The future of PV will lie in incremental changes to drive up conversion efficiencies, according to Arno Stassen, the head of business opportunity development at Heraeus. And in good news, continues the technologist from the metal paste supplier, these gains will have a major impact on reducing the LCOE of solar electricity and making the technology more widely accessible and independent from government subsidies.

U.S.-based solar manufacturing equipment supply group Amtech has revealed its highest earnings for three years in Q4 2014. Its solar supply sector booked US$21 million for the quarter, out of total bookings of $30 million.

Toronto-based Just Energy has signed a long term agreement with Clean Power Finance (CPF) to roll out rooftop solar to its 1.6 million customers. The deal will provide a finance platform for Just Energy to provide solar leases, loans and PPAs to its established customer base.

pv magazine editor in chief Jonathan Gifford chats with Jenny Chase of BNEF about the growing prominence of distributed generation in leading solar markets.

Access Power MEA and EREN have announced the launch of Access Infra Africa, a US$500 million investment vehicle to fund renewable energy projects across the continent. Access Infra Africa will have a strong focus on solar.

Renewable energy and sustainability advisory DNV GL has signed a four-year deal to supply performance testing for U.S. government agency ARPA-E. The testing will validate the performance, reliability and safety of grid-tied storage technologies for which Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) is providing funding.

Dutch research spinoff SoLayTec has announced that Hanwha Q Cells has begun evaluating its atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology. The InPassion ALD can be deployed for PERC upgrades and n-type cell production.

Solar lease provider Sunrun has raised $195 million in senior credit facilities with Investec to support the rollout of its residential solar packages. The leasing company says it will reduce the cost of capital.

Germany’s Mounting Systems has acquired HatiCon from global aluminum supplier Sapa. The firms have not disclosed the purchase price.

Data released today by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) reveals that investment in clean energy rose in 2014, growing 16% year-on-year. Solar investment grew 25% in 2014, totaling $149.6 billion.