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SOLAR ALTERNATIVE ENERGIESSOLAR ALTERNATIVE ENERGIES&&The Global Journal for Solar and Alternative Energy Manufacturing Professionals

NoN-coNTAcT JETTING for APPLyING fLux oN SoLAr cELLSPLuS: ALTErNATIvE ENErGy buSINESS cycLE: A NEw chAPTEr • Wind and solar poWer have GrEATEST bENEfITS IN EASTErN states • a Quiet revolution in energy reform takes hold • and more

volume 6 Number 5 September/october 2013

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contentsVolume 6, No. 5

September/October 2013

EDITORIAL2 Governments are once again turning their attention to PV Trevor Galbraith

FEATURE6 Non-contact jetting for applying flux on solar cells Terry Dunbar, Nordson EFD

SPECIAL FEATURES 8 Wind and solar power have greatest health and climate benefits in Eastern states9 POWERING UP AMERICA: A Quiet Revolution in Energy Reform Takes Hold Across the Nation18 Interview—Andy London, Heraeus 20 Solar powers future for Los Angeles-area family22 Thirsty energy production on “collision course” with climate-imperiled water supply

REGULAR COLUMNS 10 Alternative energy business cycle: a new chapter begins Jon Custer-Topai

OTHER REGULAR FEATURES4 Industry news21 New products24 Events28 International diary

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Editorial officesEuropeGlobal Solar & Alternative EnergiesTrafalgar Publications LtdCrown House, 72 Hammersmith Rd, Hammersmith, London, W14 8THUnited KingdomTel: +44 (0) 207 559 1467 Fax: +44 (0) 207 559 [email protected]

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AdvertisingSee page 32.

Editorial

Governments are once again turning their attention to Pv

The global downturn created many headaches for the PV industry, which to this day relies heavily on

government subsidies and incentives to survive. The demise of Lehman Brothers was five years ago this month, but the first real signs of the global meltdown reaching our shores was Spain in 2010. In early 2010, the Spanish government was forced to pull back on the feed-in tariffs that had been fuelling the precipitous growth of solar installations. This led to the initial inventory excess that started the freefall of silicon and a shake out of the manufac-turing industry.

Many other governments followed suit and wound down their existing feed-in tariff system or put solar investment incen-tives on the back burner indefinitely.

But, the United States and some European countries are now reporting increasing signs of “green shoots”. This is resulting in increased optimism and a return to clean energy driven policies and incentives.

Going from west to east, California is now a major employer of solar related jobs with over 44,000 registered installers, an installed capacity of 3.76 MW. The California Energy Bill is making its way through the final stages of legislation and will almost certainly create a wave of new installations.

The European Union has recently

pulled back from imposing business restricting duties on cells and modules coming from China.

In the United Kingdom, the Green Party kicked off their election campaign this week by announcing that every law they pass should be clean energy motivated.

Brunei, Poland and the state of Gujarat in India have all recently announced feed-in tariffs or other incentives to boost solar.

Overall, the industry is sitting in a good position and ready to start the next growth phase. With silicon prices 50% of their 2010 level and the incremental advances in cell efficiencies, the next phase will not be quite as dynamic as the nineties explosive growth, but it will be far more sustainable.

—Trevor GalbraithEditor-in-Chief

Global Solar & Alternative [email protected]

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Advanced Process Control helps improve the output of your plant as well as the quality of the products. Totally Integrated Power, energy-efficient drive techno logy, and the recycling of waste heat make a real difference when it comes to minimizing energy consumption. Siemens Industry Software supports the design of inno vative prod-ucts and highly efficient production lines. The comprehen-sive approach of our Plant-wide Integrated Solutions helpsyou shorten the time to market and improve your plant’s productivity.

Plant-wide Integrated Solutions for the glass & solar industry In the glass & solar industry, factories need to operate at the highest level of productivity in order to remain profitable throughout their entire life cycle. Products have to be brought to market in a short time to meet the demand of the industry. Key to this is to identify and unleash a plant’s entire potential.Siemens’ Plant-wide Integrated Solutions contribute noticeably to sustainable business success. Standardized hard- and software based on Totally Integrated Automation reduce engineering effort as well as interfaces.

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4 – Global Solar & Alternative Energies – September/October 2013 www.globalsolartechnology.com

of Sales and Marketing. Responsible for the company’s marketing and sales teams, Christos will be based in the company’s head-office in Nantwich. His remit includes raising awareness of the business and its renewable technologies amongst key commercial sectors whilst accelerating the substantial growth of the Group in recent years. Christos joins TGE Group with more than 14 years’ experience in business-to-business marketing and business devel-opment in various sectors such as indus-trial engineering distribution and plastics manufacturing. www.tge-group.co.uk

Growth of Global Solar and wind Energy continues to outpace other Technologies Global use of solar and wind energy continued to grow significantly in 2012. Solar power consumption increased by 58 percent, to 93 terrawatt-hours (TWh), and the use of wind power increased by

Energy management is moving into the cfos remit says Justin vroone, Commercial director at IMServEnergy management and environmental sustainability historically have been part of a company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) but, according to Justin Vroone, Commercial Director at IMServ, there has been a radical shift away from the philanthropic into finance’s remit and companies’ bottom line. “It’s been a steady move away from CSR towards CFOs and finance professionals for a number of years, primarily driven by increased finan-cial and regulatory risk and rising energy costs.” www.imserv.com

TGE Group appoints new head of sales and marketingTGE Group has announced the appoint-ment of Christos Kottis as its new Head

18 percent, to 521 TWh. Although hydro-power remains the world’s leading renew-able energy, solar and wind continue to dominate investment in new renewable capacity and are quickly becoming the highest-profile renewable energy sources, write Worldwatch staff in the Institute’s latest Vital Signs Online trend.www.worldwatch.org

Europe’s largest energy storage trial launchedS&C Electric Europe, Samsung SDI and Younicos have signed a joint agreement to deploy Europe’s largest intelligent network storage project onto a UK Power Networks substation, saving over £6m on traditional network reinforcement methods. By providing frequency regulation as well as load shifting, the project will also stabilise the grid much more effectively than tradi-tional thermal generators, providing more space on the grid for clean, but intermittent renewable energies. www.younicos.com

xcel Energy plans to grow wind power by 30 percent

Xcel Energy proposes to significantly expand its wind power production to reduce customer costs, protect against rising and volatile fuel prices, and benefit the environment. The move is made possible by extremely competitive prices and the extended federal Production Tax Credit. The company has submitted to state regulators throughout its service area proposals to purchase at least 1,500 megawatts of wind resources, a 30 percent increase in overall wind capacity. www.xcelenergy.com

Industry newsIndustry news

Gehrlicher Solar America breaks Ground on 3 Megawatt Solar System on Scituate Landfill SiteGehrlicher Solar America Corporation, in cooperation with Main Street Power Company Inc., MS Solar Solutions Corp., Syncarpha Capital, and Brightfields Development, LLC along with the town of Scituate, Massachusetts, celebrated a groundbreaking ceremony of a 3 MWp solar system on June 18th. The Scituate solar array has a capacity of 3 MWp and is comprised of 10,560 solar panels and five inverters which, together with the 1.5 MWp wind turbine project commissioned in March 2012, makes Scituate, MA, the first town in Commonwealth 100% powered by renewable energy. www.gehrlicher.us


Industry news

New, cost-effective replacement for obsolete xantrex™ matrix inverters found in GE 1.5Mw S Series wind turbines

PSI Repair Services, Inc. introduced a new, cost-effective replacement today for obsolete Xantrex™ Matrix Inverters found in GE 1.5 MW S Series wind turbines. PSI’s replacement inverter is a form, fit and function solution with advanced fault detection and higher efficiency parts than the OEM design. The drop-in replacement inverter allows wind farms to supple-ment their inventory with more reliable,

longer-lasting technology while keeping their turbines online. PSI also offers repair services for Xantrex Matrix Inverters from GE 1.5MW S Series wind turbines.www.psi-repair.com

fraunhofer center for Energy Innovation (cEI) established in the uSATogether with the University of Connecticut (UConn), a new Fraunhofer center will be established on July 25th. The mission of the Fraunhofer Center for Energy Innovation (CEI) at the University of Connecticut is to develop advanced technologies related to energy storage, fuel cells, in-stream hydro, power management and distribution through contract research.www.fraunhofer.org/CenterforEnergyInnovation

Greenlancer closes $500,000 in ‘A’ round initial fundingDetroit-based GreenLancer.com announced today that it has secured an additional $222,500 to successfully complete its ‘A’ round financing of $500,000 in private funding from a syndicate of Michigan-based investors. Launched in 2011, GreenLancer.com combines state-of-

the-art cloud computing with its national network of green energy engineering free-lancers who are highly skilled at developing and engineering plans to meet clients’ diverse energy needs. www.greenlancer.com

rES Americas to develop and construct 200 Mw wind project for xcel EnergyRES America Developments Inc. is pleased to announce it is working with Xcel Energy to construct the 200 megawatt Pleasant Valley Wind Farm. The project is near Austin, Minnesota, adjacent to the Grand Meadow wind project owned by Xcel Energy. RES Americas will continue its role as developer and constructor of Pleasant Valley. Once the project is complete, RES Americas will transfer ownership of Pleasant Valley to Xcel Energy, who will own and operate the project. The develop-ment and construction will be completed by the end of 2015. www.res-americas.com

reneSola’s replus Inverters certified for sale in additional countriesReneSola Ltd announced that its string inverter, Replus, has formally obtained certification in an additional eight coun-tries, specifically the United States, Canada, Italy, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Sri Lanka and Thailand. ReneSola’s Replus 1.5-5kW single-phase and 10-20kW three-phase string inverters, which convert DC electricity from one or more strings of solar panels to AC electricity, received a number of certifications in July 2013.www.renesola.com

ballard signs supply agreement with Azure hydrogen for backup power systems in chinaBallard Power Systems has signed an equip-ment supply agreement (ESA) with Azure Hydrogen, Ballard’s partner in China, for the supply of 220 ElectraGenTM Telecom Backup Power fuel cell systems to be deployed in Chinese telecom networks. The agreement includes 120 direct hydrogen ElectraGenTM-H2 systems as well as 100 methanol fuelled ElectraGenTM-ME systems. All systems covered by the agree-ment are expected to be delivered to Azure in Q3 and Q4 of 2013. www.ballard.com

Continued on page 17

Emerson supplies inverters to 8 Mw solar park in ThailandEmerson has supplied inverters to a plant owned by Natural Energy Development Company, Ltd, which officially opened its 8 MW extension project, Wang Ploeng Solar, on May 29 2013. Emerson inverters were chosen because of their multi-master modular architecture, which enables the SPV to scale the inverter’s rated power capacity up and down to match demand, maintaining the inverter in its most efficient zone from early in the morning, to late in the day. www.Emerson.com


Non-contact jetting for applying flux on solar cells

Solar panel assemblies consist of solar cells that are formed together into a string. Cell strings are typically pre-

plated copper ribbons that are soldered to individual solar cells. They are used to provide the critical electrical connection that transmits power across individual cells onto the solar panel. Attaching the ribbon requires an extremely precise process. It involves thoroughly cleaning, deoxidizing, and prepping areas of each individual photovoltaic (PV) cell to better achieve a highly reliable solder attachment on which to connect the string. To prepare the cell’s surface, a liquid flux is applied to the contact area. The flux removes oxida-tion and contamination from the metalized surface of the cell and better enables the copper ribbon to bond. It is critical to apply the flux on the bus bar without allowing it to get on the cell’s light-collecting area.

