It’s a sign of the price-declining times when a company can post record sales figures, but still report a drop in revenues. Fortunately for SMA Solar Technology, the German company was able to translate its increase in sales into a significant increase in EBIT of almost 20%.

Getting onto the broken record, 2016 saw SMA make solar inverter sales of more than 8 GW, which is up from 7.3 GW in 2015. As noted, the rapid decline in inverter prices throughout the year saw the company post a drop in revenues, from €981.8 million in 2015 to €940 million in 2016. However, it is likely that this figure will keep the company on the top of the global inverter manufacturers’ list for revenues, as other company’s prices will have also fallen.

The good news for SMA is that despite the fall in prices, it has still been able to increase its yearly EBIT almost 20%, from €43.3 million in 2015 to €65 million. “In 2016, SMA continued successfully on the path to more profit and higher cash flow,” commented SMA CEO Pierre-Pascal Urbon.

Looking forward, the company believes that some new products, which it is presenting at the Capital Markets Day tomorrow, will lead to an increase in the company’s profitability and a boost in competitiveness.

“Future energy generation will be decentralized, renewable and digital,” continued Urbon. “This will provide attractive opportunities for specialists in environmental and communication technology. SMA will use digital energy management to create transparency of energy flows across various sectors, such as PV, heating and e-mobility, and to optimize total energy costs at the local level. With its future service range, SMA will make PV an integral component of the new energy market.”

Focusing on the immediate future, SMA is expected a drop in revenue to between €830-€900 million in 2017, as well as a decline in EBITDA to between €70-€90 million, mainly as a result of continued price pressure in the segment.

“The fiscal year 2017 will certainly not be easy for SMA,” added Urbon. “We have already demonstrated on several occasions in the past that we can counter the enormous price pressure in our industry with technical innovation and the systematic reduction of fixed costs.”

North Carolina has become a heavyweight on the U.S. PV scene, which is seeing companies from nearby states assess solar investments in the state. PSE&G subsidiary PSEG Solar Source is one such company to take the delve into North Carolina, with the acquisition of two utility-scale PV plants from German solar developer BayWa r.e., bringing its total in the state to five.

The two projects, the PSEG Cork Oak Solar Energy Center and the PSEG Sunflower Solar Energy Center, have a combined capacity of 47 MW. BayWa is acting as the EPC on the projects, which will use 149,000 Trina Solar modules, complimented by SMA inverters. Construction is currently continuing, with the expectation that the sites will be fully operational by the end of the year.

“It is a pleasure to work with a top-notch organization like BayWa r.e. on these projects, which will provide North Carolina with more safe, clean and reliable energy,” said Diana Drysdale, president of PSEG Solar Source. “These are important transactions for us, as we continue to expand our solar portfolio across the country.

The total investment in the two projects is set to be US$74.6 million, while electricity generated at the sites is set to be bought by Virginia Electric and Power Co. on a 10-year power purchase agreement. The projects are located approximately 90 miles northeast of Raleigh in Halifax.

In total, PSEG Solar Source has now acquired 21 utility-scale solar plants, located in 13 states, which shows the commitment that the company has to expanding its solar portfolio across the country. Overall, the company has over 400MW of solar either in operation or under construction.

Any news of strategic investors eyeing the solar market is encouraging, and a new partnership between New York-based financial technology company CleanCapital and California-based Generate Capital to pump $300 million into distributed solar is exactly that. Ok, not all of the money is expected to go into distributed solar, but operating distributed solar projects is the short-term focus of the partnership.

It is CleanCapital’s first major foray into the solar market, which is why the company has chosen to partner up with Generate Capital, which has a proven track record in financing for clean energy solutions. This particular financing facility has been given a budget of $300 million to acquire operating clean energy projects.

“Distributed energy resources are a critical component of the future electric grid but to date the investment opportunities have been limited,” commented Jigar Shah, President of Generate Capital. “CleanCapital’s streamlined approach is attractive as it facilitates access to safe and secure opportunities to invest in these low-risk, cash flowing assets. After financing billions in innovative infrastructure, my co-founders and I created Generate’s novel model to fill a funding gap and advance the proven solutions required to build a resource-efficient economy. We’re pleased to partner with CleanCapital and its investors to bring a trusted, robust solution to this historically illiquid sector.”

Neither of the two companies has given any indication of the specific projects that they plan on investing in, or what the scale the projects are likely to be. However, what the financing facility will be able to do is bring liquidity to the market, which is always appreciative of increased capital.

“To rapidly transition to a clean energy economy, we need broader participation from the investment community and increased opportunity for project owners to successfully exit their existing portfolios,” said CleanCapital Co-founder and CEO Thomas Byrne. “CleanCapital is committed to attracting more investors to the space by providing a simple, understandable way to invest in clean energy—ultimately facilitating access to the billions of dollars of untapped capital sources that have been searching for opportunities in this sector.”

Last year was another record-breaking year for solar installations, as a whopping 75 GW was installed worldwide, according to market analysis group PV Market Alliance (PVMA). The figures are similar to other market analysts, who all agree that over 70 GW was installed, which was buoyed by China, who installed over 34 GW alone.

The official PVMA figures state that 75 GW was installed last year, which is up 50% from the 50 GW that was installed in 2015; a genuinely commendable effort, and one that brings the total global capacity above 300 GW.

Of course, the star of the show was China, that surpassed all expectations, by installing an incredible 34.2 GW over the course of the year, bringing the country’s total installed capacity to 77 GW; now the global leader. This huge figure represents a 126% increase from 2015, and accounted for 45% of the total installed capacity in 2016.

In second spot was the U.S., where the solar market has been purring nicely, with a total of 13 GW installed. Finishing off the top three was the ever-dependable Japan, with a solid offering of 8.6 GW. Europe continued to disappoint with just 6.5 GW installed across the entire continent, while India has established itself as the new kid on the bloc, with an impressive 5 GW installed, up from 2 GW in 2015.

These figures are similar to those of other market analysts. Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) estimates that 70 GW of solar PV projects were completed last year, however, also noted that investment in solar had fallen 32% YoY in 2016, to USD 116 billion, while Mercom Capital forecasted back in December that the annual solar installations across the globe would reach 76 GW for 2016.

Choppy waters ahead

Although the global solar industry does indeed deserve a communal pat on the back for the year just passed, it better gear itself up for more challenging times ahead. The PVMA is forecasting that there will be a 13% drop in the market in 2017, with a pessimistic view that just 65 GW will be installed, while also forecasting continued pressure on module prices.

This somewhat gloomy outlook for 2017 can mainly be attributed to China, as the country has recently announced a scaling-back of its solar installation targets and financial incentives. However, that it not to say that these might be revised again, or that the country might exceed its targets (which it has done numerous times before), plus, it is likely that the country will pass the 100 GW installation mark this year, making it the first country to do so.

Another bad omen for the global solar industry is the uncertainty in the U.S. market, as it prepares for the presidency of climate change denier, Donald Trump, who has given plenty of indications that support for clean energy is under threat.

But it’s not all bad news, the Indian market is expected to grow to 9 GW, while emerging markets are starting to make names for themselves, contributing 7 GW in 2016. So, the future might yet be bright, it will take more stubborn resolve within the industry to power through these challenges, which is something that it has proved it can do.

Last year was up and down for Vivint Solar, to say the least, as a failed merger set the company way off course, but its fortunes seem to be turning around. News of a combined $303 million in fresh financing is music to Vivint’s ears, as it allows the company to get back on track.

The financing has come in two separate transactions. The first is a fixed-rate, 18-year debt facility totaling $203 million, from four separate investors. The loan will be repayed using the contractual cash flows from four existing investment funds, which include 214 MW of solar systems.

The second is a follow-on investment in tax equity financing totaling $100 million, and is from one of Vivint’s existing investors. Both of the transactions have been closed with Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

“We are thrilled that Bank of America Merrill Lynch continues to support Vivint Solar and residential solar energy development,” said Dana Russell, CFO for Vivint Solar. “They have been a tremendous partner to us since our IPO in the fall of 2014.”

The extra funding is a good sign of investor confidence in the company, but will also allow it to repay outstanding borrowings under the company’s existing non-recourse credit facility. The second investment will be used for the installation of over 66 MW of residential arrays.

“This is a milestone transaction for Vivint Solar that demonstrates its access to an additional class of term debt lenders,” commented Vivint Solar CCO and Head of Capital Markets for Vivint Solar Thomas Plagemann.

“After closing the $313 million syndicated bank term loan facility in August 2016, this transaction completes the first full ‘turn’ of capital in our $375 million aggregation facility and validates the debt optimization strategy we outlined earlier last year.”

This healthy chunk of fresh investment comes just two months after the Vivint raised $200 million in tax equity funding, which is helping to stabilize the company after the planned merger with SunEdison fell through early last year, which rocked the company to its boots.

