Southern California Edison is on plan with more than 412 MW (AC) now connected to the grid, and with substantial completion expected by the end of the second quarter.”

SunPower is developing the two co-located generating facilities that make up the Solar Star project for the owner of the project, BHE Solar — which is a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, which is, of course, one of the investment arms of the famous investor Warren Buffet.

The electricity produced by the project is being purchased by the utility Southern California Edison under a long-term PPA (power purchase agreement). The specifics of the agreement haven’t been publicly disclosed.

The reason that this news appears to be coming a bit out of nowhere is that the project is now running around 6 months ahead of schedule. That’s the kind of thing a company likes to share on an earnings call.

Once completed, the project will provide (according to SunPower) enough electricity to power roughly 255,000 Californian homes — as well as allow SunPower to take the top spot from First Solar. The largest soar power plant in the world currently is First Solar’s 550 MW project (two of them actually) in California.

Image Credit: SunPower

February 28, 2015 0 comment

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