New arrivals transforming the market
PV inverter market: Inverter shipments reached an almost unbelievable 26 GW in 2011, according to preliminary results from IMS Researchs Quarterly PV Inverter Tracker which collects sales and shipment data from 45 major manufacturers. IMS Researchs Ash Sharma looks at what 2012 has in store and which new arrivals are worth keeping an eye on in the near future.
New installations
India market update: The last quarter of 2011, according to India Solar Compass, saw an additional 93 megawatts of PV installations in India. Bridge to Indias Mohit Anand provides an update on the status of installations there.
Out of the shadows
Concentrated photovoltaics: CPV is not a new technology, but it is beginning to have its place in the sun as a bankable form of solar power generation. In the MENA region and places with higher direct irradiation it is growing and companies are beginning to fill the CPV supply niche. But are there sufficient advantages for CPV to emerge, out of the shadows?
Out of the shadows
Concentrated photovoltaics: CPV is not a new technology, but it is beginning to have its place in the sun as a bankable form of solar power generation. In the MENA region and places with higher direct irradiation it is growing and companies are beginning to fill the CPV supply niche. But are there sufficient advantages for CPV to emerge, out of the shadows?
Out of the shadows
Concentrated photovoltaics: CPV is not a new technology, but it is beginning to have its place in the sun as a bankable form of solar power generation. In the MENA region and places with higher direct irradiation it is growing and companies are beginning to fill the CPV supply niche. But are there sufficient advantages for CPV to emerge, out of the shadows?
Out of the shadows
Concentrated photovoltaics: CPV is not a new technology, but it is beginning to have its place in the sun as a bankable form of solar power generation. In the MENA region and places with higher direct irradiation it is growing and companies are beginning to fill the CPV supply niche. But are there sufficient advantages for CPV to emerge, out of the shadows?
Out of the shadows
Concentrated photovoltaics: CPV is not a new technology, but it is beginning to have its place in the sun as a bankable form of solar power generation. In the MENA region and places with higher direct irradiation it is growing and companies are beginning to fill the CPV supply niche. But are there sufficient advantages for CPV to emerge, out of the shadows?
Power for Paradise
Caribbean: Despite high insolation levels, photovoltaics in the Caribbean have remained in the shadows until now. But as prices fall, more and more Caribbean nations are coming up with feed-in tariffs of their own.
Price decline expected
Factory gate prices: In February, Chinese modules were sold at US$0.835 per watt, while module prices of European suppliers were between US$0.96 and US$1.13 per watt. In all regions, prices are expected to further decrease during the next months.
Pyranometers, reference cells: the difference
Utility-scale PV: Even tiny changes in predicted output can have a big impact on a utility-scale power plants bottom line. As such, a small reduction in uncertainty can make a big difference. The best way to accurately determine PV efficiency is explored in this article, the first part of a two-part series, from PV Evolution Labs, which compares pyranometers and reference cells.
