Solar module price cuts stimulate massive growth in US PV project pipeline

SAN FRANCISCO, USA: Large cuts in factory gate module prices over the summer have resulted in a significant increase in photovoltaic (PV) project development activity in the US. After standing at 17 gigawatts (GW) two months ago, the US non-residential pipeline has now increased to 24 GW.

The September 2011 edition of the United States Deal Tracker database released by Solarbuzz this week identifies 1,865 non-residential projects totaling 25.9 GW either installed, being installed or in their development phase since January 1, 2010. Development phase projects include pre-RFP, going through the RFP process, or planned without RFP.

California currently accounts for 61 percent of the total US project pipeline, stimulated by the state’s aggressive 33 percent Renewable Portfolio Standard target, and benefiting from the recent trend of solar projects reallocated from concentrated solar power to PV. The top six state pipelines in megawatt terms are California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, New Jersey, and New Mexico; in total, 44 states now contribute to the pipeline.Source: Solarbuzz United States Deal Tracker.

Utility-driven project activity is now evident across 35 states, while other non-residential projects below 1 MW remain an important segment of the market, accounting for 771 projects being monitored. The fast-developing non-residential segment has created an important and growing opportunity for project developers, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) companies. The top 12 project developers currently account for 51 percent of the total pipeline.

The collapse in US factory-gate module prices over the past four months is only now starting to impact utility project prices, much more than system sizes below one megawatt. One-fifth of the installed system prices above one megawatt are now $3.75 per watt STC DC (Standard Test Conditions, Direct Current) or below.

“Utility expectations for improved installed pricing measured either in per watt peak or kilowatt hour have vastly increased over the past quarter,” said Craig Stevens, President, Solarbuzz. “The result is more RFPs and an acceleration of PV orders.”

For those projects in the pipeline that have selected their module suppliers, the top three suppliers in MW terms are First Solar, SunPower and Suntech Power. Yingli Green, Sharp and SolarWorld are increasing their presence in non-residential projects. The leading inverter suppliers to the pipeline remain Advanced Energy and SatCon Technology.

RED BANK, USA: The US Patent Office has awarded patent no. 7,999,176 B2 to Natcore Technology Inc. (TSX-V; NXT; NTCXV.PK) for a solar cell structure that uses carbon nanotubes to improve cell performance. Approved in April, this patent was issued on August 16.

This patent, and the three earlier foundational patents on which it is based, cover a liquid phase deposition (LPD) process for growing inorganic films on silicon. One of these earlier patents is at the heart of Natcore's businesses, particularly in the photovoltaic area.

The patent abstract reads as follows: "Improved photovoltaic devices and methods are disclosed. In one embodiment, an exemplary photovoltaic device includes a semiconductor layer and a light-responsive layer (which can be made, for example, of a semiconductor material) which form a junction, such as a p-n junction. The light-responsive layer can include a plurality of carbon nanostructures, such as carbon nanotubes, located therein.

"In many cases, the carbon nanostructures can provide a conductive pathway within the light-responsive layer. In other embodiments, exemplary photovoltaic devices include semiconductor nanostructures, which can take a variety of forms, in addition to the carbon nanostructures. Further embodiments include a wide variety of other configurations and features. Methods of fabricating photovoltaic devices are also disclosed."

Natcore plans to continue development work on thin-film solar cells at its Research and Development Center, located in Kodak's Eastman Business Park, Rochester, NY. There it will have access to roll-to-roll manufacturing machinery formerly used to produce Eastman Kodak's photo film.

Chuck Provini, Natcore's president and CEO, says: "This patent, together with our recent success with an all-quantum-dot tandem solar cell, demonstrates that Natcore has taken a quantum leap forward in our push for high-efficiency thin-film solar cells. They are critical components in our program that aims to double the efficiency of solar cells and to halve their cost."

The patent was assigned to Vanguard Solar, which was acquired by Natcore Technology in March 2010. Thus Natcore now solely owns the patent, along with Vanguard's other intellectual property. This US patent award provides Natcore with intellectual property protection for its nanostructured solar cells in the world's largest and most important markets.