With new investors and some inventive new solutions to offer its customers, such as its offering of the Smart Home energy management system, it looks at though the Vivint ship has been steadied and is ready to go full steam ahead into 2017.

Off-grid solar has found itself an extremely exciting market in Sub Sahara Africa, where U.S. company Off Grid Electric has been taking advantage of excellent opportunities and has been expanding its reach across the continent. This has led to an increase in investment for the company and to a number of exciting partnerships, which have seen it become one of the front runners of off-grid solar solutions in various African countries.

The most recent financing has come from impact investment manager Developing World Markets (DWM), who has committed $7.5 million in debt financing to Off Grid Electric. These funds will be used to expand the solar home system footprint of the company’s consumer brand Zola, with a target of reaching 100,000 homes by 2019.

“To be backed by an organization like Developing World Markets, which is known for instituting positive economic and social change, aligns with our mission of transforming communities through access to reliable and affordable energy,” commented Joshua Pierce, Co-founder and CTO of Off Grid Electric. “With this investment, we’ll be able to expand and reach new goals in Rwanda even more quickly.”

With this new investment, which was completed at the end of 2016, the company raised a total of $30 million in funding last year. In an exclusive interview with pv magazine at the end of 2016, Off Grid Electric CEO Xavier Helgesen discussed the company’s goal of bringing solar power systems to three million West Africans, and gave details of an exciting new partnership that the company has signed with EDF for an expansion into the Ivory Coast.

In addition to the funding from DWM, the company also announced a partnership with Energy Development Corporation Limited, Rwanda’s national utility company, to provide energy access to rural households across Rwanda, as part of the Government of Rwanda’s Rural Electrification Strategy. Off Grid Electric has been active in the country since January 2016, so if well placed to implement such strategies.

CCA programs are beginning to stand up and be noted in the U.S., as more states and more local governments are looking at the programs as an effective means to incorporate more renewable energy into the energy mix, while circumventing utilities. The most recent PPA signed with a community choice aggregator is for a huge 105 MW-AC PV project, owned by sPower.

Community choice aggregator MCE has signed a 20-year PPA with sPower for the solar energy that is generated at the site. This energy can then be bought by companies and communities in Marin County, Napa County and the cities of Benica, El Cerrito, Lafayette, Richmond, San Pablo and Walnut Creek.

The power will be coming from sPower’s Antelope Expansion 2 solar plant in Lancaster, California, where more than 300,000 solar modules are being installed. The plant is also using a single-axis tracking system, while the whole site is expected to be operational by the end of 2018.

“We are excited for our first project with sPower,” commented MCE CEO Dawn Weisz. “Their reputation for responsible renewable energy development supports MCE’s goal to address climate change by offering our members responsibly-generated, competitively-priced clean power.”

The CCA trend is beginning to grow across six states in the U.S., with California leading the way, after the signing of the fifth CCA PPA in the state. The program allows local government and non-profits to circumvent the local utilities, by buying renewable energy in bulk directly from renewable developers, to then sell it on to groups of residents or companies that are unable to enter the power market directly.

MCE has been one of the most active community choice aggregators, serving customers in the East Bay and North Bay regions of California. Just last month it announced a deal to buy power from First Solar’s 40 MW Little Bear PV project in California’s central Valley, while the month before that it signed a deal to purchase power from a 100 MW project that Recurrent Energy is developing.

“MCE has raised the bar for all CCAs with their visionary sustainability initiatives,” said Hans Isern, sPower SVP Utility Power Marketing. “With projects like Antelope Expansion 2, sPower is providing important economic and workforce benefits. And MCE is able to offer its members the ability to make smart decisions about the environment and their energy sources.”

Once again proving its environmentalist credentials, IKEA has announced plans to add to its 44 MW solar portfolio in the U.S., with a rooftop array for its future Columbus store. It is the latest move by IKEA in its quest to go 100% energy independent by 2020, by investing in renewable energy projects at its retail sites.

The Columbus array, made up of 3,546 modules will have a capacity of 1.21 MW. Drawing upon industry expertise, the company has acquired the services of REC Solar to take charge of development, design, and installation of the system. The installation is set to begin early next year, and is expected to be completed in spring 2017, in time for the opening of the store in the summer.

It is the second IKEA solar system in Ohio, with another array on its West Chester store, with a capacity of 1.026 MW. Once the second system is installed, the combined capacity of these two systems will make IKEA the largest non-utility solar owner in Ohio.

“We are excited about furthering our sustainability commitment with solar panels on the future Columbus store,” commented IKEA U.S. President Lars Petersson. “At IKEA, we have a mission to create a better everyday like for many, and IKEA Columbus can add to this goal while also making us the largest non-utility solar owner in Ohio.”

Incredibly, this will be the 46^th solar project that IKEA has undertaken in the U.S., with a solar presence on almost 90% of its U.S. locations. Combined, these systems have an impressive capacity of 44 MW. However, the company still has a way to go before rivalling fellow retail company Target that has 147.5 MW of installed solar on its facilities, and Walmart that has 145 MW of installed solar.

And IKEA isn’t just focusing on the U.S., in fact, it has allocated USD 2.5 billion to invest in renewable energy projects globally by 2020. The eventual goal of this renewable energy investment push is to be 100% energy independent by 2020.

Its solar presence doesn’t stop there, as it began selling residential solar systems earlier in the year at its “Solar Shops,” which can be found within selected IKEA stores in Europe. It hopes that it will be able to expand its solar sales points across its stores globally, with the ambitious target of becoming the world’s largest residential solar retailer.

Mosaic is continuing to earn the trust of substantial financers for its business model, as it announces another huge financing facility that it will use to provide solar loans to homeowners across the U.S. It is the third such facility that the company has secured this year, after slightly smaller amounts made available from different financers in April and in August.

Deutsche Bank acted as the arranger and administer of the $250 million warehouse facility. When added to recent company upsizes, this facility will allow Mosaic a new loan funding capacity of $550 million, giving it an enviable position in the U.S. residential solar market.

“More and more homeowners are looking for an effective path to energy savings,” commented Mosaic founder and CEO Billy Parish. “The credit facility with Deutsche Bank provides meaningful capacity to fund growing demand for residential solar projects.”

Mosaic is trying to position itself as the solar loans market-leader, with a business model based on providing loans with fixed interest rates to homeowners to purchase rooftop solar systems. Its financing timelines range from 10 to 25 years, with interest rates between 2.49% and 8.48%.

The company has set itself of having a significant $1 billion available to homeowners for solar loans by the summer of 2017. This newest financing facility is a significant step towards that goal, as it is the largest the company has secured over the last year. The two most recent facilities before this were a $220 million facility from Warburg Pincus, secured in August, and a $200 million warehouse facility from DZ Bank, secured in April.

The North Star Solar project is acting as the flagship solar PV construction in the Midwest, spanning across 1,000 acres of agricultural land on the eastern frontier of Minnesota state. It will be the largest in the region once it is connected to the grid, which called for modules from one of the most preeminent solar manufacturers, JinkoSolar.

In total, 440,000 of JinkoSolar’s 72-cell PV modules will be used for the project, which will account for 140 MWdc of energy. The huge construction is located in Chisago County, which is about 50 miles north of Minneapolis.

“JinkoSolar is committed to ensuring that our products are highly reliable and are backed with dependable service,” commented JinkoSolar (U.S.) General Manager Nigel Cockroft. “Working with longtime partners Swinerton and DESRI on another substantial project like North Star is a testament to this commitment.”

Swinerton Renewable Energy served as the EPC contractor on the project, which marks a significant move for utility-scale solar in a state, which is tentatively welcoming the clean energy technology. An affiliate of D.E. Shaw Renewable Energy has acquired the plant, and will sell the power it generates to Xcel Energy on a 25-year power purchase agreement, once it is connected to grid in December 2016.

Xcel Energy has put a number of eggs in the solar basket, with plans to add an ambitious 1.4 GW of solar to the state by 2030, of which almost half will come from community solar projects.

“We are proud to build a project that will showcase the potential of utility-scale solar in the Midwest,” said George Hershman, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Swinerton Renewable Energy. “Thank you to our respected client, DESRI, our partners, the communities of Chisago County, and the SRE team for their valuable roles in North Star’s success.”

As large companies look towards clean energy to fulfill their corporate responsibility obligations, solar is being seen as a suitable energy source to fuel their operations. Amazon is one of the huge companies that has got on the renewable energy bandwagon, with a pledge to go 100% renewable within the next ten years.

To achieve this goal, the company had partnered with solar developer Dominion last year, through its subsidiary Amazon Web Services (AWS), to fund the development of an 80 MW solar plant in Virginia. Now, AWS has expanded that partnership for a further 180 MW of solar within the eastern state.

