SunPower to lay off 150-250 workers, blames Section 201
The company’s latest restructuring will involve losing roughly 3% of its global workforce, all in “non-manufacuring” positions.
First Solar sold out well into 2020
The thin film PV maker forecasts its new Series 6 PV module to begin mass production in Ohio in Q2 – with 1GW expected to be manufactured globally in 2018. The company also increased its 2018 guidance.
US trade authorities provide details on exemptions to solar import duties
Solar PV makers seeking exemptions to Section 201 duties must make them by March 16, but there is no guarantee that any will be granted.
Solar trackers: Record 2017 shipments; up to 20 GW expected in 2018
Last year saw record levels of global solar tracker shipments, reports GTM Research. It forecasts even bigger growth in 2018, despite continued consolidation. NEXTracker held on to the top spot once again, while Latin America became the biggest market.
First Solar to build the largest solar plant in the US South
Georgia Power has awarded a power contract to the PV maker and developer under its latest solicitation. The project will utilize First Solar’s large-format Series 6 modules.
US researchers get the lead out of perovskites
Scientists led by Brown University have developed perovskite solar cells, which replace the toxic lead common to many of these material structures with titanium. The researchers say that with further optimization, the material could eventually be ideal for use as a tandem cell layer.
Solar to lead global renewables growth for next five years — KPMG
Investors throughout the world made 406 investments in large-scale renewables in 2017, collectively valued at roughly €40.1 billion (US$49.5 billion), but solar is set to grow more in terms of capacity than any other clean-energy technology over the next half decade, according to a new report. Battery storage will play a crucial role in this, it found.
US imports of Chinese solar climbed sharply in Q4
1,200%. According to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, that’s how high imports of Chinese modules rose in the fourth quarter last year, in a desperate attempt to stockpile sufficient numbers before tariffs choked off international supplies.
US regulators open markets to energy storage
As the conclusion of a 15-month rule-making, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) will require grid operators to value the contributions of energy storage, and begins a process to look at how aggregated distributed energy resources can compete in wholesale markets.
Chinese companies lead global solar developer rankings
State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC) and GCL New Energy have taken the top spots for installed capacity, but Canadian Solar and First Solar are showing impressive pipelines.