Residue on the light absorbing surface blocks absorption and reduces power-generating capability. This paper presents the challenges of applying flux to bus bars and shows how a new high-speed, non-contact dispense valve has alleviated many of the common problems.

There are many types of flux and many application methods, but a key to forming a reliable intermetallic bond at the surface is process control. Flux can be applied by dipping the bus bar, brushing the surface of the PV cell, screening, spraying, or non-

contact jetting. Even within these methods there are varying ways of applying flux. Ideally, the flux should be deposited precisely and accurately to form a thin line on the bus bar.

There have been many application problems in applying flux. Methods that use an electronic solenoid to dispense a stream of fluid or those that pre-apply the flux by dipping the ribbon into fluid tanks do not allow for rapid evapora-tion of the flux due to the volume applied. Pre-applying flux often gums up the system so there are added cleaning costs. When disposable valves are used, the valves have to be changed in the field, reordered, and replaced. They create waste and are an on-going expense.

It is important that the flux be applied in a way that it can evaporate quickly. Rapid evaporation is necessary because following

Non-contact jetting for applying flux on solar cellsTerry Dunbar, Nordson EFD

It is critical to apply the flux on the bus bar without allowing it to get on the cell’s light-collecting area


Non-contact jetting for applying flux on solar cells

the application of flux the bus bar goes into the soldering station where the stringer ribbon is attached to the cell. If the flux is still wet, excessive fuming will occur. When fumes build up inside the machine, they get sucked up into the vacuum components and create a dangerous and unhealthy situa-tion. In addition, the solder machine has to be taken down to clean the residue from the reflow station that was created by the fumes from the flux. When flux is over-applied on the cell, there is often spillover of the flux onto unintended areas of the assembly. The flux can cause defects on the solar cell which can reduce overall cell efficiency.

Another outcome of excessive material application is that some of the flux may not activate during the solder process, which can become trapped and cause outgassing over time. Outgassing creates a bubble inside the module lamination that reflects light, reducing efficiency and causing hot spots on the cells. Since PV cells are very thin and susceptible to thermal expan-sion, these defects form localized stress areas and over time they can cause micro-cracking. Being that they are installed on rooftops, solar modules are used in extreme environments. Because solar cell systems are often guaranteed for 25 years, even small defects can become problem-atic. The guarantee will not hold up if the module carries latent defects due to non-activated fluxes, outgassing, or lamination bubbles.

Flux build-up on the nozzle and nozzle-clogging are other problems often encountered. Flux is basically a 3% rosin in an alcohol carrier fluid. As the carrier fluid evaporates there is crystal formation. For proper jetting there needs to be enough energy in the fluid deposit to expel the flux. When not enough energy is applied, crystals build up on the nozzle. The crystals deflect the fluid being dispensed and perturb the application pattern so the deposit misses the bus bar. If the applicator is not optimally designed, the valve orifice will have to be wiped clean several times a day, resulting in brief periods of non-productive maintenance.

Nordson EFD created the Square

Wave 745NC high-speed, non-contact dispensing valve specifically for high-precision applications of low viscosity fluids, such as flux. The valve jets a tight series of small liquid dots, at speeds up to 500Hz, to form a contin-uous thin line. The dot size can be tailored using inter-changeable ruby orifices that can jet down to a 0.15µL minimum dot volume. The high-speed cycle rate minimizes process variation for repeatable dot-to-dot consistency, while the lower volume of flux allows for rapid evaporation which minimizes the potential for flooding onto unintended areas of the cell. A ball-detent stroke control provides adjustments by 25 micron increments. The low actuation speed of 1 millisecond still puts enough energy into the fluid deposit to overcome any build-up of flux crystals on the valve’s nozzle. The valve can be set as high as 45mm above the application surface and still reliably hit the target area. The ability to stand well off of the applica-tion surface negates the need to redesign existing machines that may already be in production. The valve is designed to jet in an inverted position as well as top down so both sides of the cell can be fluxed simul-taneously.

The life of the valve and its resistance to wear impact the manufacturing process and the cost of the operation, especially as solar cells grow in demand and necessitate

high-volume, high-throughput produc-tion. The loss of manufacturing time due to changing and replacing valves is consid-erable. When the pistons of the valve are made of a material that reduces friction, the pistons can move quickly for high acceleration and reduced wear. Tests of the Square Wave valves resulted in over 880 million cycles of use without any notice-able wear, extending valve life well beyond anything in the marketplace today.

Non-contact jet dispensing of flux onto solar cells helps optimize the manu-facturing process, reduce fluid waste, manufacturing time, and costs. Jetting can also help to extend the lifespan and improve the functionality of the solar array. The use of non-contact flux jetting valves decreases process variability by accurately dispensing the correct amount of fluid. Proper jetting solves the problems of slow evaporation, excess non-activated flux, flux build-up, and deposit variations due to clogging of the nozzle that can otherwise lead to latent defects and ultimately to defective solar arrays.

Square Wave valve

Non-contact jet dispensing of flux onto solar cells helps optimize the manufacturing process, reduce fluid waste, manufacturing time, and costs.


wind and solar power have greatest health and climate benefits in Eastern states

You may think the best place to build a wind farm would be on the Great Plains, and the prime spot for a solar plant would be in the Southwest. But that’s not the case according to Carnegie Mellon University researchers.

The main reason to build wind and solar plants is to reduce air pollution and carbon dioxide emissions, therefore the Southwest and California are about the last place in the U.S. where plants should be built. Building new wind and solar plants in Ohio, West Virginia and western Pennsylvania is a much better bet.

This is the conclusion of a paper, titled “Regional Variations in the Health, Environment and Climate Benefits of Wind and Solar Generation,” authored by four CMU experts from the Center for Climate and Energy Decision Making. The paper by Kyle Siler-Evans, Ines Lima Azevedo, M. Granger Morgan and Jay Apt will appear this week in the prestigious Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.

Wind and solar achieve greater health and climate benefits in Ohio, West Virginia and western Pennsylvania because in those locations they replace electricity generated by coal plants, the researchers report.

“A wind turbine in West Virginia displaces twice as much carbon dioxide and seven times as much health damage as the same turbine in California,” said Siler Evans, a Ph.D. researcher in CMU’s Department of Engineering and Public Policy from Santa Fe, N.M. “The benefits of solar plants are greatest in the cloudy East as opposed to the sunny Southwest.”

Federal subsidies for wind and power plants are the same across the country. But Azevedo, an assistant professor of engi-neering and public policy (EPP) and exec-utive director of the Center for Climate and Energy Decision Making, argues “that while there is of course some uncertainty about the magnitude of the health and environmental damages avoided, if we are going to justify the added cost of wind and solar on the basis of the health and climate benefits that they bring, it is time to think about a subsidy program that encourages operators to build plants in places where they will yield the most health and climate benefits.”

The power generated by wind and solar is highly variable and intermittent.

“There are significant costs associated with deploying and integrating wind and solar plants into the grid, so it would be best to do it in places where we can get the greatest health and climate benefits,” said Apt, director of CMU’s Electricity Industry Center.

“These unexpected results are an example of the sorts of findings that result from CMU’s broad, interdisciplinary research focus,” said Morgan, director of the Scott Institute for Energy Innovation and head of the Department of Engineering and Public Policy.

This research was supported by Center for Climate and Energy Decision Making, through a cooperative agreement between the National Science Foundation and Carnegie Mellon, and by the Carnegie Mellon Electricity Industry Center.

About Carnegie Mellon UniversityCarnegie Mellon (www.cmu.edu) is a private, internationally ranked research university with programs in areas ranging from science, technology and business, to public policy, the humanities and the arts. More than 12,000 students in the university’s seven schools and colleges benefit from a small student-to-faculty ratio and an education characterized by its focus on creating and implementing solutions for real problems, interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation. A global university, Carnegie Mellon’s main campus in the United States is in Pittsburgh, Pa. It has campuses in California’s Silicon Valley and Qatar, and programs in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe and Mexico. The univer-sity has exceeded its $1 billion campaign titled “Inspire Innovation: The Campaign for Carnegie Mellon University,” which aims to build its endowment, support faculty, students and innovative research, and enhance the physical campus with equip-ment and facility improvements.

Photo: Dirk Ingo Franke

wind and solar power have greatest health and climate benefits in Eastern states


POwERING UP AMERICA: A quiet revolution in energy reform takes hold across the nation

In the face of national political gridlock and inaction on energy reform, Americans from all walks of life and across the polit-ical spectrum are getting on with the job of building our nation’s new energy future, according to a new report.

Powering Up America: The Revolution Began Yesterday highlights the untold story of the clean energy revolution already unfolding outside the Beltway. Combining extensive national reporting with in-depth, on-the-ground case studies, the report shows how mayors and mothers, engi-neers and policymakers, students, teachers, full-time activists, corporate leaders, and military officials are building our nation’s new energy economy.

Moreover, contrary to popular belief the report finds that in many cases polit-ical conservatives are leading the way in revolutionizing America’s energy habits. To underscore this point, and to highlight new models for making clean energy cost effective and environmentally beneficial, U.S. Rep. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) and U.S. Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), co-chairs of the House Energy Savings Performance Caucus, will host a briefing in conjunction with the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation. The Powering Up America report will be officially released at the July 24th briefing, which will be held at 441 Cannon House Office Building from 11:00 to noon. Speakers include Young Conservatives for Energy Reform president Michele Combs, national security expert and CNA’s Military Advisory Board member Gen. Ronald Keys, and entrepreneur Robert Hanfling, execu-tive chairman of Silver Bullet, a Colorado company working to cut energy and water use.

“Americans are making smart choices about energy efficiency and are saving money in the process. These common sense choices have a positive impact on both the economy and the environment. And they do it without any costly govern-ment mandates,” Gardner said.

