German PV and battery equipment supply Manz has booked an order to provide a pilot line to a U.S. lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery producer. The booking is for Manz’s laser welding process, which the company says can increase quality and performance of the batteries, while reducing production costs.

A new White Paper released today, prepared by GTM Research and Meister Consultants Group, outlines the wide range of system costs and policies amongst the island nations of the region. Jamaica has the widest residential system price range in the region, with prices from between US$2.50/W to $8.00/W reported.

New York Governor Cuomo signed into law a tax exemption on electricity generated and sold from ”customer-site” solar systems today. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) has applauded the move in making the state “solar friendly.”

German laser systems provider InnoLas Solutions has reported that its 2014 bookings have shown an increase on 2013, on the back of orders for its Ultrafast PERC equipment. It reports bookings of over 1 GW of upgrades in Q1 2015.

German-based solar manufacturer SolarWorld has recorded a 26% increase in revenues in 2014, up to €573 million (US$625 million). In 2015 the company expects to record revenues of €700 million ($763 million).

Analyst group IHS predicts that 11 national solar markets will grow to more than 1 GW p.a. of solar demand by 2019, resulting in a more stable market of more than 75 GW p.a. IHS predicts total installed capacity to reach 500 GW in the same timeframe.

Chinese solar manufacturer JinkoSolar will add 500 MW of solar cell and 450 MW of module manufacturing capacity in Penang, Malaysia. Jinko has signed a lease for factory space and will invest US$100 million in new tooling.

China’s National Energy Administration has announced that it will boost its 2015 solar target to 17.8 GW. The NEA has cited the need to, “stabilize and expand the solar application market,” as the reason for the move.

Module manufacturer REC will partner with Singaporean utility PacificLight Energy (PLE) to deliver commercial PV systems. The program is called “PLEdge to RECharge Green Energy Program.”

Japanese CIGS manufacturer and project developer Solar Frontier has signed a deal to supply 100 MW to Indian solar developer Welspun. No timeline for module shipments has been announced, however Welspun reports that it targets installing 1 GW of combined solar and wind capacity in 2015.