Monthly Archives: June 2009

Right now, Yingli can produce solar electricity for RMB1.1 to 1.3/kwh, depending on weather conditions

Posted on June 3, 2009 | Leave a comment

Yingli spokesman Li Wei

Suntech Chairman Shi Zhengrong said China would achieve solar electricity costs as low as to RMB1/kwh by 2012. Yingli also are aiming to reduce the cost of solar power to RMB1/kwh by 2012.

In June 2008, Yingli Green won a 62-megawatt project in Portugal, the largest solar energy project in the world so far.

About 50 MW of installed solar capacity was added in China in 2008, more than double the 20 MW in 2007, but still a relatively small amount. According to some studies, the demand in China for new solar modules could be as high as 232 MW each year from now on until 2012. The government has announced plans to expand the installed capacity to 1,800 MW by 2020.

By way of comparison, 3,800 MW of solar capacity are estimated to have been installed in Germany in 2007.

Officials at Yingly denies the rumors that Yingli Green Energy and SDIC Huajing Power have submitted a joint bid to build a 10-MW solar power plant in Dunhuang in northwest China at a price as low as RMB0.69/kwh (US$0.1/kwh)….  .

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Posted in Asia, China, Technologies

The German Jülich Solar Tower facility, uses an open volumetric-style air receiver capable of withstanding temperatures of as much as 1,200 C and higher

Posted on June 2, 2009 | Leave a comment

The top floor of the 60 meters tall tower houses the solar receiver and boiler. 2,150 heliostats, each 8 square meters in size, reflect solar energy and can produce a total of 8 MW thermal energy, which translates to 1.5 MW electric energy.

The heated air either goes to the boiler as part of the steam cycle or else is directed to thermal storage. Using thermal energy stored in a ceramic heat sink, the Jülich facility can produce its full 1.5 MW output for up to an hour, which could be useful in starting the facility each morning.

So far two solar facilities have been built in Spain, the so-called PS 10, an 11 MW saturated steam facility that began operating in 2007, and PS 20, a 20 MW facility that began operating in April. The German Jülich Solar Tower facility is a 1.5MW project. Next to be announced and operative later this month is the Aora 100KW Samar facility (at Eilot region, Israel), based on innovative receiver and a dual purpose micro-gas turbine, so no use of steam at all. This would be the most advanced solar tower facility worldwide…. Stay tuned for details.

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Posted in Europe, Israel, Technologies

Residential and commercial photovoltaic projects will continue to be important stimulants for job creation and small business growth, but they will be complemented by large-scale photovoltaic and concentrating solar power projects

Posted on June 2, 2009 | Leave a comment

Mike Taylor, director of research and education at The Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA).

“The variety of ways solar power is being implemented signals an increased maturity in the market…”We are working with many creative companies to find utility business models that provide solid financial returns, increased renewable energy adoption and customer benefits”.

http://downloads.pennnet.com/sepa/sepa.pdf

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Posted in Conferences, Europe, Israel, Technologies, Thoughts, U.S.

“We must move beyond having 93 percent of all grid-connected solar installations in just 10 utilities’ service territories”

Posted on June 2, 2009 | Leave a comment

Julia Hamm, executive director of the Solar Electric Power Association

This year’s Solar Electric Power Association report,  based on the 2008 Utility Solar Electricity Survey completed by utilities in April 2009, catalogs how much solar electricity was interconnected by surveyed utilities in calendar year 2008 and what was installed cumulatively up through the end of 2008, including both photovoltaics and concentrating solar power.

This year’s report shows that 2008 solar power growth came almost entirely from thousands of distributed generation projects, which grow more steadily and consistently than centralized plants. However, SEPA anticipates that in future years centralized solar electric plants will play an equal or larger role.

The report shows an average increase of 2 MW per participating utility over the twelve months of 2008. Participating utilities had an average of 11 MW in their cumulative portfolio, and the Top Ten utilities represented 93 percent of all solar capacity.

The entire report could be seen at: http://downloads.pennnet.com/sepa/sepa.pdf

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Posted in Conferences, Technologies, U.S.

start now a global priority shift

Posted on June 2, 2009 | Leave a comment

Taking over GM is an ultimate opportunity to start a global priority shift and developing, designing and building clean energy technologies and infrastructure. A GLOBAL PRIORITY SHIFT is a MUST. GM could survive and even prosper and we all gain from getting clean energy in place. Join the www.OilAway.org

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Posted in Africa, Asia, China, Europe, Israel, Politics, Technologies, Thoughts, U.S.

FSLR today fell $1.23, or 0.7%, to $189.06.

Posted on June 1, 2009 | Leave a comment

Posted by Eric Savitz

First Solar (FSLR) announced in March that it will buy privately held OptiSolar’s project development business for $400 million in stock.

The company said the OptiSolar project pipeline includes a 550 MW AC solar development project under a power purchase agreement with Pacific Gas & Electric (PCG). First Solar said the pipeline also includes 1,300 MW AC in negotiation with Western region utilities for solar development projects, as well as “strategic land rights” for 136,000 acres – about 210 square miles – “with the potential to deploy up to 19 GW AC of utility-scale power projects.”

First Solar said the core development team which worked on the projects will join the company.

The company said the deal is expected to close in Q2.

However, today it was reported at the Los Angeles Times that  The U.S. Department of the Interior’s inspector general has begun an investigation of the First Solar (FSLR) acquisition of Opti-Solar, including  acquisition of Opti-Solar’s applications for strategic land rights to 136,000 acres of public land in San Bernardino, Riverside and Kern counties in California.

Actually, what First Solar originally announced was that the deal included the strategic land rights to that acreage. But according to the Times, official from the Bureau of Land Management say that Opti-Solar has only filed applications for the right to develop that land. Applications that had not yet been approved.

 

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Posted in Politics, Technologies, U.S.

Chinese ministry of Finance is assiting local solar companies

Posted on June 1, 2009 | Leave a comment

Solar companies in Changzhou may have a real advantage on competitors due to China’s national solar investment subsidy program, which is expected to commence this year, and local Jiangsu subsidy program, which is viewed as a model provincial incentive program to potentially compliment the national subsidies.

Fro more details: solar@ags-tech.com

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Posted in China, Technologies

Bids are due by July 24 2009 for Alabama Power Requests Renewable Power Resources

Posted on June 1, 2009 | Leave a comment

Howard Smith, Alabama Power’s manager of resource planning:

“Developing practical renewable power resources is important to the company and our customers; we hope this RFP will yield new ideas and cost-effective solutions for providing renewable power resources in Alabama.”

Alabama is looking for all kind of renewable energy sources (solar, wind, biomass, landfill gas, hydro etc.) 100kw up to 100MW, as well as carbon allowances.

Proposals will be considered on two parameters:  dollars per kilowatt-year ($/kW-year) for capacity and dollars per megawatt-hour ($/MWh) for energy.

There is a bidder’s fee of $500 – but it seems attractive to purchase.

The minimum terms and conditions required are attached to the RFP at: http://www.alabamapower.com/residential/pdf/Alabama_Power_Renewable_Energy_RFP.pdf

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Posted in Technologies, U.S.