“In an era of partisan gridlock, energy efficiency is a practical, common sense idea where Democrats and Republicans can find common ground. We may disagree

on sources of energy, we can all agree that using less energy is a win-win-win for the consumer, the economy and the environ-ment,” said Welch.

“What’s unique about our report is that it brings you the voices of everyday Americans who are discovering the many economic advantages of energy effi-ciency and clean energy in ways that will surprise and inspire you,” said Tremaine Foundation president Stewart Hudson.

“That may not be the story you’re hearing out of Washington, but it is the story of real Americans across the nation.”

“Powering Up,” defined by the report as making energy more productive, asserting more control over energy, and demanding newer, high tech, cleaner domestic energy sources, is being supported and acceler-ated by forward-thinking state and local officials and everyday citizens across the nation. Additional findings, presented through an interactive e-magazine, website and report, include: • The Great Recession has motivated

Americans to increase energy efficiency and invest in alternative, homegrown energy to find ways to save money on energy bills. As a result, today’s consumers are spending less on energy, making energy more productive, and channeling some of their savings back into local economies.

• On average, U.S. homes and businesses reduce energy waste by 2 percent a year—double what conventional econ-omists predicted just a decade ago.

• K-12 schools show dramatic energy productivity progress, with administra-tors mining a rich vein of power-saving potential. The nation’s 133,000 K-12 schools annually spend $7.5 billion on energy. Today, thousands of these insti-tutions are pioneering new methods for reducing utility bills and freeing up money for education.

• The U.S. military, the nation’s single largest energy consumer, is also in the vanguard of the clean-energy revolu-tion. Over the past decade, the nation’s armed forces have moved quickly to adopt clean energy sources, while

improving energy productivity by 13.3 percent over a 2003 baseline – twice the rate of the rest of the national economy.

• Despite America’s success in making energy more productive, consumers are still paying more than we should for our electricity, primarily because of how much energy we waste. We, as a nation, still waste a shocking 86 percent of the energy we consume. This energy is lost mostly through escaped heat as electricity is generated, transmitted, and distributed, and represents a huge drag on our economy.

• Experts predict that a determined policy of efficiency investments could lead to the creation of almost two million new jobs, while saving consumers the equivalent of $2,600 per household per year.

• The surprisingly rapid recent growth of distributed energy – including on-site solar and wind power and combined heat-and-power systems – is contrib-uting to a boom in energy productivity. In 2012, for instance, more than 16 million solar panels were installed on U.S. homes and business – two panels for every second of the working day.

Powering Up America features nine in-depth case studies of energy efficiency and clean energy adoption in South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut, three states with dramatically different energy profiles. They include on-site inter-views describing a net-zero-energy child-care center at the U.S. Marines’ recruiting depot in South Carolina, Crayola Crayon’s solar farm at their factory in Pennsylvania, energy efficiency and clean energy improvements residences, businesses, and governmental buildings and facilities across Connecticut, and much more.

PowErING uP AMErIcA: A quiet revolution in energy reform takes hold across the nation


Alternative energy business cycle: a new chapter begins

Spring has come a little late for the solar industry, but there are signs that recovery is taking root. A business cycle chart (Chart 1) borrowed from the electronics manu-facturing industry illustrates how capital equipment (and energy demand) trail elec-tronics equipment consumption (things that are plugged in), industrial production, purchasing manager indices (3-6 month lead for durable goods) and inflation (espe-cially energy and commodities).

Moving forward without all the stimulusThe diminishing government stimulus investments in alternative energy is also a leading indicator to economic recovery. Feed-in tariffs and incentives are being or have been cut in formally hot solar instal-lation markets in Germany, Italy and Spain and have been recently increased or imple-mented in China which has been burdened with excessive capacity and Japan, which is still recovery from nuclear contamination and several decades of dismal economic growth.

Industrial production (Chart 2) in the Euro Area market is being led by Germany into positive territory. China and Taiwan (Chart 3) are also showing signs of economic recovery and are benefitting from Japan’s aggressive alternative energy policies.

Taiwan solar industry gains on tariffs and demand increases in china and JapanA revenue composite of 17 Taiwan-based solar panel companies (Chart 4) is showing expansion although the 3/12 rate of growth (Chart 5) is stubbornly holding in at zero growth.

Solar cell manufacturer Neo Solar (Chart 6) recently merged with DelSolar monthly revenues are clearly showing expansion. Taiwan-based silicon wafer suppliers, Sino-American Silicon Products (Chart 7), (which recently merged with Sunrise Global Solar Energy) and Wafer Works (Chart 8) have both experienced stronger revenues in the first half of 2013.

finally, some consistent positive signsPurchasing Manager Indices (Chart 9 & 10) in Germany, China, U.S. and Europe (as a whole) moved into expansion in August and energy and commodity prices (Chart 11) have clearly recovered from the “Great

Jon Custer-Topai

Alternative energy business

cycle: a new chapter begins

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The diminishing government stimulus investments in alternative energy is also a leading indicator to economic recovery.



Recession” and will gain attention when inflation squeezes manufacturing costs and consumer consumption.

Fortunately, this business cycle is just beginning its upswing (Chart 12) and infla-tion will not (noticeably) bite into produc-tion and shipping costs until the peak of the business cycle. On the positive side, inflation will stimulate consumer aware-ness for conservation and sustainable and fixed energy costs for transportation and electricity.

Earnings are (mostly) Much improved!Solar earnings’ reports lag most industries and several have not released 2Q13 P&Ls as I write this. Out of the 2012 Top 10 PV Module suppliers (Chart 13), thin film leader, First Solar (Chart 14) reported 46% y/y revenue decline in 2Q, Canadian Solar (Chart 15) posted a 9% y/y gain in sales and SunPower (Chart 16) revenues lost 3% in comparison to 2Q12.

Long-term energy demand trajectory is very encouragingEnergy demand continues to increase (Chart 17) and (fracking) natural gas, oil and nuclear have proven to not be sustain-able over long periods of time. Alternative energy sources can power the next billion or two people that will be embracing middle class lifestyles with lights, refrigera-tors, microwaves, powered transportation, phones and the internet.

cells modules panelsGlobal solar photovoltaic module ship-ments for the 20 leading PV manufac-turers exceeded 5.8 GW in 2Q13.—NPD SolarBuzzChinese and Taiwanese photovoltaic manufacturers’ shipments corresponded to 116% of average manufacturing capacity utilization in June 2013 due to between 6.9-9.4GW of new-build PV in 2013 in Japan.—Bloomberg New Energy FinanceChina’s solar photovoltaic modules repre-sented roughly 60% of the roughly 15 GW of shipments in 1H13.—EnergyTrendJapan’s • solar cell sales increased 343% yr/

yr to 1,734 MW in 1Q13.—Japan Photovoltaic Energy Association

• government projects that 250,000-700,000 tons of solar power equipment will be discarded as waste in 2030.

• solar cell makers are planning to boost their combined output by roughly 37% to 4.7 million kilowatts in fiscal 2013.

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Chart 3. Chart 4.

Chart 5. Chart 6.

Energy and commodity prices have clearly recovered from the “Great Depression.”



Taiwan’s• based makers’ crystalline silicon solar

cell shipments increased 6.7% y/y to 3.2GWp in 1H13.—EnergyTrend

• primary solar cell makers were running at 80-100% of capacity in 2Q13.

BlueChip Power’s assets were sold at auction for just $700,000.Bosch, ISFH produced 22.1% efficient c-Si solar PV cell using ion implanted inter-digitated back junction back contact tech-nology.Canadian Solar received OHSAS 18001:2007 and ISO 14001: 2004 certifica-tions in Guelph, Ontario.Conergy filed for insolvency.First Solar plans to start a 100MW crystal-line silicon cell manufacturing line for the residential distributed market at the end of 2014.GE ended plans to build the largest solar factory in the U.S. near Denver, Colorado.Hareon Solar had three directors step down after company posted 19% drop in revenue in 1H13.JA Solar • multi-crystalline silicon solar cells

accomplished industry-leading conver-sion efficiency of 18.3%.

• p-type mono-crystalline silicon solar cells surpassed 20% conversion effi-ciency.

LDK Solar • sold 25 million shares to Fulai

Investments for USD25.75m.• Mascotte, Hareon to build 300 MW

solar cell manufacturing plant in Taiwan.

Nanosolar switched operations focus to cSi based utility panels and PV products for the residential market.Nexolon America is building $100 million, 240,000 SF solar-panel manufacturing facility in San Antonio, Texas.

Panasonic • plans to shut down its sole European

solar cell plant next March and dismiss about 500 workers.

• sold 540 MW of solar products in 2012 fiscal year and wants to increase the volume by 25% in 2013.

Pufin Group and Eurener Group jointly doubled production capacity of photovol-taic modules.ReneSola received AAA credit rating.Solar3D achieved 10% power increase with its newest prototype.SolarWorld • Hillsboro, Oregon manufacturing plant

cut 120 jobs.• sold 29% stake to Qatar.SolarZentrum North America started producing hybrid photovoltaic (electric) and thermal solar panels.Sun Invention began manufacturing Plug & Save modules in Huangshi City, China.SunSolar began producing solar modules in Oldbury, UK.

Suntech • appointed Michael Nacson and Kurt

Metzger to company’s Board of Directors.

• regained compliance with the New York Stock Exchange minimum share price listing requirement.

• selected Trina Solar, Yingli, China XD Electric and Beijing Putian New Energy as strategic investors.

TESLA Industries inaugurated Pakistan’s first solar panel assembly plant.Trina Solar, SunPower and JinkoSolar Holding are producing panels at full speed and contemplating plans to expand capacity to meet surging demand in Asia.Viridian Solar launched 500 Wp PV modules.Willard & Kelsey Solar Group ended operations.

cPvCPV installations to grow from 3.5MW in 2009 to 505MW in 2012 to 3.9GW by 2020.

Electric vehicles & infrastructureWorldwide electric drive motor sales will grow from $965 million in 2013 to more than $2.8 billion by 2020.—Navigant ResearchChina’s alternative-energy vehicles rose 43% y/y to 5,889 units in 1H13 with electric-powered vehicles accounting for 87% of the total.—China Association of Automobile ManufacturersElectric vehicle inverter market will grow from around $10 bill in 2013 to $18 billion to 2023.Global electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles charging stations will increase from 135,000 in 2011 to 10.7 million charging stations by 2020.—HIS

Taiwan Solar/Photovoltaic Panel CompaniesComposite of 17 Manufacturers

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Big Sun Energy Technology, Daxon, DelSolar, e_TON Solar Tec, Eversol, Gintech, Green Energy Technology (GET), Ligitek, Motech, Neo Solar Power, Phoenixtec Power Co (PPC), Precision Silicon, Sino-American Silicon Products, Sonartech, Sysgration, Tyntek, Wafer Works

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Chart 7. Chart 8.

