Markets & Policy

During the second day of Solarpraxis’ “Energy Storage” event in Germany’s Düsseldorf, it was claimed that the storage bottleneck needs to be broken, in order to develop large-scale storage solutions, which are critical to the future dominance of both solar and wind.

2011 was a year of extremes for the solar industry: record installations; a dramatic fall in module prices; and a plethora of companies closing their doors. Going forward, indications are that 2012 will remain extremely challenging, with the industry having been firmly caught in the crosshairs of Europe’s economic crisis. Continued oversupply and less installed capacity are to be expected.

Off-grid photovoltaic system provider, Eight19 has picked up an award, as Climate Week kicked off across the U.K. yesterday. The company, which has pioneered a pay-as-you go solar system in Africa, was named Best Initiative for Small or Medium-Sized Business.

The first day has drawn to a close at Solarpraxis’ Energy Storage conference in Germany’s Düsseldorf. Following calls from Germany’s Environment Minister to rapidly develop storage technology in the country, there is a belief that Germany is well-positioned to become an energy storage technology hotspot.

A new U.S. entrant to the silicon-cell machinery market, Twin Creeks Technologies, today released a wafer production system that it claims can produce solar cells for less than US$0.40 per Watt (/W).

In its efforts to make a quick course correction, the German ship of state may inadvertently be navigating into turbulent straits that could capsize its own solar industry. At particular threat are the module manufacturers. The residential market segment is also expected to contract significantly

The U.S. state of California is well on the way to overachieving its 2020 aim to generate 33 percent of its electricity from renewables, in fact by almost double. Of this, photovoltaics accounts for nearly half. There are issues, however, such as interconnection and grid infrastructure, which still need to be ironed out.

According to a new study, many photovoltaic systems bigger than 10 kilowatts (kW) achieved grid parity with commercial retail electricity prices in 2011. This has resulted in a spike in projects and, thus, jobs. Both declining costs and the state’s favorable policies are said to be driving growth.

As some companies layoff staff in an attempt to contain costs, U.S. flexible CIGS manufacturer, Solopower is searching for staff for its Oregon fab’s expansion.

Germany’s parliament today held the first round of meetings aimed at amending the photovoltaic incentives under the country’s Renewable Energy Act (EEG). As expected, the opposition rejected the new proposals. The CDU and FDP also agreed to rethink fast tracking tariff cuts.