A total of five PV projects will be developed by Dominion as part of the deal, including four 20 MW projects that Dominion will acquire from Virginia Solar, and then a mega 100 MW project that Dominion is acquiring from Community Energy Solar. Dominion has recruited Strata Solar and Signal Energy to serve as the EPCs on the projects.

Dominion subsidiary, Dominion Energy, has signed long-term power purchase agreements (PPA) with AWS for the sale of the energy generated at the plants once they are operational, which is expected to be in late 2017. Dominion were unwilling to reveal the details of the PPAs when pv magazine reached out for comment.

“This alliance with Amazon Web Service will include the two largest solar farms in the mid-Atlantic,” commented Chairman, President and CEO of Dominion Thomas Farrell. “This solar expansion is great for Dominion, Amazon and the Commonwealth of Virginia. It helps AWS meet its renewable needs, it expands Virginia’s clean electric generation fleet, and it creates economic development opportunities in largely rural communities.”

Amazon’s strides towards clean energy

In 2015, Amazon announced its ambition to meet 100% of its power for its global infrastructure needs using renewable energy within the next ten years. Its initial goal had been to reach 40% by the end of 2017, but that has since been increased to 50%. These new projects in Virginia will feed clean energy into the grid that supplies AWS data centers.

“We continue to ramp our sustainability efforts in areas where availability of renewable energy sources are low or proposed projects are stalled, and where the energy contribution goes onto the same electric grid that powers AWS data centers,” commented AWS Infrastructure Vice President Peter DeSantis. “By enabling 10 utility scale renewable projects in the U.S. to date, we are well-positioned to meet our latest goal of 50 percent renewable energy powering the AWS global infrastructure by the end of 2017.”

On the Dominion side, once these projects are completed, the company will have an operating solar capacity of 1,400 MW, of which 434 MW are in North Carolina and Virginia. One of the latest Dominion projects to go online, which was also as part of its partnership with AWS, was an 80 MW solar plant in Accomack County, Virginia.

Vivint Solar is still attracting notable investments, as the company announces the finalizing of $200 million in tax equity commitments. It is much needed funding for the deployment of residential solar as the company’s quarterly financials loom just around the corner.

The new equity commitments have come from three separate investors, and represents the second time this year that the company has raised $200 million in funding, after closing on a $200 million non-recourse term facility back in March.

This new influx of capital will be used to support 123 MW of residential solar projects with a total value of $480 million. This translates into solar systems for more than 17,000 residential customers.

“We are pleased to announce ongoing support from our capital partners,” commented Vivint Solar Chief Commercial Officer and Head of Capital Markets Thomas Plagemann. “This announcement demonstrates Vivint Solar’s ability to raise financing to enable our continued growth and demonstrates the confidence investors have in the company’s future.”

It has been a topsy-turvy year for Vivint after its merger agreement with SunEdison fell through in March, which saw the company struggle to recover, compounded by the resignation of its CEO Greg Butterfield in May. However, the company’s second quarter financial results were not as poor as some had predicted they might be, with decent year-on-year revenue growth, and a significant drop in the company’s yearly loss from operations.

With the pending release of its Q3 results, Vivint was reluctant to give out exact solar deployment forecasts for the third quarter, stating instead that they would be similar to the 61 MW deployed during the second quarter. However, there is not long to wait to find out, as the company is due to release its quarterly financial results later today, which will be covered on the pv magazine USA and pv magazine websites.

It has been another impressive 12 months for solar inverter market leader SMA Solar, as it announces another notable milestone in the North American marker. It has now installed over 10 GW of inverters across the continent, owing much its success to its rich selection of solar solutions and high level of engineering.

The German company launched in North America back in 2000, and soon became the prominent inverter manufacturer on the market. Enjoying steady success over the years, a recent boom the solar industry has seen its installed capacity soar, increasing by an impressive 33% in less than a year.

The company places much of its success on its flexible product selections, which includes turnkey solutions for utility power plants, three-phase inverter technology, and string-inverters for residential application. Owing to this rich selection, it believes that it has appeal to the majority of solar industry actors.

“SMA is the clear market leader in North American with a market share of 30%,” commented SMA CEO Pierre-Pascal Urbon. “Customers trust in SMA’s expertise and appreciate our local presence. Due to our complete product portfolio we do not have to force the customer to buy only string-inverters. Instead, we strive to find the technically best solution to lower the consumer cost of electricity.”

The company has also talked up its operation and maintenance services as a key to its success. It believes that offering these services alongside the technology shows that it will support its clients throughout the whole process and after installation.

Taken into a global context, SMA Solar is still top of the pile with a 14% share of the total global inverter revenue in 2015. In terms of shipments, China’s Huawei is leading the way, but due to lower average selling prices for inverters in China, Huawei’s revenues were not able to top SMA’s. However, the company is starting to expand its presence in foreign markets, which could see it soon challenge SMA at the top of the revenue chart, as well as the shipment leaderboard.

It is undeniable that the energy storage industry is booming in markets across the world, as more people consider it the key to renewable energy integration. Swiss integrated energy storage solution company, Leclanché, is feeling the effects of this boom, and has now announced its first project in the U.S.

The company was selected by Swiss Green Electricity Management Group (SGEM) to provider EPC contractor services and a turnkey battery storage system for the 20 MW Marengo Energy Storage Plant in Chicago. The project, developed by GlidePath Power, is a landmark project in the region, as one of the largest commercial battery storage projects in the country.

The project is being developed for the PJM Interconnection, the regional market transmission operator and will be interconnected to the local Commonwealth Edison Company electric grid, helping to provide real-time frequency regulation to PJM. Demand for frequency regulation is growing considerably, due to the increase of renewable energy in the electricity mix.

It is the first project of a strategic partnership between Leclanché and SGEM, to deliver utility-scale energy storage solutions across various markets. Particularly hoping to start breaking into the North American market.

“The formation of SGEM and its acquisition of projects sends a strong signal that international investors are recognizing the tremendous potential of this exciting new infrastructure asset class,” commented Leclanché CEO Anil Srivastava. “The pipeline of similar projects will continue to generate a high-growth demand in North America. Leclanche is focused on executing those projects, both on cost and on time. The Marengo Energy Storage Project leads the way to additional future projects and we are convinced that, thanks to investors such as SGEM, we will continue to play a leading role in the energy storage industry.”

It’s no secret that prices across the solar industry are tumbling. Mainly a result of global price pressure, the latest company to feel the burn of the falling prices is SMA Solar Technology, who has now been forced to adjust its financial forecast for the year.

It is not catastrophic for the tier-one inverter manufacturer, dropping its revenues forecast from between EUR 950 million and EUR 1,050 million down to between EUR 900 million to EUR 950 million. It is also adjusting its forecasted EBIT from between EUR 80 million to EUR 120 million to between EUR 60 million and EUR 70 million. Both the adjusted figures are still improvements from 2015, however.

The company was candid in its announcement, stating that a mixture of worldwide price pressure right across the industry, and delays to solar projects had caused the adjustment of the forecasts.

“After a successful third quarter in 2016, we expect weaker business at year-end due to the significant increase in price pressure and numerous project delays in the EMEA and North American regions,” commented SMA CEO Pierre-Pascal Urbon. “SMA has reacted to changes in market conditions in good time. This year, we presented significantly cost-reduced product innovations and solutions to our customers at leading trade fairs in Europe and in the USA.”

However, it is important to note that the financial statistics for 2016 will be better than 2015, particularly the EBIT. The company has also undertaken some restructuring activities, including that closing down of its production sites around the world.

“With a high equity ration of nearly 50% and net case of more than EUR 350 million, SMA is one of the most solid companies in the solar industry” continued Urbon. “Financial strength is of great important in view of the market for major solar projects and the long-term service business.”

Interestingly, SolarWorld today also announced a decrease in its revenues and EBIT forecast for 2016. The German/American PV maker said that, although it was meeting its sales forecast, price pressure in the industry had forced it to lower its revenue expectations. These two similar announcements, from manufacturers of different solar products on the same, shows that prices are getting squeezed right across the solar industry.

As a topsy-turvy year for the German company begins its final stretch, the management board of SolarWorld announced that the company will not fulfil its financial predictions for 2016. And as a well known proponent of U.S. and EU trade measures against Chinese PV manufacturers, the company is already pointing the figure at Chinese companies for causing price drops in the industry.

Within the announcement, SolarWorld was proud to proclaim that it will achieve its shipment forecast for the year, which is 20% higher than in 2015. However, that is where the good news stops, as it said despite the increase in shipments, it is now unlikely to meet its revenue and EBIT forecasts.

Getting straight on the defensive, SolarWorld immediately looked at Chinese companies that it considers to be ‘dumping’ its products. “Domestic demand for installations in China collapsed due to the reduction of feed-in tariffs in Q3 2016. In return, Chinese manufacturers have offered their inventories at dumped prices on the global market, which has resulted in a global price decline.”