Fortunately, this business cycle is just beginning its upswing and inflation will not (noticeably) bite into production and shipping costs until the peak of the business cycle.



EnergyWorld energy consumption will increase 56% and renewables output will expand 2.5% annually between 2010 through 2040.—EIAWorldwide renewable sources energy-generating capacity rose by 115 GW in 2012.—United Nations Environment Program

finance & venture capitalClean energy investments rose 22% q/q to $53.1 billion in 2Q13, led by U.S., China.—BloombergClean technology venture investment grew 56% q/q to $1.76 billion with 214 deals in 2Q13; North America accounted for 71% of total venture investment, Europe & Israel accounted for 13% and Asia Pacific 15%.—Cleantech GroupDeveloping countries renewable energy investments increased 19% y/y to US$112 billion in 2012.—Frankfurt School-UNEP Collaborating Centre for

Climate & Sustainable Energy Finance and Bloomberg New Energy FinanceGlobal solar VC reached $189 million for 19 deals and $1.3 billion in M&A in 2Q13.—Mercom Capital GroupSolar industry capital spending is expected to drop 36% y/y to $2.3 billion in 2013.—IHSMENA renewable investment increased 40% y/y to US$2.9 billion in 2012; renew-able energy capacity set to grow 60-fold by 2030.—IRENAU.S. residential solar financing market will grow from $1.3 billion in 2012 to $5.7 billion in 2016.—GTM Research

fIT & policyAustralia • South solar tariff to remain in intact

until the end of 2014.• Tasmanian government existing

customers will keep FiT until 2019.• Western Government reversed its

decision to terminate 40c FiT.China approved new subsidy (CNY0.42/

kWh or US$0.07/kWh) for distributed solar projects below 6 MW.Czech lower house voted to end support for renewable power plants that start oper-ation after Jan. 1, 2014.Germany plans to end solar subsidies by 2018.Greek government increased green elec-tricity levy paid by consumers to €14.96/MWh.Indian state government announced 30% capital subsidy on off-grid solar photovol-taic power plants of capacity below 1 KWp, irrigation & community drinking water pump projects up to 5 KWp and institu-tions, industries and commercial estates up to 500 KWp.Italy ended FIT incentives.Malta implemented solar hot water and energy efficiency rebates and €0.22/kWh PV panel FiT.Spain eliminated all of its solar FiTs.U.S. • California solar initiative rebates for

residential solar power are set to wind

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down almost four years ahead of schedule.

• California’s Los Angeles Department of Water and Power finalized 150 MW solar FIT program.

• New York’s Long Island, LIPA lowered its rebates to $0.99/AC watt (equiva-lent to $0.75 per DC watt for a typical system) for the installation of residen-tial customer-owned or leased solar systems.

UK FiT generated 379,530 renewable installations totaling more than 1.6 GW between 2010 and 2013.—Ofgem

IntegrationCarmanah Technologies appointed Michael Sonnenfeldt and John Simmons to Board of Directors.CPFL Renovaveis completed 900 million reais ($404 million) IPO to fund solar-power plant projects.Edison International acquired SoCore Energy.Gehrlicher Solar filed for protection under German bankruptcy laws.

HelioPower moved to a larger location in Murrieta, California.Hoku Solar ended its Hawaiian operations in wake of its bankruptcy filing.Kyocera formed partnership with a finan-cial backer to deploy up to 35 mid-sized solar power plants in Japan totaling 70 MW.Level Solar (formally Terawatt) launched operations in Long Island, NY.M+W Group acquired Gehrlicher Solar America and Mercury Energy.Real Goods Solar acquired Syndicated Solar.Solar Thin Films acquired KLC Green Energy.SolarCity bought Paramount Energy Solutions.SPI Solar• appointed Min Xiahou as Global CEO

and Charlotte Xi as Board Member.• founder and CEO, Steve Kircher

assumed role of Chief Strategy Officer.Sunselex Germany filed for insolvency.Sustainable Power Group acquired Tioga Energy.

TerniEnergia acquired 50% of JV T.E.R.N.I. SolarEnergy and sold 50% of its Solaren Srl JV.Westinghouse Solar cancelled CBD Energy acquisition.

Inverters & power suppliesGlobal solar power inverter market revenue will fall 5% y/y to $6.7 billion in 2013 for 34.2 GW and rebound in 2014 by 11% to $7.3 billion.—IMS ResearchPV microinverter shipments are forecast to exceed 2 GW in 2017.—IHSABB set up a technology park in Zdarek, Czech Republic.ArrayPower terminated operations.HDPV™ alliance released industry standard to decrease PV inverter costs by up to 50%.OutBack Power opened new HQ in Arlington, Washington.ReneSola string inverter, Replus, obtained certification in U.S., Canada, Italy, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

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Industrial Production – World% Change vs. One Year Earlier

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Chart 15. Chart 16.



Schneider Electric acquired Invensys.SMA Solar plans to cut 700 German jobs by December 31, 2014.Tata Power Solar launched SunJeevini, a retrofit unit that allows conventional inverter batteries to be charged through solar power.Toshiba Mitsubishi-Electric Industrial Systems is building solar power inverter plant in India.

Market & business conditionsGlobal solar photovoltaic demand is forecast to increase 22% Y/Y to 20 GW in 2H13 for a FY13 PV demand record high of 35.1 GW.—NPD SolarBuzzWorld solar PV installations market is expected to reach 45 GW in 2014.—Deutsche BankAustralia • solar industry added over 1 GW and

11,000 jobs in 2012.—APVA• average size of a rooftop solar system

around the country is 3kW.—Sunwiz Consulting

Brazilian PV market earnings are forecast to grow at a 71.2% CAGR from $29.3 million in 2012 to $431.1 million in 2017.—Frost & SullivanCameroon plans to generate 1000mw from renewable energy by 2020.—MINEECanada is expected to have a cumulative installed capacity of 3.48 GW by 2018.—ClearSky AdvisorsChina • became the first country to install

more than 3 GW of utility-scale solar capacity, leading the world total towards a cumulative total of 15 GW.—Philip Wolfe

• plans to add around 10 GW per year from 2013-2015; quadrupling solar power generating capacity to 35 GW.—State Council

• spending to develop renewable energy is on track to reach 1.8 trillion Yuan ($294 billion) between 2010 through 2015 as part of the nation’s efforts to counter climate change.

• based makers will produce 80,000 tons of polysilicon and 23GWp of crystal-line silicon PV modules in 2013.—MIIT

• mainland solar market is expected to become world’s largest market with more than 7 GW in installation in 2013.

• PV product exports fell 31% y/y to 6.5 billion U.S. dollars in 1H13 due to over-capacity and trade disputes.—CCCME

• European PV installations will fall 33% y/y to 11.6 GW in 2013.—IHS

• Germany• solar sector employment has fallen

to 87,000 from 110,000 employees in 2011 and total sales have declined to an

estimated €7.34 billion (US$9.5 billion) from €11.9 billion in 2011.

• wind, solar output dropped 6.4% y/y to 36.7 TWh in 1H13; installed wind capacity is forecast to rise to 33 GW by the end of 2013, while solar PV capacity now stands just below 34 GW.—IWR

• set a new world record for solar photo-voltaic electricity production at 23.4 GW on June 6, 2013.—SMA

• added 309.24 MW new photovoltaic capacity in June; monthly FIT digres-sion remained at 1.8%.—German Federal Network Agency

• government spent 708 million Euros ($938 million) on energy R&D in 2012.—Bloomberg

• Greece added 148 MW in 2Q13.—LAGIE

India installed 622 MW of solar power in first seven months of 2013.—Mercom Capital GroupItaly’s solar PV power output reached 7.3% of total electricity demand in the first seven months of 2013.—TERNAJapan’s solar installations increased 270% y/y to 1.5GW in 1Q13.—IHSPeru unveiled National Photovoltaic Household Electrification Program which will provide electricity from solar panels to more than 2 million people.Portugal added 1.1 MW of solar PV in the first four months of 2013.—DGGERomania’s installed capacity in the photovoltaic power plants increased 7.6 times higher y/y to 378.5 MW in 1H13.—TranselectricaSerbia plans to add 1,092 MW of energy from renewable sources by 2020.—Energy MinisterTaiwan’s solar energy equipment produc-tion value grew 27.5% q/q to NT$22.78 billion in 1Q13.—Industry and Technology Intelligence ServicesThailand boosted power generation target from renewables by 51% to 13,927 MW by 2021.—Ministry of EnergyU.S. • added 979 MW of utility-scale solar

PV in 1H13 reaching a cumulative total of 5.53 GW.—FERC

• commissioned 56 utility-scale solar photovoltaic plants totaling 845 MW in 1Q13.—FERC

• installed more than 1.8 GW of new solar PV capacity in 1H13 totaling a cumulative milestone of 10 GW of solar PV capacity.—NPD SolarBuzz

• installs a solar system every 4 minutes.—GTM Research

• new solar installations may only reach 3.5-3.8GW in 2013.—Digitimes Research

• photovoltaic power installations rose 33% y/y to 723 MW in 1Q13.—SEIA

and GTM Research• solar photovoltaic demand to grow

20% y/y in 2013 to 4.3 GW.—NPD SolarBuzz

• solar usage jumped from 0.158 quads in 2011 to 0.235 quads in 2012.—Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

• California • rooftop installation solar PV market

consists of 75% of solar systems leased.• had an estimated 1,692 MW of rooftop

solar installed at nearly 168,000 sites through the end of 1Q13.—California Solar Initiative

• set new record for utility-scale solar PV, CSP output at 2.57 GW on August 9th, 2013.

UAE’s solar power capacity expected to reach 20GW by 2030.—Masdar Institute FacultyUK solar PV demand reached 520MW in 1Q13.—NPD SolarBuzzUkraine solar capacity increased 51.4% in 1H13 adding an extra 50 MW to the current solar capacity of 494 MW.