Oerlikon Solar launches new record-breaking module

TRUBBACH, SWITZERLAND: Oerlikon Solar launched a new record-breaking module with 154 (peak) watts (W) of stabilized module output and 10.8 percent efficiency. This represents an increase of 8 percent over the previous peak value. The record module will be ready for use on Oerlikon Solar's existing ThinFabTM lines by early 2013. This is when customers will also be able to manufacture it themselves, resulting in considerably lower production costs.

"We are committed to investing in research and development in order to further reduce production costs for solar modules, and to make photovoltaics an economically viable energy source," explains Helmut Frankenberger, CEO of Oerlikon Solar. "The new record indicates how advanced our thin film silicon technology is."

Oerlikon Solar is one of the world's largest developers and producers of field-proven, automated, turnkey production lines and equipment for the mass production of environmentally sustainable thin film silicon modules. In addition to making continual improvements in efficiency, the company has also succeeded in further lowering production costs for solar modules.

With the 120 MW-ThinFab line, Oerlikon Solar has successfully lowered production costs for modules to under EUR 0.50/Wp, nearly less than half of the previous generation. These lower production costs can be primarily attributed to the ability of production lines to manufacture increasingly thinner films with optimized material usage.

The photovoltaics end market is currently concentrated on Europe, United States, and Japan. Oerlikon Solar is expecting Asia to be a region with high growth potential in the future, after recently receiving its first order for a ThinFabTM line from an Asian customer.

First Solar announces agreement for 100MW module supply with Reliance Power

TEMPE, USA: First Solar, a leading provider of photovoltaic (PV) system solutions, announced a 100 megawatt (MW) solar module supply agreement with Reliance Power.

First Solar will deliver 40MW of advanced thin film modules to Reliance Power by the end of 2011 for its solar power project in Jaisalmer, which will supply renewable electricity to Mumbai. The delivery of the remaining 60MW is expected be completed in 2012. This agreement is the largest PV module supply agreement in India to date.

"We are delighted to collaborate with Reliance Power, one of India's leading independent power producers," said Jim Brown, president of First Solar's Utility Systems Business Group. "With strong growth projections, India is expected to become one of the world's major solar markets, due to its abundant solar resource and significant energy demand. This agreement with Reliance Power continues First Solar's momentum in India, helping develop the country's long-term, sustainable solar market," Brown added.

The US Export-Import Bank approved an $84.3 million direct loan on Aug. 25 to Reliance Power's Dahanu Solar Power Pvt. unit to purchase First Solar panels for the first 40MW of the project.

OPEL Technologies selects investment bank for ODIS affiliate

SHELTON, USA & TORONTO, CANADA: OPEL Technologies Inc., a leading global supplier of high concentration photovoltaic solar panels, solar tracker systems and semiconductor device and process developer, announced that the company has selected GrowthPoint Technology Partners as advisors to the company.

GrowthPoint will assist the company in identifying and evaluating strategic options for the value optimization of ODIS' proprietary Planar Optoelectronic Technology semiconductor process. These options may potentially include the full or partial sale of the technology, as outlined in a previous announcement regarding the valuation of POET.

"We were impressed with GrowthPoint's outstanding track record of guidance provided to other semiconductor, defense and cleantech firms," noted Leon M. Pierhal, CEO of OPEL Technologies. "We are pleased to have GrowthPoint on board in this strategic advisory role to assist in optimizing and monetizing the shareholder value of the POET intellectual property portfolio."

POET is a semiconductor fabrication process which enables the monolithic fabrication of integrated circuits containing both electronic and optical elements. This III-V process, developed via OPEL's US affiliate ODIS Inc. and covered by numerous patents and patents pending, makes possible economic production of fully-integrated optoelectronic semiconductor devices with higher speeds and reduced power consumption compared to conventional silicon-based devices.

Based upon the advantages POET presents, a number of US Government Departments and Agencies are developing specific devices using the POET platform, including imaging sensors and ultra-low-power random access memory. These advances highlight POET's potential to address high-speed and low-power applications for commercial and consumer applications, included servers, tablet computers and smartphones. Recently, the POET technology was independently validated by BAE Systems, in their fabrication facility, when working transistors were created using the POET platform.

OPEL will continue to provide updates as new information becomes available, pursuant to full disclosure requirements.