SolarWorld has been very vocal in its support for EU trade measures against Chinese companies, which were applied to protect the European solar industry from dumping. These measures include a minimum import price (MIP) on PV modules from Chinese manufacturers and significant duties for the companies that do not agree to the MIP.

However, many of the Chinese PV companies have now opted out of the undertaking, putting pressure on the EU to revise its scheme. On top of that, a large section of the European solar industry, including SolarPower Europe, are against the measures, claiming that they damage the development of the industry in Europe right along the value chain.

While SolarWorld fights to keep the measures in place, it also has a stern legal battle in the U.S. to contend with, as a U.S. court ruled against the German-company in a dispute in excess of $790 million, with Hemlock Semiconductor. Hemlock claims that SolarWorld has not fulfilled its contractual obligations to the company for the purchase of polysilicon.

U.S. solar developer 8minutenergy is slowly but surely building up its utility-scale solar PV portfolio, and to take the company up to the next level it is seeking out further investment. The investment opportunity that the company is proposing is for a 500 MW PV pipeline of projects that almost ready to get going, with funds raised expected to move along a much larger pipeline.

8minutenergy believes that the near-term projects, amounting to 500 MW, which already have long-term PPAs in place, have a combined value over $1 billion. The company claims that the funds will go to supporting development of a whopping 5.5 GW solar PV project pipeline, and has employed the financial advisory services of Merrill Lynch to help with the investment deals.

“As the U.S. solar market continues to grow, driven by the increasing price competitiveness of utility-scale solar, the ITC extension, and various decarbonization policies, we are well positioned to capitalize on our growing pipeline delivering gigawatts of clean energy to the grid,” commented 8minutenergy founder and CEO, Martin Hermann.

So far, the company has developed over 700 MWs of operational solar projects. Much of those projects have been in 8minutenergy’s local state of California, with the capital raise presumably a means for the company to spread its wings further afield.

“Our strategy continues to focus on large utility-scale greenfield development, deploying best-in-class solar solutions providing our customers with the greatest value for their energy needs,” said 8minutenergy President, Tom Buttgenbach. “As we continue to expand and build upon our proven, levelized cost of energy-centric platform, we are looking for efficient investment capital to fund a variety of interesting development and long term ownership opportunities in the U.S.”

Another day, another efficiency record broken. This time an aperture efficiency record for multicrystalline silicon solar modules, thus it only covers a certain area of the module, but it is still moving in the right direction. Trina Solar is responsible for the broken record, with its “Honey Plus” module, which use half-cell interconnection and PERC technology during the manufacturing process.

The 19.86% aperture efficiency was set across a module area of 1.514 m2, on a module that contained 120 pieces of P-type multicrystalline silicon solar cells. The record was set at Trina’s State Key Laboratory of PV Science and Technology of China, and was verified by the Fraunhofer ISE CalLab in Germany.

Interestingly, the new efficiency broke the previous record of 19.14%, that was set back in April 2015, so it shows a dramatic improvement.

“The efficiency of PV modules is one of the key parameters to estimate the final Levelised Cost of solar Electricity,” commented Trina Solar Vice-President and chief scientist Pierre Verlinden. “This 19.86% aperture efficiency result that Trina Solar achieved demonstrates the huge potential for future multicrystalline p-type silicon research. It is also a leap forward in the trend of continuous efficiency improvements of crystalline silicon solar modules. In the innovation-driven PV industry, Trina Solar is always focused on developing leading-edge PV technologies and products that improve cell efficiency and reduce system cost.”

The current aperture efficiency world record for HIT technology modules is 23.8%, set by Panasonic back in March 2016. The monocrystalline efficiency record is currently held by SunPower, with an efficiency of 25.0%.

With SolarCity’s proposed merger with Tesla lurking on the horizon, the U.S. solar company has agreed to set up a new $300 million fund with Credit Suisse. It is the second significant partnership in as many days for SolarCity, after announcing the signing of a letter of intent with Panasonic for the production of solar modules the day before.

The new fund will be used to finance thousands of residential solar arrays across the U.S., with the goal of customers directly saving money on their energy bills once the systems are installed. It is the fourth collaboration of its kind between SolarCity and Credit Suisse.

Just six months ago, in April, the two companies closed a deal for a $150 million financing facility for commercial solar and battery storage. The facility, which was secured with a portfolio of long-term commercial systems and contracts, is to support deployment of commercial solar energy systems, including battery storage, for businesses, schools and government organizations. And it can be added to similar partnerships, such as the $305 million cash equity financing that was closed with Citi just last month.

The news of the partnership comes just a day after SolarCity signed a letter of intent with Panasonic to collaborate on the production of solar modules and cells at SolarCity’s Buffalo facility. The agreement appeared to say that Panasonic will provide cells under a long-term purchase agreement for the manufacture of modules at the facility, however, it hinges on the completion of Tesla’s acquisition of SolarCity, adding yet more importance to the merger.

With the partnership of Panasonic, presuming that the acquisition takes place, and the continued financing from stable partners, SolarCity is continuing to strengthen its network, putting it in a strong position to expand within the U.S. residential and commercial solar market.

Historically conservative in its forecasting for the growth of renewable energies, the IEA appears to be ready to put an end to that trend with its upcoming World Energy Outlook report. The agency has revealed that estimates for solar and wind installations will be significantly increased in the report, as it tries to accurately reflect the renewed global efforts to cut carbon emissions.

The IEA has underestimated growth in the renewables sector for over ten years, which has seen a fair amount of criticism aimed at the agency, which acts as the world’s number one energy forecaster. However, its annual mid-term report, which is due at the beginning of November, will increase previous estimates, and should hopefully more accurately reflect the genuine outlook for the sector.

The main reason for the change in the forecast, according to Bloomberg, is the recent developments in energy policies around the world. These developments have been spurred on by the agreement reached in Paris at the end of last year, which has inspired a number of emission cutting and climate change policies.

All signs seem to be pointing to a sharp increase in the renewable energy industry. Just last week the World Energy Council met for the 23rd World Energy Congress, where the organization predicted that solar and wind will account for 60% of all power generated by 2060. It pointed to the huge investment in the sector as the main catalyst for this. In fact, in 2015, US$ 348 billion was invested in the clean energy industry, which is double the amount that was spent on fossil fuels.

Times are looking good for the energy storage industry, and particularly for German energy storage company Sonnen, who has been significantly growing its market share over the last couple of years. The world is looking towards energy storage as the key for renewable energy, especially solar, integration into the energy mix, which is why Sonnen wants to seize the opportunity to expand its growth trajectory.

The new investment of USD 85 million came from the company’s most recent financing round, which has just been completed. Interestingly, two new investors have decided to take stakes in Sonnen, international technology company Envision Energy, and former CEO and ex-Chairman of Allianz Capital Partners, Thomas Putter.

“The future of energy is clean, decentralised and digital,” said Lei Zhang, CEO of Envision Energy. “With its Sonnen Community platform and smart sonnenBatterie technology, Sonnen already demonstrates how our energy infrastructure will look tomorrow. We were impressed by their proven capabilities, their rapid growth and the high level of continuing innovation in the energy space.”

The reason that Sonnen was looking for fresh investment was to continue to build on its impressive growth trajectory. It wants to deepen its position in the German market, but also expand its business in the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Italy.

“We want to become the energy supplier of the future. Fast growth and leadership in innovation are the keys to reaching this goal,” commented Christoph Ostermann, CEO of Sonnen Group. “With Envision Energy, we have gained a strategic investor who shares our vision, supplements our technology and has a strong presence in both the U.S. and Asian markets.”

In a recent interview with pv magazine, Philipp Schröder clarified just what the company plans on doing with the new funds, explaining that the company now has more money to invest than any other company in the sector. Most of the investment will indeed go to expansion in the German, Austrian and Swiss markets, but that a large chunk of the funds will go on research and development.

Schröder also explained that with the two new investment partners, Sonnen has gained some experts in the field of energy. He believes that these new partners will be well placed to open doors to the company, while allowing it to continue to develop its products.

Sonnen appears to be in prime position to take advantage of a huge boom in the energy storage market as of late. And that boom doesn’t look like stopping anytime soon, as just last week the World Energy Council predicted that the cost of energy storage should drop by an astonishing 70% over the next 15 years, at the 23rd World Energy Congress. This comes as governments look towards energy storage as an answer to integrate renewable energy sources into the energy mix.

In an impassioned speech to the House of Commons, Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau presented a strong proposal to reduce carbon pollution by putting a price on all carbon by 2018. Trudeau had already outlined his support for a clean energy transition, and this plan showed that he is serious in acting now to cut emissions and to use it as a springboard for new opportunities in the Canadian economy.