Materials & componentsGlobal solar encapsulation market is expected to grow at 10.2% CAGR to 1,357.2 million units from 2013 to 2018.Global specialty and high performance films demand is expected to grow at a 5.7% CAGR from 2013 to 2019 from 8.3 million tons in 2012 to 12.2 million tons in 2019.—Transparency Market ResearchPhotovoltaic materials market to grow 52% from $17.8 billion in 2012 to $27.2 Billion in 2018.—Lux ResearchSilver solar panel industry demand fell 12% in 2012 to 47.5 million ounces.—CPM Group3M expanded its Ultra Barrier Solar Film in Columbia, Missouri.Ames Goldsmith appointed Frank Barber to President & CEO and Randy Klein, Global Sales and Marketing Director.Dow Chemical CTO and Executive VP, Bill Banholzer retired.DuPont • entered into $100 million agreement

with Yingli Energy to supply photovol-taic materials for solar model produc-tion.

• Thailand formed collaboration with L Solar 1, Smart Green Energy, and Infinite Green.

Harvard University developed coating that turns ordinary glass into tough, self-cleaning and incredibly slippery glass.Hilti intends to ship 10 times as many solar panel support frames to Japan this year as it did in 2012.Rogers appointed Ganesh Moorthy to Board of Directors.



Sol Voltaics received $6.2 million loan from Swedish Energy Agency to produce GaAs nanowires (SolInk) for use in solar modules.

Process equipmentEmerging economies are expected to increase global capital spending by producers of PV modules, cells, ingots, wafers and polysilicon by 30% to $3.0 billion in 2014.—IHSGlobal capital spending by producers of photovoltaic modules, cells, ingots, wafers and polysilicon is expected to rise by 30% in 2014 to US$3.0 billion.—IHSGlobal laser materials processing systems market grew 9% y/y to record high of €7.9 billion in 2012 (market grew by 1% when measured in US-dollars).—Optech ConsultingWorldwide solar photovoltaic equipment industry bookings fell 17% q/q in 1Q13 to USD 174 million, as billings fell 41% to USD 291 million.—SEMIApplied Materials named Gary Dickerson, CEO.ATS Automation Tooling Systems sold its solar division in Cambridge to unnamed purchaser for $6 million.Centrotherm photovoltaics ended bank-ruptcy proceedings.DEK Solar and Yingli Green Energy Holding established joint solar photovol-taic research center.Genmark Automation elected Mike Klayko to its Board of Directors.Intevac named Wendell Blonigan, President and CEO.ISRA acquired GP Solar and GP Inspect.Komax exited solar business.Meyer Burger • and LayTec jointly developed stream-

lined solution for process optimiza-tion and yield enhancement in module manufacturing lines.

• received order for fully integrated, auto-mated 35 MW solar module manufac-turing line from new customer in the UK and 200 MW slurry based wire saw equipment order from Gigastorage.

• replaced Applied Materials as top global solar equipment manufacturer in 2012.

SCHMID • sold three module lines totaling

150MWp production capacity to Turkey at Intersolar Europe.

• Zhuhai received certification for its environmental management system according to ISO14001:2004.

Spire common stock began trading on OTCQB market.

Silicon ingot waferChina polysilicon annual output to reach 80,000 tons and 23 GW of solar panels; production of polysilicon fell 25% y/y in 1H13 to 31,000 metric tons.—China Photovoltaic Industry AllianceChina’s solar-grade polysilicon produc-tion fell 25% y/y to 31,000 metric tons in 1H13.—Ministry of Industry and Information TechnologyGlobal solar polysilicon prices increased 18% to USD 19.50 per kilogram in June and July 2013.—IHS5N Plus is investing in new gallium chemi-cals facility in South Korea.Comtec Solar is constructing wafer plant with annual production capacity of 1GW of N-type monocrystalline solar wafers at Sama Jaya Free Industrial Zone in Malaysia.Crystal Solar is planning to complete pilot production of its ‘Epi Thin-Silicon’ tech-nology in 2013.Eversol started operations at PV power plant in Japan. established a JV in Japan to produce PV modules and undertake instal-lation of PV systems.Fraunhofer Institute for Mechanics of Materials IWM in Freiburg, Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization CSIRO developed ultrathin saw for cutting silicon that is made of carbon nanotubes.Green Energy Technology upgraded its ingot slicing technology and invested NT$50 million (US$1.67 million) to expand monthly production to over 40 million wafers.IQE high-volume, production quali-fied wafers were independently certified as achieving 44.1% cell efficiency by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.LG Siltron withdrew from solar wafer manufacturing business.NorSun completed financial restructuring.OCI Company postponed plan to build new polysilicon production lines in Gunsan, South Korea.PV Crystalox temporarily suspended plans to dis-assemble its polysilicon produc-tion in Bitterfeld, Germany after receiving offer by local management to take over the plant and its obligations in return for a cash payment.ReneSola relaunched Sichuan polysilicon plant with new furnaces and hydrochlori-nation technology.SAS merged with Sunrise Global Solar through stock swap.Scifiniti introduced SmartWafer™, which reduces wafer costs by more than 50%.SPG acquired PV Crystalox Solar PLC’s solar-grade silicon production facility in

Bitterfeld, Germany.SunEdison sold minority stake in its semi-conductor business in IPO in order to finance solar farms.

Smart gridGlobal smart solar market is expected to grow at 18.7% CAGR from $6.51 billion in 2013 to $15.34 billion by 2018.Smart grid technology market annual revenue is forecast to grow from $33 billion in 2012 to $73 billion by 2020.—Navigant ResearchSmart meter revenues for commercial and industrial markets will total US$19.1 billion from 2012-2020.—Navigant Research

Storage & batteriesEnergy storage systems for solar and wind power integration will total nearly 21.8 GW of installed capacity from 2013 to 2023.—Navigant ResearchResidential photovoltaic energy storage systems market is expected to boom in the coming years with cumulative installations amounting to 2.5 GW by 2017.—HIS

Thin filmPrinted, flexible and organic electronics will grow at a 15.3% CAGR from $16.04 billion in 2013 to $76.79 billion in 2023.—IDTechExU.S. Photovoltaic Manufacturing Consortium released the first-ever U.S. CIGS PV Roadmap reports.Ascent Solar closed Tranche 2 financing and regained NASDAQ compliance.Empa accomplished 11.5% conversion efficiency with flexible CdTe solar PV tech-nology.EPFL developed solid-state dye-sensitized solar cell with 15% conversion efficiency.First Solar • appointed Sharon Allen to Board of

Directors.• named Raed Bkayrat, VP of Business

Development for Saudi Arabia.• Hanergy • Holding Group bought Global Solar

Energy.• Solar achieved significant technology

breakthrough in PECVD manufac-turing process and in integration and upgrade in technology and equip-ment of turnkey production lines that resulted in 9.34% reduction in total manufacturing costs per watt.

Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin researchers observed growth of high-efficiency chal-copyrite thin film solar cells in real time and studied formation and degradation of defects that compromise efficiency.Masdar Institute of Science and Technology



fabricated first bulk-hetero-junction solar cell in the United Arab Emirates.Natcore • plans to use its patented liquid-phase

deposition technology to build tandem solar cells.

• fabricated first inorganic flexible thin film solar cell by solution processes.

NEF acquired 23% stake in Black Lite Solar.PacWest Equities acquired ownership of 51% US and China Patents through its recent purchase of DayStar Technologies.REEL Solar achieved world record 1.5 SM CdTe photovoltaic module.Solar Frontier • achieved 14.6% conversion efficiency

for CIS module.• restarted 60MW MP2 plant in

Miyazaki prefecture, Japan amid growing demand for solar panels.

Solliance and imec achieved 9.7% effi-ciency for Thin-film CZTSe solar cell.SoloPower laid off 29 workers and relo-cated its HQ to Portland, Oregon.SunPartner developed 95% transparent 300-micron-thick solar cell module that fits on or under your phone’s touchscreen.

TSMC Solar commercial-sized (1.09 m2) CIGS champion module achieved 15.7% module total area efficiency.

Thin film process equipment & materialsFlexible devices manufactured by roll-to-roll technologies to grow from $10.8 billion in 2012 to nearly $22.7 billion by 2017—BCC ResearchGlobal atomic layer deposition market is expected to grow at 35.4% CAGR between 2012-2016.—TechNavio3D-Micromac introduced production equipment that conducts integrated series-connection of a thin-film solar module on one single platform and a single produc-tion step.AVACO appointed Chuck Kim, Director of Business Development.Dyesol’s 18NR-T Titania paste contributed to world record efficiency of 15% for solid-state Dye Solar Cell.Innovnano developed nanostructured AZO for improved thin-film solar cell effi-ciency.

Intrinsiq Materials developed technique that produces a form of highly conduc-tive copper ink without going through the oven.LayTec and Nanometer Structure Consortium at Lund University jointly developed solution for real-time quantita-tive monitoring of III-V nanowire growth.Manz provided Black Lite Solar with process design services and a 150 MW CIGS thin-film PV turnkey plant.VDL and Solliance developed completely integrated R2R manufacturing line for research and pilot production of OPV modules.

Jon Custer-Topai is vice president of Custer Consulting Group and responsible for the corporation’s market research and news analysis activities. Jon is a member of the IPC and active in the Technology Marketing Research Council. [email protected]

Sea waves power stations to be sent to Guinea conakrySDE Energy Ltd has signed an agreement with guinea Conakry government for the development of a 100MW sea wave power plant along the coastline of guinea Conakry. This project will help guinea Conakry become more independent and with stable power supply that can solve all the energy problems these countries have. SDE’s manufacturing costs are the lowest worldwide, at less than 5 cents per Kw/h and 1 million us dollars per 1 MW.www.sde-energy.com

Energy Storage uK 2013 a major successThe Energy Storage UK 2013 confer-ence began with an introduction from BPVA Chairman Reza Shaybani, who also announced the formation of British Energy Storage Industry Association (BESIA), which will be representing the growing number of UK companies in the energy storage industry with interest in the renew-able energy. The event offered an incredible lineup of guest speakers, including CEO’s of battery manufacturing companies, software developers, research organisa-tions, economists and experts in the energy

storage industry and delegates from all over the world. www.bpva.org.uk

rES Americas contracts 150 megawatts of wind energy to Arkansas Electric cooperative corporationRenewable Energy Systems Americas Inc. announced today that its subsidiary RES America Developments Inc. has reached a long-term agreement to sell 150 mega-watts (MW) of wind energy to Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation (AECC). The wind power will be sourced from the Origin Wind Energy project, which is located in Murray and Carter Counties in southeast Oklahoma. RES Americas devel-oped and will construct the 75-turbine project, which is scheduled to begin commercial operation by Dec. 31, 2014. AECC will be the sole recipient of the elec-tricity generated. www.res-americas.com, www.nrco.coop

edf renewable energy enters into definitive agreement to Acquire hereford wind ProjectEDF Renewable Energy entered into a

Membership Interest Purchase Agreement with Lincoln Renewable Energy to acquire the first phase of the up to 500 megawatt (MW) Hereford Wind Project in Texas, subject to certain conditions precedent, with an option to acquire the second phase of the project. Construction is expected to commence on the 200 MW first phase later this year in order to qualify it for the Production Tax Credit. www.edf-re.com, www.lincolnrenewableenergy.com

Greenkit launches uK’S first one stop shop website for installersGreenKit has launched a brand new e-shop website with an interactive click-to-buy interface. The site allows installers to browse and shop for products 24/7 and is the first in the UK to provide hundreds of products with information and prices available to buy online. The new website has an extensive range of products from a wide variety of sectors, including: heat pumps, solar PV, electric vehicle charging, biomass and solar thermal. The site also provides information on ready-made ‘plug and play’ renewable technology kits avail-able from GreenKit. www.greenkit.co.uk

Industry news—continued from page 7

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Interview—

I always think that the materials guys are the right guys to talk to when it comes to finding out what is going on in the industry because you’re closest to the customers and you’re delivering product on a daily basis. Give us your point of view. What is happening with the industry? We’ve had two really difficult years. Are you starting to see recovery coming back in?