KYOCERA solar modules provide 'fuel' for electric-powered cars and bikes in Germany

KYOTO, JAPAN & NEUSS, GERMANY: Kyocera Corp. has supplied its high-performance solar modules for a carport roofing installation in southern Germany which provides power for a charging station for electric cars and bikes. The system was designed and installed by BLU"e" Solar Group GmbH.

Electric-powered automobiles and bicycles are becoming increasingly popular in Germany as they provide a convenient and eco-friendly method of transportation. As a result, there is a growing need for charging stations to meet increased use. Furthermore, this solar-powered charging station is not only environmentally friendly but also economical; currently, charging at this location is free of charge to the public. The energy used to 'fill the tanks' comes from 248 high-efficiency 215-watt Kyocera solar modules, which produce an output of 53.32kW.

Kyocera modules provide excellent performance and high reliability which is demonstrated by the fact they are the first in the world to have passed the Long-Term Sequential Test performed by TUV Rheinland Japan. "We have selected Kyocera solar modules because we are impressed with the company's product quality," stated Werner Steinbrunner, managing director of the BLU"e" Solar Group GmbH.

This solar-powered charging station is just the latest in a long line of projects that Kyocera has been involved in that bring innovative alternative energy solutions to the market. For example, Kyocera solar modules also produce power while providing shade for cars at the Solar Grove in San Diego, California. In Japan, Kyocera introduced the Solar Cycle Station for charging electric bicycles; as well as the Eco-Shell co-developed with Sekisui Jushi Corporation — a multi-purpose solar-powered shelter for use in public places where shelters provide cover against the sun and rain such as bus & taxi stops, benches and walkway coverings.

"Solar Cycle Station" and "Eco-Shell" are the product names for the Japanese market. Both products are only available in Japan.

IEEE intros advanced metering standards for first time in India

BANGALORE, INDIA: IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA), a globally recognized standards setting body within IEEE, officially introduced two new standards IEEE 1701 and IEEE 1702, to create a multi source plug and play communications environment for implementation of diverse smart metering devices, for the first time in India.

While deployment of smart meters and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) has been recognized as an important steps towards Smart Grid implementation and enhancing power efficiency in India, the issue of interoperability has significantly impacted the pace and quantity of smart meter roll out. With the introduction of the two standards, IEEE-SA aims to help address this basic issue.

The IEEE 1701 and IEEE 1702 standards provide lower layer communication protocols for LAN/WAN ports and telephone ports, respectively, used in conjunction with utility metering. Both standards solve the problems associated with single source systems and with multi-source systems based upon proprietary communications protocols. Electric, water, and gas utilities and corresponding vendors can realize cost savings which ultimately shall benefit the client consumers of the utilities.

Smart meters will help provide automated real time meter reading and billing information, two way communications between the utility and the smart meter, delivery of voltage and power quality data to the utility and automated alarms to alert the utilities to operational issues and attempted power theft. Energy industry, regulators and law makers have been discussing interoperability of smart metering systems in India and the need to introduce standards to help construct a secure communications infrastructure for advanced metering.

William Ash, Strategic Program Manager, IEEE Standards Association commented: “The IEEE 1701 and IEEE 1702 standards is important to the utility industry because it will enable for true interoperability and will help accelerate Smart Meter deployment in India. Interchangeable meters promote faster and wider deployments of smart Meters and supporting services. Utilities are hesitant to ask one smart meter manufacturer to supply all of its needs and typically rely on more than one."

Srikanth Chandrasekaran, Chair - India SIG, IEEE-SA, explained: “Given the current problems facing Indian utilities in terms of revenue collection and the potential for rebalancing peak load, there is considerable incentive for adoption of Smart meters on mass scale. The government’s current Restructured Accelerated Power Development and Reform Program is effectively a forerunner for a Smart Metering program, given that it includes the enablement of power systems via introduction of ICT (Information and Communication Technology), with the primary goal of mitigating losses associated with energy theft and operating inefficiencies.

“Adoption of the IEEE 1701 and IEEE 1702 standards by utilities will play a key role in determining the attributes and operating characteristics of advanced metering infrastructure in the country.”