The Prime Minister started his speech by speaking of failings by previous governments and the effect that these failings have already had. He didn’t dance around the topic of climate change, like so many leaders have in the past, and continue to do, but instead confronted it head on, and showed a clear resolve to tackle it.

“After decades of inaction, after years of missed opportunities, we will finally take real and concrete measures to build a clean economy, create more opportunities for Canadians, and make out world better for our children and grandchildren,” Trudeau stated. “Mr. Speaker, we will not walk away from science, and we will not deny the unavoidable.”

Carbon polluters pay the price

Not wanting to make wishy-washy statements, the PM went on to outline a clear plan to reduce carbon emissions by putting a price on carbon across the whole country as of 2018. The proposed price will start at a minimum of $10 per tonne in 2018, going up a further $10 each year, to eventually reach $50 per tonne in 2022. At this stage it will be reviewed again.

Interestingly, different areas of the country would have a choice for how to incorporate this price, by either adding it directly onto carbon pollution, or by adopting a cap-and-trade system. Additionally, each province will keep the revenues that are generated under the program. But the PM was clear to point out that for now this is only a proposal, and is still open for discussion from different groups within society.

“Over the next two months, the government will collaborate closely with the provinces, territories and Aboriginal organizations to finalize this plan,” Trudeau continued. “These discussions are essential, because we know that no plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions can succeed without the help of our provincial and territorial partner, who have already shown great leadership in tackling climate change.”

Everyone benefits, including the economy

Careful not to focus purely on the environmental benefits of taxing carbon and the transition to a ‘clean’ economy, Trudeau pointed out that there would be a host of economic benefits as well. He stated that this plan will encourage businesses to innovate in finding ways to reduce carbon emissions, and that it will eventually make Canadian business more competitive.

Not only this, but the PM pointed to new and exciting job prospects that will be created as a result of this economic shift, highlighting the increased investment in renewable energy, which was almost 50% higher than in fossil fuels in 2015.

“This framework will include not only the plan for pricing carbon pollution, but will also pave the way forward to better support innovation and jobs in the clean energy sector, manage the effects of climate change, and improve our capacity for adaptation and climate resilience,” Trudeau stated.

It is not the first time that we have seen Trudeau show clean support for the reduction of carbon emissions, as already twice this year he has met with U.S. President Obama to discuss action on climate change and to plan better ways to incorporate clean energy sources. But the message this time was stronger, it showed that he plans to take very real action to reduce carbon emissions within Canada, and that he is not scared to face climate change head on.

“There is no hiding from climate change,” he added. “It is real and it is everywhere. We cannot undo the last 10 years of inaction. What we can do is make a real and honest effort – today and everyday – to protect the health of our environment, and with it, the health of all Canadians.”

When you’ve got Google on your side, anything is possible. Now the search engine giant is acting as the catalyst for residential solar deployment in the U.S. with its Project Sunroof initiative. Launched just over a year ago, the project has already spread across the country, earning it a place among the 13 winners of the United Nations’ ‘Momentum for Change Lighthouse Initiative’ award.

Project Sunroof was one of five winners within the ICT Solutions category, while the others fitted into the Women for Results and the Financing for Climate Friendly Investment categories. All of the winners were chosen for their innovative approach to solving the challenge of climate change, and shall be honored at the U.N. COP22 Climate Conference in Marrakech in November.

“The Momentum for Change Lighthouse Activities underline how climate action and sustainable development is building at all levels of society from country-wide initiatives to ones in communities, by companies and within cities worldwide,” commented UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa. “By showcasing these remarkable examples of creativity and transformational change, along with the extraordinary people behind them, we can inspire everyone to be an accelerator towards the kind of future we all want and need.”

Project sunroof

A standout winner, Project Sunroof has the influential brand of Google leading its charge. It is an innovative project that makes solar evaluation as simple as a click of a button for U.S. homeowners. Aiming to solve the challenge that residential solar firms have in finding new customers, Project Sunroof enables homeowners to find out if solar is suitable for their property and how much they can save by installing the system. Launching just over a year ago in two states, it had already spread to 42 states by April 2016, and that trend looks to be continuing.

The highly technical solution uses Google mapping technology and aerial imagery from Google Earth to build 3D models of structures and the surrounding area to calculate a roof’s solar potential. While hi-tech behind the scenes, it is incredibly easy for homeowners to use, as all they need to do is enter their address into the program and it will generate the information.

The results show the potential solar customer how much power they could produce and how much that would save them on their energy bills. And to fully support the industry, it can even connect the potential customers with solar installers in the area.

An encouraging sign for the solar industry is that Project Sunroof was not the only solar-based winner of the U.N. Momentum for Change awards. Others included an EU crowdfunding platform for community solar project, aptly titled Crowdfunding for Community Solar Projects, and solar provider Off Grid Electric that utilizes an innovative financial package to provide solar systems in Tanzania.

Another mammoth solar PV plant has been put into operation in California, as the 200 MW Tranquility solar project officially begins generating electricity. Built on a huge expanse in Fresno County, the project took just over a year to complete and adds another large block of solar capacity to the U.S. state that is leading the way in PV deployment.

Canadian Solar’s subsidiary Recurrent Energy developed the project from start to finish, building the giant plant on 1,900 acres of retired agricultural land in Fresno County. The construction began in July 2015, so it took a total of 14 months to complete, which is not bad for a site of this size.

Originally Canadian Solar had full ownership of the site, but in August 2015 Southern Power, a subsidiary of Southern Company, bought 51% of the plant, leaving Canadian Solar with the remaining 49%.

“The Tranquility Solar Facility will help meet the energy needs of customers now and in the future,” commented Southern Power President and CEO Buzz Miller. “Through strategic acquisitions we continue our solar generation growth, creating one of America’s largest renewable portfolios.”

The project has been built on lands that are retired from agricultural production, which means that the project has not adversely affected local farmers. It has been a popular project in the local community, while the electricity will be sold on 15-year PPAs to various offtakers, including Southern California Edison.

“Recurrent Energy’s Tranquility solar project is a Smart from the Start project that uses drainage impaired, marginally productive farm lands being retired from agricultural production,” said Carl Zichella, Director of Western Transmission for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). “Recurrent Energy should be commended for its responsible development practices.”

“The Tranquility solar facility is the product of long-term collaboration with financial partners, local communities and other stakeholders,” said Chairman and CEO of Canadian Solar Shawn Qu. “This milestone is a testament to our commitment to the communities and ecosystems where we operate, which is a critical ingredient of our project development success.”

The Tranquility solar plant is an impressive sight, but new large-scale developments such as this are likely to become less common, as new utility-scale projects are getting smaller in the U.S. in general and in California in particular. The one notable exception to this is Texas, where there are still large utility-scale project getting developed, with more expected for the next five years.

It’s an exciting time for French-based Sonnedix Group, as the company was recently bought out by investors advised by J.P. Morgan, after two years of significant growth. Today the company can celebrate another landmark event, as it has connected to the grid the largest solar PV plant in the Caribbean.

The 45 MW Oriana Solar Farm, which was built by Greece-based METKA-EGN, had over US$160 million invested in it. The plant will go a long way to helping the island cut down on carbon emissions, while also creating over 1,000 jobs throughout its development.

“The energization of the largest solar power plant in the Caribbean will bring a large amount of clean, green energy to Puerto Rico,” commented Sonnedix CEO Andreas Mustad. “It is a landmark moment for Sonnedix. With this milestone, we have more than tripled our operating capacity over the past eighteen months.”

Oriana Energy worked with U.S. company Yarotek to connect the plant the Puerto Rico Electricity Power Authority’s (PREPA) electrical transmission grid. It is the second utility-scale PV plant that the two have developed together in Puerto Rico, as the island looks to reduce its reliance on oil-based fuel.

“To keep our promise to begin producing clean energy in the month of August, we worked hand in hand with PREPA and our contractors to meet our goal and the commitment made to the people of Puerto Rico,” said Sonnedix Executive Vice-President Joern Hackbarth.

“The Oriana Solar Farm undoubtedly represents another important step in helping PREPA reduce the purchase of oil-based fuel and integrate clean energy sources into our grid,” added Executive Director of PREPA Javier Quintana. “Projects of this nature lead us toward environmental compliance and fuel price stabilization for the benefit of our customers.”

Sonnedix has been on a sharp growth trajectory in the last couple of years, culminating in the company being acquired by investors that are advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management. The acquisition is to allow Sonnedix to pursue further opportunities in the global solar market.

JinkoSolar is continuing to expand its reach in global solar markets with a supply deal with New York State-based, owner and operator of utility-scale renewable projects, Consolidated Edison Development. This most recent deal will see the company supply its high-efficiency modules to Con Edison projects across the U.S.