We are starting to see recovery. The industry after the first part of 2012 clearly hit a downtrend, both from the standpoint of factory utilization and cell manufac-turing, but also from a paste standpoint, as paste usage was dropping and the market for paste along with it. This is something that we expected. We didn’t expect it to happen quite within one year. We thought it would take about three years. We were very happy that we were able to make the product performance better, using less silver and making our customers more effi-cient in what they were doing. The output of cells was better.

Interview

Andy London, heraeus

At Intersolar North America, Trevor Galbraith had the pleasure of speaking with Andy London, the Global Business Unit Manager for Heraeus, the manufacturer of front- and back-side silver pastes for photovoltaic applications.

Heraeus, a manufacturer of thick film pastes for over 40 years, has been an innovative supplier to the photovoltaics industry for the past five years, working with c-Si cell manufacturers to improve their cells’ efficiency for both conventional and advanced cell designs. Their strength is their ability work with customers to understand their technology goals and develop pastes that optimize their technologies’ performance.

At the show, Andy and Trevor talked about the current state of the industry, the direction its going in, the impact of the Chinese government’s recent announcement about banking in China, and the work that the company is doing to create a new paste product that marries both the Heraeus and Ferro technologies.


Title

Since the beginning of this year we’ve seen month on month increases every month. Clearly the industry is starting to improve. That’s a good thing. Our backlog for July is the highest that we’ve had this year, and we expect that to continue through this summer.

There’s not a lot of long-term visibility, though, in this industry. There’s still some uncertainty. We do a lot of forecasting and speaking with customers to understand what’s going to happen as the industry progresses. We have a very wide margin for error this year. Last year was about 31 gigawatts of production. Our forecasting right now is telling us something between 33 and 40, which is a pretty big range, but an increase from last year.Do you think the recovery’s been driven because it’s become more market-drive and less reliant on policy?

That’s a big part of it, with Germany removing a lot of the feed-in-tariffs. They made an announcement the other day that they expect feed-in-tariffs to be gone completely by 2018. We think that’s actually good news, because it will allow the market to determine rather than government policy. But things happening in Japan, which has been a very large increase this year; China, with their internal policies, again driven by the government to begin much greater installation. The U.S. market has grown tremendously year on year, and we’re expecting another 30-40% increase this year. So, a lot of it’s been driven by the fact that PV has become more competitive. Also by the fact that nuclear has taken on a very negative image, and in order to be able to replace nuclear power…the fast way to do that is with something like PV.

There’s also been a very strong run-down in inventory, as we’ve seen four consecutive quarters now of inventories being reduced. The last time that happened was in 2009, and that was the precursor to the biggest boom that we had in the industry. We hope that it’s the result of this industry rundown, but we’ve definitely seen factory utilization at our customers increasing over the last quarter.It’s certainly encouraging news to hear of these different areas growing. There is one, though, that we talked about earlier which still has some issues, which is China, with the latest developments with the Chinese government and their approach to the banking. How do you think that’s going to affect things?

It’s a big question. I hope that the effect is not as negative as you would think. It’s been

obvious over the last number of weeks, after the Chinese government announce-ment that banks are on their own and that they need to be able to look at the loans that they give. We’re seeing the credit of customers greatly being reduced. That has to work its way through the business as we start to deal with that. We sell a very high-priced commodity, even though the price of silver has dropped to half of what it was a year ago and the price of our product therefore has dropped proportionately. It’s still a large item for people to be able to pay for, and they need to be able to finance that to be able to make their modules. It’s yet to be seen what the result of that’s going to be. Our hope is that this is fairly short lived and people can return to profitability, where credit ceases to be an issue.One of the things that’s been a result of the downturn we’ve gone through in the last two years has been that the price has gone down and down and down on modules and cells, to the point where they’re selling at cost or below. But that’s pushing back now onto people like yourself to increase efficiencies, because by increasing effi-ciencies, you’re going to bring the margin back into their business. How well are you doing at that?

We’re doing very well, actually. If you compare to 2009 numbers, which is going back a little bit, the cost of silver paste per watt at that time was about 7 cents per watt. It’s now about 1.6 cents. So that’s a huge drop, to less than a third—nearly a quarter—of what the cost per watt of paste was five years ago compared. And we feel that we’ve done a lot to drive that. We’ve released recently our 9610 product that brings paste usage down to 120 milligrams per cell, and lower in some cases. That’s achieved by very narrow lines. People are able to print 40 micron lines, 45 micron lines, compared to 70 or 80 micron lines just two years. Contact resistance is far better compared to what pastes were before, which results in added output of the cells, less loss, so not only are you using less paste, but the output of the cell is higher. So that’s our contribution to the industry, and of course in cell manufacturing there are other major pieces that each of the manufacturers work that have to do that same thing.

So that’s your key product at the moment, the 9610 series. You’ve also got a backside paste as well.

Yes, we also have backside silvers. We’ve been able to get the silver content below 50%, so silver usage has dropped tremen-dously. Patterns that are used are not full bus bars anymore, which allows people to use much, much less silver on those. Some of that technology came from our acquisition of Ferro. We bought the assets of the Ferro photovoltaic business back in February. That’s been very successful for us. They had really good technology on backside mate-rials that we’ve been able to integrate into our current product line. They also have very good technology on frontside mate-rials, and those have allowed us to begin the process of marrying together Ferro technology and Heraeus technology into a new product. Our estimation was it would take us nine to twelve months to release a product out of that, and I think we’ve very much on schedule to be able to meet that, which would give us a new product by the end of this year. So are we going to see that in time for EU PVSEC?

It’ll be close. EU PVSEC is the end of September, and our release of the product, I would really expect it to be more the November, December time frame, but you’ll be the first to know if we end up seeing something by September.So watch out for that new paste develop-ment coming from the Ferro, Heraeus combination. Thank you, Andy.

—Trevor Galbraith

Interview


Solar powers future for Los Angeles-area family

The solar power industry is doing more than simply generating elec-tricity. It’s empowering life-changing

job training and enabling a low-income Los Angeles family to generate energy savings and a great future.

SunEdison, a world leader in solar energy solutions is transforming lives through innovation by working with GRID Alternatives, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing the benefits of solar power to low-income communities. The two organizations are collaborating with Homeboy Industries to install a home solar power system for a low-income family in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of LA. The new system will help the families achieve their goals of reducing their energy costs and reinvesting in their families’ futures, while also providing job training for the Homeboy Industries’ trainees. Homeboy Industries serves high-risk, formerly gang-involved men and women with a continuum of free services and programs.

The Robles family will receive a solar system specifically designed for the home’s size and energy usage. The family of three is headed by Julie Robles who is a nurse on temporary disability, awaiting surgery. She lives with her daughter and baby grand-daughter, and cares for the baby while her daughter is at work. Julie is active in the community, volunteers at the local farmers’ market teaching people about healthy eating, and grows a lot of the family’s food in her yard. The system is being installed on the family’s home by Homeboy Industries trainees, with the assistance of SunEdison leadership on September 10, 2013.

The solar power system will have a total energy production capability of 2 kw

reducing the Robles’ energy costs by 75-90 percent. This is equal to a lifetime savings of $18,000, and a greenhouse gas reduc-tion of 59 tons which is the equivalent of removing 10 cars off the road for a year. The project is fully funded by SunEdison, enabling solar power to be installed in an area of Los Angeles not eligible for any government funding.

“We believe that solar technology should be available to everyone, and partic-ularly to families in neighborhoods such as Boyle Heights,” said Michael Kadish, Executive Director of GRID Alternatives Greater Los Angeles, said. “We are grateful to SunEdison for their support of today’s installation, and look forward to working with them, Homeboy Industries and our other partners to create more job training opportunities and bring solar to even more low-income families in the City of Los Angeles.”

“This is a great example of trans-forming lives through innovation on a variety of fronts,” Ravi Sankaran, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility for SunEdison, said. “Not only are we empow-ering the Robles family with energy savings and reliable power for years to come, but the job training is also transforming the lives of those in the Homeboy Industries program. It’s an honor for us to volun-teer our time and to partner with GRID Alternatives in this important effort.”

grid alternatives/sunedison PartnershipToday’s installation will bring to six the number of solar installations SunEdison has sponsored through GRID Alternatives so far this year, providing funding, equip-

ment and employee volunteers to help install the systems. Together the 12.6 k will provide families with nearly $120,000 in savings over their expected 30-year lifespan, and prevent 370 tons of greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of taking 66 cars off the road for a year.

GRID Alternatives is a non-profit organiza-tion that brings the benefits of solar tech-nology to low income communities. Using a barn-raising model, GRID Alternatives leads teams of volunteers and job trainees to install solar power on qualifying homes. www.gridalternatives.org

Homeboy Industries serves high-risk, formerly gang-involved men and women with a continuum of free services and programs, including a Solar Panel Installation Training & Certification Program. GRID Alternatives has been an official program partner since 2012 and has completed more than 10 installations for low-income families that involve students of Homeboy Industries.

SunEdison is a global leader in semicon-ductor and solar technology, and a leading solar energy services provider dedicated to transforming lives through innovation. SunEdison provides innovative, advanced technology solutions to corporations, utili-ties, governments and leading chip manu-facturers to transform lives around the world. As of June 30, 2013 SunEdison has interconnected over 1 GW of solar power representing more than 700 power plants. For more information please visit www.sunedison.com.

