Tag Archives: Solar

Thinking Neutral: Small Towns Look to Renewables to Reduce Reliance on the Grid By Dave Levitan The town of Fowler, Colo., (pop. 1,087) sits in a 150-mile corridor between Pueblo and the Kansas border that boasts about half a million head of cattle. A few years ago, Fowler, like much of the country, faced a difficult economy and rising energy …

May Reach US$20/kg in 2012 According to EnergyTrend, a research division of TrendForce, polysilicon spot price is closing in on major vendors’ manufacturing cost – this week’s spot price has already fallen below the US$23/kg mark, but vendors indicate polysilicon price is gradually stabilizing. TrendForce believes polysilicon price may hit US$20/kg this year, but as first-tier makers are standing firm …

Top 10 Utilities Reported Adding More Than 1,000 MW of Solar Capacity Today, SEPA released the findings of 2011 Top 10 Utility Solar Rankings survey. According to the findings, utilities interconnected more than 62,000 PV systems of all sizes in 2011. These new systems resulted in almost 1,500 megawatts of new utility solar capacity, more than twice as much as …

Your clients may hold some common misconceptions about how to begin conserving energy in their homes. In this article, I hope to debunk a few of those misconceptions. An audit from a company like EnergyLink is a good place to begin; it shows homeowners where to concentrate. A report called Driving Demand for Home Energy Improvements looked at successful and …

Solar thermal startup BrightSource Energy has shelved its year-long plans for an initial public offering amid a turbulent stock market, a challenging year for solar energy companies and tepid interest from investors. The Oakland, Calif.-based company issued a news release late Wednesday saying it had decided not to pursue its IPO due to “adverse market conditions” and intends to withdraw …

Lesson Learned, Solar Manufacturers No Longer Slashing Price to Bring In Orders According to EnergyTrend, a research division of TrendForce, slowed demand on the German market, the uncertainty towards the future market in Italy, and unclear demand in other regions has resulted in fewer deals on the spot market. However, the situation is an improvement over last year – as …

An energy-hungry Earth is in need of transformational and sustainable energy solutions, experts say. For decades, researchers have been appraising the use of power-beaming solar-power satellites. But the projected cost, complexity and energy economics of the notion seemingly short-circuited the idea. Now, a unique new approach has entered the scene, dubbed SPS-ALPHA, short for Solar Power Satellite via Arbitrarily Large …

Committed to sustainability and preserving the environment, The Cliff House Resort & Spa has installed one of Maine’s largest solar thermal systems. The installation uses 2,100 tubes on 70 collectors. That’s 10 times the size of an average solar project. The solar installation will save an estimated 11,000 gallons of propane annually and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than …

PV America 2012 West Celebrates The inaugural PV America West conference and trade show concluded on March 21 with more than 160 exhibitors showcasing the products and technologies driving the PV solar energy industry in the western region in 2012. Presented by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)® and the Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA), the show offered an extensive …

Mix of GIS, technical and financing advice helps countries shift from high-carbon imports to low-carbon domestic energy By embracing an integrated mix of renewable energy, energy efficiency, and grid technologies, countries can put their energy systems on a more sustainable path while developing economically, according to a new report from the Worldwatch Institute. The report, Sustainable Energy Roadmaps: Guiding the …

Valley of the Sun YMCA to Activate 1.6 Megawatt (MW) Multi-Facility Solar Program Across 16 Arizona Y-Locations ~Local Officials Join Valley of the Sun YMCA, Scout Solar, and Centrosolar America for Ribbon Cutting Dedication in Scottsdale, Arizona~ Today, the Valley of the Sun YMCA, Scout Solar, LLC, Centrosolar America, and the City of Scottsdale celebrated the deployment of 66.55 kilowatts …

At this weeks PV America show in San Jose CA we caught up with SEPA CEO Julia Hamm for a discussion of the state of the solar power industry and where she thinks things are going in this alternative energy business. While price drops in the last year have certainly sparked a great deal of interest in solar projects there …

March 21, 2012—The U.S. Department of Commerce has reached a preliminary decision regarding anti-dumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) petitions against Chinese solar makers. Punitive duties on imports to the U.S. are set below 5%, lower than generally expected – Suntech will face tariffs of 2.9%, Changzhou Trina Solar Energy 4.73%, and all other Chinese manufacturers 3.59%. The U.S.’s anti-dumping …

Alternative Energy HQ attended the PV America show this week in San Jose CA to get an inside look at the solar power generation industry and what the leaders in PV think about the future of solar energy development. We spoke with a number of business leaders at the show and in coming days we will be featuring those discussions. …

New Report Finds U.S. Solar Energy Installations Soared by 109% in 2011 to 1,855 Megawatts Today, GTM Research and SEIA® release U.S. Solar Market Insight: Year-­in-­Review 2011, analyzing the industry’s record growth and what lies ahead in 2012 and beyond. The U.S. solar energy industry installed a record 1,855 megawatts (MW) of photovoltaic (PV) capacity in 2011, more than doubling …

Dramatic increase in solar use witnessed over two decades Washington, D.C. March 19, 2012 2012 marks the 20th Anniversary of the Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA). During that time, solar energy has advanced from a niche resource with limited applications to a significant energy source for electric utilities and their customers across the U.S. In 1992, a new organization was …

Centrosolar America Invites PV America West Attendees in San Jose, March 19-21 to Experience a New, Seamless Way of Doing Business~ Company to Introduce the First Phase of Centro-Pack.com at Booth # 329 Simplifying How Solar Installers Configure and Order Complete PV Solar Systems~ Scottsdale, AZ—March 19, 2012— Centrosolar America, the U.S. subsidiary of Centrosolar Group AG, in Munich, Germany, …

New Energy Technologies, Inc. and US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory Develop ‘Invisible Wires’ for Transporting Electricity on SolarWindow(TM) New Energy Technologies, Inc. (OTCQB: NENE), a developer of innovative technologies for generating sustainable electricity, announces that Company and NREL scientists collaboratively developing New Energy’s SolarWindow(TM) technology – capable of generating electricity on see-through glass – have successfully collected …

SoloPower Sets Record for Flexible CIGS Solar Panel Efficiency SoloPower Flexible Panel Measured at 13.4% Aperture Efficiency by National Renewable Energy Laboratory SoloPower, a San Jose, California-based manufacturer of flexible thin film solar cells and modules, announced today that its next generation panel has achieved an aperture area efficiency of 13.4%, a record for flexible copper, indium, gallium and (di)selenide …

With the effects of global warming becoming ever more noticeable its now even more important to do our bit for the environment. Most people are unsure where to begin but the best thing is that it can be done right now in your own home with minimal effort. The effects of becoming significantly more eco-friendly is not only valuable to …