Jinko will be supplying approximately 560 MW of its 72-cell modules to Con Edison, in a deal which should stretch through to August 2017. It is a testament to the high regard that the Chinese manufacturer enjoys in various global PV markets, with shipments to Con Edison’s projects already underway.

“JinkoSolar has a clear understanding of the energy marketplace in which we operate,” commented Con Edison Development President and CEO Mark Noyes. “It is important that our company continuously improves solar system efficiency in order to remain competitive with other energy sources. JinkoSolar’s product roadmap and operational excellence are perfect fits for our company.”

Jinko has been making its presence felt in other regional markets, as it looks to take advantage of the various solar booms that are taking place at the moment. Just last month the company signed three significant PPAs for 188 MW of solar projects in neighboring Mexico.

“We are proud to have reached another significant milestone through this supply agreement with Con Edison Development,” said JinkoSolar (U.S.) Inc. general manager Nigel Cockroft. “JinkoSolar’s strong momentum in the U.S. solar industry is a direct result of our company’s dedication to reliability in both modules performance and customer support.”

In the national rankings for which U.S. state has the most installed PV there is a tight battle taking place below first spot. California is way out in front, but North Carolina, Arizona, and New Jersey are having a friendly tussle for second spot; North Carolina ahead of the pack in the most recent ranking.

North Carolina overtook Arizona during the second quarter of the year, by installing around 115 MW of new solar, bringing its total to 1.9 GW (over 2.4 GW DC) of installed PV. Arizona now sits in third place, with New Jersey in fourth and Nevada finishing off the top five. California is miles above the rest, installing a whopping 775 MW in the second quarter of 2016 alone.

Over the course of the year, North Carolina is forecasted to add an impressive 630 MW of new PV capacity, according to GTM Research analysts. While that is a commendable figure, it is down from the 900 MW of solar that was installed in 2015. Interestingly, the vast majority of the installed PV in North Carolina is utility-scale, as the distributed solar market in the state is small.

The sudden rise of the state is down to a number of factors, not least friendly regulatory framework, and sustained efforts from the North Carolina utility Duke Energy that now has over 35 solar plants operating within the state. The utility has encouraged and facilitated the development of solar within the state and plans to continue the PV growth trajectory, with PPAs in place for a further 1.3 GW of solar projects.

A recent example of its commitment to the solar industry was the resolution of a dispute with 33 utility-scale solar developers over the method that new grid connection criteria will be applied. The utility was happy to negotiate on some of the demands of the developers in the interest of the industry and the local power grid.

“Duke Energy recently agreed with a number of leading solar developers on a new screening process to make sure solar continues its sustainable growth in North Carolina – while maintaining the integrity and reliability of the electric grid,” a Duke Energy spokesperson told pv magazine.

Overall, analysts are expecting solar development to continue in North Carolina, at least through 2017. The country’s PV market as a whole is also in a healthy position, as the recent GMT Research report forecasted a total of 13.9 GW of PV to be added this year.

A project which has come about as a direct consequence of a fossil fuel failing in the region, California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) turned to energy storage in the face of a large natural gas leak. Powin Energy has answered the call and will complete the utility-scale energy storage unit over the next four months.

The company was selected by Californian utility Southern California Edison to develop the project, which will be located on a 5,000 square-foot plot of land in the Irvine Business District in Irvine, California. This location was chosen do to its proximity to a critical energy load area of the city.

Over 2,500 Li-ion battery packs will be used to power the 8 MWh system, which will be able to provide 2 MW of power for over four hours, once it is completed by the end of 2016. Powin will also be able to control the system using its unique battery pack operating system.

“In addition to the immediate system benefits, this project will provide a valuable demonstration of the transformative potential of energy storage systems like ours to quickly bring clean, quiet, safe and firm energy service to areas where they are most needed,” commented Powin Energy President Geoff Brown. “We are particularly eager to demonstrate how our bp-OS software and cell-level control will provide unparalleled insight into the system’s performance and maximize the system’s life.”

Although California has already shown a great propensity to develop its energy storage market, this particular project is a direct result of the Aliso Canyon natural gas leak. Since the leak, there have been concerns that the region might face power shortages, so the CPUC made the Aliso Canyon Energy Storage (ACES) request to develop energy storage projects as quickly as possible.

USAID had already shown a desire to support the development of renewable energies and low-emission economies around the world with a variety of initiatives. It’s most recent pick of global development projects have a distinctive low-emission theme, with two such projects focused on solar research.

Funded through the Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Research (PEER), USAID’s US Global Development Lab chose 49 projects to receive $10 million to address gaps in scientific knowledge aimed at critical areas of development. Among those selected were two stand-out solar research projects in India and Morocco.

With India’s solar market experiencing an unprecedented boom, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi committed the country to installing 100 GW by 2022, one area of focus was the standards of solar within the country. As such, USAID will partner with General Electrics to fund and promote research to improve standards in India’s bustling solar industry.

USAID has already been collaborating with the government of India, through its clean energy programs, “to help the country transition to a high-performing, low-emission, energy-secure economy,” it said on its website. A big part of this is its Partnership to Advance Clean Energy – Deployment, which was launched in 2012, and which supported a 50 MW solar rooftop program with Indian Railways in 2015.

Morocco’s solar industry is significantly less developed, but over the last year there have been some rumblings of activity, with expectations rising for a promotion drive of solar within the country. The USAID project within Morocco will see research conducted on the integration of solar energy microgrids into ‘smart buildings’ as part of a partnership with National Instruments.

The Nevada Public Utilities Commission (PUCN) has denied SolarCity’s request to participate in proceeding on whether existing residential solar customers in Nevada should have their net metering schemes “grandfathered,” after the utility added fees to the scheme at the end of 2015.

The net metering saga in Nevada continued this week, as PUCN denied SolarCity’s request to participate in the decision making process regarding the fate of existing solar customers in the state. SolarCity has announced its “disappointment” with the decision, as the chief advocate for the grandfathering scheme, in the face of consistent flip-flopping from state utility NV Energy over the proposal.

PUCN issued the order in December 2015 to impose fees on residential solar customers – over 20,000 of them – who send excess energy from their rooftop systems back into the power grid, a move heavily supported by NV Energy. The customers had previously been compensated on a net metering scheme that was due to run for them for 20 years.

SolarCity immediately voiced opposition to the move, asking that customers with solar systems installed or customers who applied to install solar on or before 31 December 2015 remain under the original net metering scheme for 20 years. NV Energy in turn proposed the same deal for the existing customers, labelled the “grandfathering” of existing customers, but then details emerged that it discouraged PUCN from acting on the proposal.

NV Energy finally offered its support for the grandfathering scheme in July, five months after the initial decision, during which time the customers with existing solar units have been paying the increased fees. NV Energy’s delay in offering support for grandfathering has been criticized by various parties, including SolarCity.

SolarCity not to participate

SolarCity asked last week that it be included in the proceedings to consider the grandfathering initiate. However, on Monday, PUCN denied the request, citing that the outcome would not affect SolarCity’s existing contracts.

SolarCity has now voiced its disappointment with the decision, stating that it “deprives” Nevada solar customers and their chosen energy provider from having a voice in determining policies for existing solar customers, and that it “fully expects Nevada’s solar customers to be grandfathered.”

“The Presiding Officer has excluded the one party that the people of Nevada actually chose of their own volition, their solar provider,” said SolarCity Chief Policy Officer and former Consumer Advocate for the State of Nevada Jon Wellinghoff. “It makes no sense to exclude these Nevada ratepayers from the table given SolarCity has been fighting for the grandfathering of these soar customers since day one.”

The decision is seen by some as a clear discriminatory action by the state’s regulatory agency against the solar industry. NV Energy has certainly not got the trust of the solar industry after applying pressure on state regulators to repeal net metering in Nevada. The renewed show of support for the grandfathering initiative from the state utility could easily been seen as an effort to recover its public image after facing heavy criticism over its efforts to end net metering in the state.

SolarCity value miscalculated by $400 million in Tesla merger

A Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing by Tesla on Wednesday revealed that the investment bank that advised SolarCity on its sale to Tesla, Lazard Ltd, double-counted some of the company’s projected indebtedness, resulting in a $400 million undervaluation.

At what first seems like a fairly significant $400 million mistake in the $2.6 billion purchase of U.S. solar PV company SolarCity by Tesla Motors has not affected the deal between the two companies, which is due to go ahead as planned. However, the SEC filing also revealed that Tesla CEO Elon Musk first suggested the merger to his cousin, and SolarCity CEO, Lyndon Rive in February 2016, which could add to a certain level of suspicion from Tesla shareholders over the acquisition.