Solar powers future for Los Angeles-area family


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the solar module to the battery to improve efficiency while making the system safer and extending the battery’s lifetime.www.blueskyenergyinc.com

nordson efd square wave valve dispenses flux for photovoltaics industry

Nordson EFD has developed a non-contact dispense valve for precision jetting of low viscosity flux onto solar cell bus bars. Operating at speeds up to 500Hz/sec, the Square Wave™ 745NC valve meets the photovoltaic industry’s need to deposit continuous lines of microdots on the solder-coated metal ribbons that connect adjoining PV wafers. Flux removes oxida-tion and contamination to improve solar cell efficiency and power output. The Square Wave’s innovative solenoid tech-nology delivers a high-speed cycle rate that minimizes process variation for repeatable dot-to-dot consistency. www.nordsonefd.com

Eaton Pv fireman’s Switches offer ‘ready To connect’ combinations for SafetyEaton has launched an addition to its established SOL30-SAFETY PV fireman’s switch and now offers turnkey solutions in the form of ready to install and connect device combinations. The new SOL30X PV fireman’s switch features 2, 3, 4 or 6 fire-man’s switches in a common enclosure. The new offering has been introduced to meet customer demand for a solution that is suitable for PV installations consisting of several strings and voltages of up to 1,000 V DC. www.eaton.eu

Solaredge power optimized inverter system outperforms string and micro inverters In NrEL-designed independent testing Results of a series of tests designed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and conducted by PV Evolution Labs to measure the performance of various inverter technologies in various shading conditions were published today. The test determined the annual percentage of energy recovered by power optimizers and micro inverters when compared to tradi-tional string inverter systems in shaded conditions. The results indicate that the SolarEdge optimized system generates 2%, 5% and over 8% more energy than tradi-tional string inverters in light, medium and heavy shading scenarios, respectively. www.solaredge.com

Locus Energy Announces Its Solar forecasting Service for Grid Management and Power PlanningLocus Energy is announcing the beta launch of its solar forecasting service. The forecasting service provides a short-term (0-6 hours) forecast tool capable of predicting solar irradiance and power across an entire install base or geographic region. Building on the latest research in artificial intelligence and remote sensing, the service projects cloud motion by applying patent-pending computer vision algorithms to real-time satellite imagery in order to forecast solar irradiance and power. www.locusenergy.com

blue Sky Energy Launches New Product to Promote battery Life for off-grid Solar ProjectsBlue Sky Energy, Inc. released its most flexible MPPT solar charge controller to date, the Solar Boost 3000i™ (SB3000i). This device allows for a range of batteries to be charged using conventional solar modules without suffering power losses from voltage mismatch. Using Blue Sky Energy’s patented MPPT technology, the SB3000i increases charge current up to 30% or more compared to conventional controllers. It regulates the transmission of power from

Solectria renewables Announces the PvI 14TL and PvI 20TL Three-Phase Transformerless InvertersSolectria Renewables, LLC, announced the introduction of the new PVI 14TL and PVI 20TL, three-phase, transformerless, 600 VDC inverter at the Intersolar North America trade show. Solectria Renewables’ PVI 14TL and PVI 20TL inverters are designed to maximize return on invest-ment (ROI) through their lightweight design, high efficiencies, easy installation, dual MPPT zones and wide MPPT range. Integrated customized options include factory-installed web-based monitoring, DC arc-fault protection and integrated DC fused string combiner. Utilizing these inverters in small commercial applications will reduce costs, especially the cost of additional combiners. www.solectria.com

fLExcon heats up Its Solar Module backsheet offeringFLEXcon announced the expansion of its solar module backsheet offering with the addition of Black/White and Black/Black products. FLEXcon’s existing white backsheet offering, which includes double fluoropolymer (TPT and KPK), single fluo-ropolymer (TPE and KPE) and non-fluo-ropolymer (PPE), is ideal for solar farms, commercial and residential installations. The new, more aesthetically pleasing black backsheet products appeal to the high-end commercial market and a much greater portion of the residential market.www.FLEXcon.com

Enviracarbon Announces renewable Energy SolutionEnviraCarbon, Inc. (ECI) announces the commercialization of a patented and proprietary technology which molecu-larly alters renewable biomass feedstock into EnvirAnized Biofuel™ (EBF). EBF is a product that looks, transports, stores, pulverizes and burns like coal. The only thing it doesn’t do that coal does, is pollute. The superfast process changes woody biomass into clean carbonized EBF, dras-tically condensing the process that took nature 100 million years to accomplish into a matter of minutes. www.enviracarbon.com

New products New products


Thirsty energy production on “collision course” with climate-imperiled water supply

Industry critics of solar and wind power are quick to assert that there will be problems for renewable energy when

the sun doesn’t shine and the wind doesn’t blow. But a new Civil Society Institute (CSI) report prepared by Synapse Energy Economics suggests that dirty energy sources—including coal-fired electric power, nuclear power, and natural gas from fracking—face an even bigger challenge: What are you going to do if the water doesn’t flow?

The CSI report notes: “Currently, 97 percent of the nation’s electricity comes from thermoelectric or hydroelectric generators, which rely on vast quantities of water to produce electricity … Water is increasingly becoming a limiting factor on U.S. energy production and a key obstacle to maintaining both electricity output and public health and safety. The constraints range from insufficient water supplies to meet power plants’ cooling and pollution control needs—a challenge likely to be exacerbated by climate change, popula-tion growth, and competition from other sectors—to the high costs of energy-related water contamination and thermal pollution.”

Key report conclusions include the following:• Thermoelectric plants withdraw 41

percent of the nation’s fresh water—more than any other sector.

• The amount of water available to serve diverse needs is a growing concern across the country, from the arid western states to the seemingly water-

rich Southeast. Thermoelectric genera-tion compounds the stress already faced by numerous watersheds and adds addi-tional risk for the future. If current trends continue, water supplies will simply be unable to keep up with our growing demands. Factors that are likely to exacerbate the problem include climate change, water shortages, and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). For example, CCS is projected to increase water consumption rates for existing coal plants by 83 percent and natural gas plants by 91 percent. Failure to address these constraints now is bound to lead to further intersectoral conflicts and forced plant shutdowns that will jeopar-dize electricity production and constrain economic growth in the future.

• On an average day, water withdrawals across the nation amount to an esti-mated 85 billion gallons for coal plants, 45 billion gallons for nuclear plants, and 7 billion gallons for natural gas plants. Additional water is required to extract, process, transport, and store fuel, and this water is often degraded in the process.

• Coal mining consumes between 70 million and 260 million gallons of water per day.

• Natural gas fracking requires between two and six million gallons of water per well for injection purposes.

“Our electric system was built on traditional, water-intensive thermoelectric and hydro-electric generators,” said Synapse associate

Melissa Whited. “The water requirements of this energy system are enormous and leave it vulnerable to droughts and heat waves. Going forward, our water resources will be further squeezed by population growth coupled with the impacts of climate change. The massive water use of coal, nuclear, and natural gas generators will be increasingly challenged, particularly when alternatives that require little water, such as wind and solar, are readily available.”

“Continued reliance on water-inten-sive electric generation technologies puts consumers and regional economies at risk of interruptions in electricity supply or on the hook for costly infrastructure invest-ments,” said CSI Senior Energy Analyst Grant Smith. “To ensure a reliable, cost-effective supply of energy, these water-related risks must be fully accounted for in energy planning and regulation. Once the environmental costs of conventional fuels are recognized, it becomes clear that energy efficiency and renewable energy are bargains by comparison. These clean alter-natives cause little if any harmful environ-mental impacts. On a full-cost accounting basis, clean energy would win out as the least-cost solution and solution that harbors the least risk, as our energy system would no longer threaten (or be vulnerable to) the quantity and quality of our water.”

fuel production and use impactsAccording to the report, energy-sector impacts on water quality are significant, and are likely to increase if the United


Coal-fired power, nuclear, natural gas from fracking singled out as increasingly untenable in portions of U.S. already struggling with shrinking water supplies; U.S. needs to start planning to take into account energy water use…not just energy production.



States continues to rely heavily on ther-moelectric power plants. The following are just a sample of the impacts associated with fuel production and use:• Coal mining: Elevated and unsafe levels

of arsenic and other heavy metals have repeatedly been found in drinking water in coal mining areas.

• Uranium mining and milling: Runoff from uranium mine tailings is contami-nated not only with uranium and other radioactive materials, but also with toxic heavy metals.

• Natural gas production: Seepage of fracking fluids into groundwater has contaminated drinking water with toxic chemicals such as benzene.

• Thermal pollution: Once-through cooling systems withdraw water from rivers, lakes, and estuaries, use it for cooling, then discharge it at a much higher temperature. These thermal discharges can harm phytoplankton, accelerate the growth of bacteria, increase algal blooms, and otherwise disrupt fish habitats.

Earlier researchOn April 17, 2013, a CSI study conducted by Synapse found that, in an envisioned 2050 scenario with a heavy reliance on renewables, regional electricity genera-tion supply could meet or exceed demand in 99.4 percent of hours, with load being met without imports from other regions and without turning to reserve storage. In addition, surplus power would be avail-able to export in 8.6 percent of all hours, providing an ample safety net where needed from one region of the U.S. to the next.

In 2011, Synapse prepared a study for the Civil Society Institute that intro-duced a “Transition Scenario” in which the United States retires all of its coal plants and a quarter of its nuclear plants by 2050, moving instead toward a power system based on energy efficiency and renewable energy. The Synapse study for CSI showed that this Transition Scenario, in addition to achieving significant reductions in emis-sions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other pollutants, ultimately costs society less than a “business as usual” status quo strategy—even without considering the cost of carbon. The 2011 study also projected that, over 40

years, the Transition Scenario would result in savings of $83 billion (present value) compared to the status quo strategy.

To achieve these lower-cost and low-emissions results, the Transition Scenario included large amounts of renewable energy resources with “variable output,” such as wind and solar. While the need for variable-output resources is well defined, questions have been raised about the impact of large-scale wind and solar inte-gration on electric system reliability. To address this, Synapse paid careful atten-tion to the amount of wind and solar in each region when designing the Transition Scenario for the 2011 report, taking steps to ensure that the projected regional resource mixes could respond to all load conditions.

The April 2013 study took the 2011 analysis one big step farther, in order to explore the extent to which the Transition Scenario’s resource mixes for 2030 and 2050 are capable of meeting projected load for each of the 10 studied regions—not just during peak demand conditions, but in every hour of every season of the year as consumers require.

www.solartectic.com


Events

The detailed Conference Program of the 28th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition (EU PVSEC) features more than 1,600 keynote, plenary, oral and visual presentations. The EU PVSEC 2013 will take place from 30 September to 04 October 2013 at Parc des Expositions Paris Nord Villepinte in Paris, France. The five-day Conference is combined with the three-day PV Industry Exhibition, held from 01 to 03 October 2013.