Tesla’s regulatory filing showed that Lazard double-counted $400 million of the company’s projected indebtedness under its revolving credit facility, which led to an equity value of between $14.75 and $34.00 per SolarCity share. However, with this extra $400 million of debt taken away from the company, the real valuation range should be $18.75 to $37.75 per share.

Lazard picked up the mistake, which was listed as a “computational error” earlier in the month and reviewed it with the Special Committee, set up for the merger, on 24 August. However, according to the filing, the error will not change the previously agree purchase price of $25.37 per SolarCity share, which will be paid for with Tesla Stock.

Initial merger discussion

Interestingly, the SEC filing also revealed that Tesla CEO Elon Musk first suggested the merger of the two companies to his cousin, and SolarCity CEO, Lyndon Rive in February. This was before a presentation on the idea was presented to the Tesla board on 29 February, and a full four months before the Tesla directors could fully consider the merger in May.

Some of the Tesla shareholders have already shown some opposition to the proposed merger, some even selling their stock in protest. With Elon Musk and Lyndon Rive making various stock acquisitions of SolarCity around this time, and given the close ties between the two companies, this initial conversation between Musk and his cousin could add to certain existing suspicions that the merger is not in the best interests of Tesla’s shareholders.

Rumors started circulating late last week that GCL-Poly Energy Holdings’ parent company Golden Concord Holdings Ltd. was planning to acquire some of SunEdison’s business, and confirmation has arrived in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange. Now GCL-Poly Energy Holdings – already the world’s largest manufacturer of polysilicon for the solar industry – will add SunEdison’s polysilicon business to its portfolio, expanding the company’s production capacity even further.

Within the filling, SunEdison and three of its manufacturing businesses are listed as sellers, including subsidiaries SE Products Singapore Pte., MEMC Pasadena Inc. and Solaicx Inc., while 65.25% of the outstanding shares of SMP Ltd, will also be purchased as part of the transaction. The businesses are involved in the manufacturing of polysilicon, ingots, and solar cells.

The price that the two parties have agreed on is $150 million, however, $50 million of that will be funded into escrow accounts and distributed back to GCL “if certain post-closing conditions are not satisfied,” according to the filling. The closing of the deal is due to be completed by 30 November 2016 – although this can be extended until 31 March 2017 – otherwise either of the parties is able to cancel the deal.

GCL-Poly in a healthy spot

GCL-Poly announced that the deal would have a number of benefits for its business, including expanding its polysilicon production capacity, enhancing its research and development on electronic grade granular polysilicon using FBR technology, enhancing its technology, and reducing its production costs. The company already enjoys dominate shares of the global polysilicon and solar wafers markets, 30% and 40% respectively, and posted impressive H1 financial results earlier in the month, with its revenue growing 28% and gross profit increasing an incredible 66%.

The Chinese company looks to be taking advantage of SunEdison’s precarious position after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April, forcing it to sell a number of its assets, including over 5 GW of wind and solar plants worldwide.

Last week, reports from Bloomberg suggested that GCL’s parent Golden Concord Holdings is poised to make a bid for SunEdison’s controlling stake in TerraForm Power, which has an estimated market valuation of $1.6 billion. However, Canadian firm Brookfield Asset Management has also showed an interest in acquiring SunEdison’s stake in the business, which could see the two companies competing in the near future.

NV Energy is looking to get back on the right foot with the solar industry, by requesting the approval of a huge PV plant in Nevada within its Emissions Reduction and Capacity Replacement second amendment filing. Also part of the filing is the plan to retire a 257 MW coal power plant earlier than scheduled.

The 100 MW project has been proposed for the Eldorado Valley, just outside of Boulder City. A 25-year PPA has already been signed between NV Energy and Techren Solar LLC, and all the project needs now is approval from the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada. Provided it receives the regulatory backing, it is expected to be operational by the end of 2018.

“At an average cost of energy for the life of the project at approximately four cents per kilowatt-hour, this is one of the lowest-cost solar projects in the nations,” commented NV Energy’s senior vice president of energy supply Kevin Geraghty. “And, we are very pleased with the fact that Techren has already signed a work-site agreement with local unions 357 and 396 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.”

The PV plant is just one part of the filing’s plan to transform NV Energy’s fuel mix, and the second is the moving forward of the retirement date for the 257 MW coal-fired generation unit at the Reid Gardner Generating Station. The original plan was to close the unit on 31 December 2017, but that date has now been brought forward to 28 February 2017.

The first three coal-fired generating units at Reid Gardner were closed at the end of 2014, as part of NV Energy’s goal of rebalancing its fuel mix with renewables. By the time the Eldorado Valley plant is completed, NV Energy hopes to have 1,900 MW of renewable energy in its portfolio.

Although these particular developments are positive for the state’s solar market, there is a certain air of irony in NV Energy’s support for utility-scale PV, after previously calling for the dismantling of net metering in Nevada. Pressure applied by NV Energy played a part in state regulators’ decision to repeal net metering last year, which has been catastrophic for the distributed solar market within the state.

Read more: https://www.pv-magazine.com/news/details/beitrag/nv-energy-seeking-approval-for-100-mw-pv-plant-in-nevada_100025781/#ixzz4HVWG7cfc

It was the news that SolarWorld did not need, as the judge in the Hemlock vs SolarWorld contract dispute gave an initial ruling in favor of the U.S. polysilicon manufacturer. SolarWorld was immediately defiant in the face of the ruling, stating that it didn’t believe that the case could be enforced in Europe and that the company would appeal if the final ruling goes against them anyway, but Sharma believes that the damage has already been done.

“I think the damage has already been done due to the U.S. ruling, with bond holders, and anyone who is looking to provide finance to SolarWorld, regardless of whether the ruling has been done in Europe, it will make them very wary,” Ash Sharma IHS Senior Research Director told pv magazine. “It’s pretty damaging what’s happening with the case. They’ve got €300 million in bonds due, which is probably going to be accelerated. They’re going to struggle to get further loans or bonds elsewhere now, with this ruling against them, so they know they need to find a solution to this pretty soon.”

As was seen within the court documents that were released last week, the negotiations broke down after SolarWorld changed the wording of a letter that Hemlock wanted the company to send to the U.S. Department of Commerce. The letter was to show that SolarWorld was changing its position in the solar trade dispute between the U.S. and China, and to petition the Department of Commerce to find a resolution to the dispute.

SolarWorld has shown a great reluctance to change its position in relation to the solar trade cases involving the U.S. and China. Even if it was willing to change its position, there is no guarantee that it would impact the rulings of either country in relation to the case.

“I would say based on the indications from SolarWorld over the past couple of years, they seem very stubborn over the trade case and it doesn’t look like they want to negotiate at all, based on the rhetoric coming from the company,” Sharma commented. “The other thing to consider is that it’s really in the hands of the chamber of commerce at the moment.

“It’s not really up to SolarWorld to drop the charges now, what they could do is initiate a process not to extend it, but that could take some time. There could even be another western manufacturer that decides to pick up the case and try and proceed with the claim against the Chinese producers. It’s not done and dusted in any sense. It would take more than Hemlock and SolarWorld coming to an agreement on this.”

Hemlock is eager to have the U.S. duties on Chinese PV cells and modules removed in the hope that China would respond by removing the duties that it has placed on polysilicon that is manufactured within the U.S. Of course, this is another unknown, even if the U.S. Department of Commerce was to drop the case against Chinese manufacturers.

There is a G20 meeting coming up soon during which the trade cases are due to be discussed, so this ruling may have come at the right time for SolarWorld to have a bigger impact on the discussions.

“It [the court ruling] certainly could have an impact on the discussions, because I can see pressure being put on SolarWorld to negotiate on this now that the ruling has gone against them,” continued Sharma. “Probably the smart thing for them to do is negotiate quickly and try and come to a resolution fairly soon, because the longer this drags on the more damaging this will be for SolarWorld’s business.”

As solar PV starts hitting the mainstream across the United States, one of the Las Vegas’ most famous buildings has adopted the country’s biggest rooftop array. The project was a joint partnership by NRG Energy and MGM Resorts International, and utilized some top-of-the-range technology from Ten K Solar.

The colossal rooftop system has been installed on the roof of the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, with over 26,000 modules making up a combined capacity of 8.3 MW. The project has been completed in two sections, with the most recent utilizing Ten K Solar’s REFLECT system, which is fully integrated, including a racking system with no roof penetration.

NRG is the owner of the array, and will sell the electricity to MGM Resorts International on a 25-year power purchase agreement. The system has the capacity to power 25% of the entire electricity demand of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino complex.

“Companies like MGM Resorts are driving an evolution in America’s energy mix as they seek cleaner sources of power that provide more certainty over energy costs,” ,” said Craig Cornelius, Senior Vice President of NRG Energy. “The solar array atop Mandalay Bay is stunning in its scope and functionality, and we’re thrilled to have MGM as a partner.”