Globally installed cumulative PV capacity has surpassed the 100 GW mark in 2012 and will triple by 2018 according to the new Medium-Term Renewable Energy Market Report of the International Energy Agency—IEA. Reflecting that PV solar energy is now becoming a major and

mature electricity source, the Conference Program of the EU PVSEC 2013 extends it focus on application and policy-oriented topics with the inclusion of the related players. New materials, PV system aspects including reliability, dispatchability and grid integration issues and the role of PV as building material are examples of key topics addressed in Paris.

Dr. Arnulf Jäger-Waldau, European Commission, DG JRC and EU PVSEC Technical Program Chairman: ‘The world PV community meets at the EU PVSEC 2013 to present and discuss the most recent innovations and developments along the entire PV value chain. Dedicated sessions on the role of PV in the electricity markets, PV globalization and new business opportunities in the context of a further

comprehensive conference program with more than 1,600 presentations

EU PVSEC30 Sep-4 Oct 2013Paris, Francephotovoltaic-conference.com

Upcoming Event


Events

increasing global deployment of PV systems complement this comprehensive program. The Conference offers overviews of the latest research findings, industrial progress and political landscape through Keynote and Plenary Presentations and it provides specialized thematic sessions, were details are presented in a focused and technical manner.’

The combination of this leading Conference with an international PV Industry Exhibition and additional Parallel Events that offer a deep insight into specific topics, forms the unique character of the EU PVSEC. Participants benefit from multiple synergies and networking opportunities at this Business-to-Business, Business-to-Science and Science-to-Industry platform.

The Program of this Conference is composed by the international Scientific Committee made up of more than 200 research and industry experts from the global PV sector. The Conference Programme is structured along the following main subjects:• Material Studies, New Concepts, Ultra-

High Efficiency and Space Technology• Wafer-Based Silicon Solar Cells and

Materials Technology• Thin Film Solar Cells

• Components for PV Systems• PV Systems and Applications• PV—a Major Electricity Source

For many years, the European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition (EU PVSEC) has combined a renowned international scientific confer-ence with a leading PV industry exhibition and trade fair. During 5 conference and 3 trade fair days, new products and technical innovations from all areas of photovoltaics and from all over the world are on show.

The EU PVSEC is supported by European and international organisations. The Conference Programme is coordi-nated by the European Commission, DG Joint Research Centre.

Eu PvSEc and IPvEA present the Pv Production forum 2013 on 02 october 2013The European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition (EU PVSEC) and the International Photovoltaic Equipment Association (IPVEA) present the PV Production Forum 2013 on Wednesday, 02 October 2013 during the 28th EU PVSEC in Paris, France.

Jointly organized by IPVEA and EU PVSEC, the fifth edition of the PV

Production Forum provides an interna-tional platform for photovoltaic manufac-turing technologies. The 28th EU PVSEC will host the global PV community at the Parc des Expositions Paris Nord Villepinte in Paris, France, from 30 September to 04 October 2013.

The PV Production Forum 2013 addresses best practices and case studies that can assist production management, purchasing staff, and product managers how to increase throughput, efficiency, and save money in their production fabs. This educational meeting will feature presenta-tions arranged around several focal topics including silicon, thin-film and future photovoltaic module and cell production technologies.

IPVEA members and PV industry professionals are invited to submit proposals to speak at this technology forum.

For more information on the program and registration information, please visit the IPVEA website: http://www.ipvea.org/index.php?id=338.


Events

Hanergy Holding Group Limited, a multi-national clean-energy power generation company and the world’s largest thin-film solar company, hosted a forum on September 9, 2013, at the group’s Beijing headquarters on “The Third Industrial Revolution and China” in cooperation with The Climate Group, an independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to inspiring and catalyzing leadership for a clean revolution. Dr. Jeremy Rifkin, renowned economist, economic trend expert and the principle visionary behind the concept of and the book “The Third Industrial Revolution” participated in the forum as the guest of honour in his first stop on his first trip to China.

The forum brought together over 20 leading thought leaders, policymakers, renowned Chinese entrepreneurs, and representatives of non-profit organizations in China. The participants took a deep dive into the infrastructure of the Third Industrial Revolution and how govern-ments and the private and public sectors can work together to promote and achieve a sustainable future that is built on clean energy solutions.

Commenting on China’s role in the Third Industrial Revolution, Dr. Rifkin stated, “Internet communication tech-nology is converging with renewable forms of energy, giving rise to a Third Industrial Revolution in the 21st Century. China is now at an interesting crossroads – on the one hand it’s the world’s largest coal producer with the highest carbon emis-sions, at the same time the country has unraveled abundant renewable resources such as solar and wind. It clearly has the political will and the thriving business environment to pioneer new energy appli-cation breakthroughs. China is very likely to play a leading role in the Third Industrial Revolution, and take Asia and the rest of the world into the next great economic era.”

Mr. Li Hejun, vice chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry &

Commerce and chairman of Hanergy, concurred: “As the world joins hands to advance the Third Industrial Revolution, China is uniquely positioned to be a leader in this transformation. One of the key driving forces of the Third Industrial Revolution is new energy, and the PV industry is already at the forefront of it. Hanergy is fully committed to solar energy developmene. We are convinced it is a question of when, not if, renewable forms of energy, led by solar, will completely replace traditional fuels.”

Mr. Li continued, “The thin-film PV technology that Hanergy has adopted has uniquely advantageous characteris-tics including high flexibility, light weight, complete absence of a carbon footprint and cost-effective power generation. It has broad applications, for example, in large scale projects like BIPV. The market potential for thin-film PV technology in China alone is over RMB1 trillion and the indirect market potential surpasses RMB3 trillion. Hanergy has enjoyed business success in recent years and our strategy of global technology integration has posi-tioned us to create comprehensive, large-scale systems that can power meaningful and impactful changes for society.”

“I totally echo the key messages communicated in this room on China and the Third Industrial Revolution,” said Wu Changhua, Greater China Director of The Climate Group. “China today is at a critical juncture when its economy, instructri-alisation and urbanization is transforming towards a resource-efficient, environmen-tally-friendly, and clean energy-powered structure. It requires a grand new clean energy infrastructure that would support such a transformation. This is challenging today, but more importantly, an opportu-nity that shall not be missed when China is well-positioned to be a leader in the Third Industrialization.”

At the forum, experts from the Development Research Centre of the State

Council, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the State Grid Energy Research Institute and the Beijing Low Carbon Clean Energy Research Institute, along with other partic-ipants, engaged in vibrant discussion and debate. Notions that China’s continuous commitment to the restructuring of its economy is vital to harness the develop-ment of new energy, not only for the future growth of the country’s economy, but also for its competiveness in the global platform, were raised. The experts argued that the growth of the solar industry and the expansion of its applications cannot be achieved without a business- and market-driven approach to policymaking, and a coalition across non-profit orgnisations, governments and business leaders will help promote innovation and the implementa-tion of what is necessary to realize the Third Industrial Revolution in China.

Hanergy Holding Group Ltd. (“Hanergy”) is a global clean-energy power genera-tion company and the world’s largest thin-film PV company and solutions provider. Hanergy engages in the integration of the entire photovoltaic industry chain, covering R&D, high-end equipment manufacturing, PV module production and the construction of photovoltaic power plants.

The Climate Group is an independent, not-for-profit organization working internation-ally with government and business leaders to advance the smart policies, technologies and finance needed to cut global emissions and unlock a clean industrial revolution.

Dr. Jeremy Rifkin is the author of The New York Times bestselling book, The Third Industrial Revolution: How Lateral Power is Transforming Energy, the Economy, and the World. Mr. Rifkin is an adviser to the European Union and to heads of state around the world.

Event Reporthanergy and the climate Group host forum on “The Third Industrial revolution & china” with dr. Jeremy rifkin


Events

To gain a comprehensive overview of the entire solar PV industry in the UK, the must attend event for 2013 is the 3rd Solar UK Conference to be held in Watford, at the BRE.

Professionals will attend this 1 day event to hear the latest insights and opportunities, from the brightest and the best in solar PV. Delegates will hear from the experts on the topics that matter, including: Government update on progress in PV strategy and deploy-ment, an analyst viewpoint on moving from 3 to 20 GW in 7 Years. Advice for international investment and the largest UK contractor will speak on achieving Grid Parity in UK. Solar farms: public attitudes, policy direction and the need for self-regulation. How to source UK PV projects & deal with module supply & demand. Technology & Innovation: The key trends and alternative tech-nology: Is now the time for thin film? R&D: Solar Research and Development in the UK and much more.

Delegates will have a unique oppor-tunity to network with leading profes-sionals in the industry, interact with suppliers and experts who will deliver the latest research, business models, and insights aligned to their job roles. This is a conference of substance with first class business opportunities.

Upcoming EventThe road to 20Gw by 2020

Solar UK Conference 2013November 7, 2013Watford, UKuk.solarenergyevents.com


International diary

EuropeAlex Klocksin+49.1577.893.4884 Skype: [email protected]

North America Sandy DaneauTel: +1 239-234-1600Skype: [email protected]

South East Asia—IndiaSandy DaneauTel: +1 239-234-1600Skype: [email protected]

Singapore, Malaysia & Hong Kong Philip Lim+65 [email protected]

KoreaTel: 82-2-2273-4833Fax: [email protected]

ChinaPaul ChenOffice: +86 2154049130Mobile: +86 13611682177Skype: [email protected]

International diary4-6 September 2013Expo Solar/PV Korea Goyang, Koreawww.exposolar.org

9-11 September 2013RETECH Washington D.C., USAwww.retech2013.com

9-11 September 2013International Conference (and exhibi-tion) on Clean Energy Ottawa, Ontario, Canadawww.iaemm.com/ICCE2013/

18-20 September 2013Intersolar South America Sao Paulo, Brazilwww.intersolar.net.br

30 September - 4 October 201328th EU PVSEC Paris, Francewww.photovoltaic-conference.com

7-9 October 2013SXSW EcoAustin, Texas, USAwww.sxsweco.com

8-10 October 2013Solar Power UKBirmingham, United Kingdomwww.solarpowerukevents.org

21-24 October 2013Solar Power International Chicago, Illinois, USAsolarpowerinternational.com

28-30 October 2013PVAP ExpoSingaporewww.pvap.sg

5-9 November 2013CleanTech Future ConferenceSan Francisco, California, USAwww.CleanTechFuture.com

11-14 November 2013Intersolar IndiaMumbai, Indiawww.intersolar.in

12-14 November 2013Renewable Energy World North AmericaOrlando, Florida, USAwww.renewableenergyworld-events.com

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