Another exceptional feat of humankind was reached on Monday, as NASA’s Juno spacecraft was thrust into the orbit of Jupiter, 870 million kilometers from earth. It was achieved with the support of solar technology, which is being used to power the pioneering craft on its mission.

The Juno spacecraft was built by Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver, who installed 18,698 individual solar cells on the craft to give it power on its journey. The Lockheed team is also jointly controlling the spacecraft’s flight operations, with NASA, from its Mission Support Area.

The Juno mission, which launched on 5 August 2011 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, is part of NASA’s New Frontiers Program. It has the ambitious aim of not only visiting Jupiter, but also to try and understand the origin and evolution of the planet, by investigating its core, magnetic field and atmosphere.

On the symbolic date of 4 July, the Juno spacecraft successfully entered Jupiter’s orbit, which is described by Lockheed Martin Space Systems as a “large, elliptical polar orbit” some 870 million kilometers from earth.

“Tonight, 540 million miles away, Juno performed a precisely choreographed dance at blazing speeds with the largest, most intense planet in our solar system,” said Guy Beutelschies, Director of Interplanetary Missions at Lockhead Martin Space Systems. “Since launch, Juno has operated exceptionally well, and the flawless orbit insertion is a testament to everyone working on Juno and their focus on getting this amazing spacecraft to its destination.”

The “choreographed dance at blazing speeds” refers in part to the spacecraft turning so that its solar cells were facing the sun. The commands for the maneuver were sent to Juno four days before it was completed.

“The spacecraft worked perfectly, which is always nice when you’re driving a vehicle with 1.7 billion miles on the odometer,” said Rick Nybakken, Juno project manager from JPL. “Jupiter orbit insertion was a big step and the most challenging remaining in our mission plan, but there are others that have to occur before we can give the science team the mission they are looking for.”

One of the chief proponents of clean energy in the U.S., California has once again come up with a way to deploy solar in unchartered territory. This time it is on the bus stops of San Francisco, while the whole state embraces the HERO financing program, which is helping thousands of homes reduce their carbon footprint.

Solar system manufacturer Urban Solar has struck a deal with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and Clear Channel Outdoor (CCO) to deploy the company’s PV-Lanterns to 3,300 bus stops across the city. It has been working on the idea since 2009, with the autonomous PV lighting systems reducing the need for trenching of utility poles to the bus stops, and saving energy.

“We are very pleased that SFMTA and Clear Channel Outdoor chose us for this green initiative,” said Urban Solar President Jeff Peters. “SFMTA and the City of San Francisco are great partners and an excellent location to showcase our technology. San Francisco’s west coast weather can be challenging for solar systems in an urban setting. Our powerful controller and experienced design ensure it will have lit bus stops year round.”

Going green with HERO

Another initiative that is helping California save on carbon emissions is the HERO Property Assessed Clean Energy financing program. The financing program helps homeowners to make energy- and water-efficiency improvements and to install solar panels to power their homes.

The progressive program, which is a partnership between Renovate America and state and local governments, began in 2011 and allows homeowners to pay for the solar panels through their property tax bill. Since its inception, $1.58 billion has been provided in financing, while the energy savings from the program are roughly the equivalent to taking almost a million Americans off the grid a year, or closing two coal power plants.

“Californians are once again leading the country in energy conservation, clean energy, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” said Rick Bishop, executive director of the Western Riverside Council of Governments. “By helping homeowners improve their homes and lower their utility bills through energy efficiency and renewable energy upgrades, the HERO Program has demonstrated that incremental, individual action can bring about change in a significant way.”

Records have been tumbling in 2016, and no more so than in June, as three records have been broken for cells and modules using varying different technology. SunPower has announced that it broke its own world record for a PV panel that uses silicon cells.

The record, that was achieved using laboratory cells from SunPower’s X-Series modules, was validated by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory. It broke the company’s own record of 22.8% efficiency that was set in February, which clearly didn’t stop SunGrow from striving for improvements.

“SunPower’s X-Series panel was tested by our lab under standard test or reporting conditions,” said NREL scientist Keith Emery. “The module measured 11310.1 CM2 (aperture area) and had a power of 272.5 Watts. We recorded 24.1% efficiency, which is a new record for silicon module efficiency.”

The company, among a number of improvements, has also been working on the asthetics of its panels, to try and make them more attractive to its customers. Conventional solar panels generally have efficiencies between 15% and 18%, so these new high-efficiency modules, blended with the new design, could make a big splash in the market.

“With greater efficiency, we can fit more watts on the roof with the outstanding reliability of the SunPower X-Series solar panel,” commented Peter Cousins, SunPower senior vice president, research, development and deployment. “SunPower’s world record efficiency panels offer customers the best value for energy and superior aesthetics due to our unique architecture.”

Solar efficiency records have been coming thick and fast in 2016, with this now the third in June alone. Earlier in the month ZSW set a new film world record for a CIGS PV cell at 22.6%, then just a few days later, Hanwha Q Cells set an efficiency record of 19.5% for standard multicrystalline modules.

The Solar Impulse 2 is just one leg away from completing its round-the-world flight, after the plane was successfully piloted across the Atlantic Ocean. It was an arduous journey, manned by Bertrand Piccard, that was completed in just 71 hours, almost 20 hours less than expected.
The Solar Impulse 2 mission started back in March 2015, with the aim of flying around the world in a fuel-free aircraft, powered exclusively by solar energy, to demonstrate the capabilities of PV technology. It has had its ups and downs, but the journey is almost over.
Bertrand Piccard and his co-pilot André Borschberg have taken turns to fly the plane, equipped with 17,000 PV cells and four lithium-ion batteries. Piccard took the reigns during the Atlantic crossing, leaving from New York City on Monday morning.
The flight had been expected to take 90 hours, with the original destination planned for Paris. However, forecasts of a storm over France inspired the team to change its destination to Seville in the south of Spain. The journey only took 71 hours, flying over whales on the way, but still represented Piccard’s longest flight in the Solar Impulse.
The final leg of the mission is to Abu Dhabi, where the journey all began 15 months ago. It will be a great occasion for celebration, for the two Swiss pilots and the entire Solar Impulse team, who have shown the world the immense possibilities of solar energy.

The solar market is growing at an unprecedented rate, with a possibility that there could be 700 GW of installed PV across the world by 2020, according to a new report from SolarPower Europe.

There is great reason to be excited within the solar industry, after experiencing a record breaking year in 2015, which saw the total global capacity of solar PV reach 229 GW. More than 50 GW was installed in 2015 alone, and SolarPower Europe’s new report Global Market Outlook for Solar Power 2016-2020 predicts that another record-breaking year is in store, during which more than 60 GW will be installed, although demand in Europe is wavering.

The report predicts that 62 GW of capacity is likely to be installed across the world in 2016, but that most of this will be in Asian markets. China is the biggest driver of these capacity increases, where 7 GW of solar was installed in Q1 of 2016 alone.

Unfortunately, similar trends cannot be found in Europe. In fact, although the region became the first in the world to pass 100 GW of installed PV in 2015, amid 8.2 GW of PV being installed on the continent, SolarPower Europe expects demand to decrease in 2016.

“While this is the first upward trend since 2011, it is likely that demand in the European continent will slow down, primarily due to the termination of support for utility-scale solar in the U.K.,” commented SolarPower Europe CEO, James Watson. “What European solar needs now is the right electricity market design.”

Despite the poor outlook for 2016, the report did anticipate that Europe will return to “a growth path,” by 2017.

Costs keep falling

One of the great takeaways from 2015 was the falling price of electricity generated from solar. That trend has continued into 2016, with a solar bid as low as 2.99 cents per KWh in a recent bid in Dubai. This has seen solar become one of the most cost-effective power generation technologies, and looks set to continue into the future.

“Solar power is increasingly cost-competitive with fossil fuels and distributed solar is cheaper than retail electricity in many countries,” said Michael Schmela, executive advisor of SolarPower Europe and lead author of the report. “In 2016, solar also became cheaper than on-shore wind power in parts of the globe.”

These trends have seen SolarPower Europe up its estimates for future PV installations from the forecasts it presented last year. The estimate in the Global Market Outlook 2015-2019 was that there would be 450 GW of installed PV by 2019, but the current report forecasts that 516 GW of installed PV will be the most likely scenario for 2019.

“Solar is booming and continues to break records in many parts of the world, which gives us reasons to believe 700 GW globally installed solar power is possible by 2020,” said President of SolarPower Europe Oliver Schafer. However, for this to be the case, a stable regulatory environment that understands renewable energy is needed.

Deutsche Bank released some market analysis, addressing the concerns of North American solar investors, who fear a potential PV oversupply is on the horizon, changes to net metering policies, and rising Chinese competition.

After an extremely impressive start to 2016, when solar dominated new power generation in the U.S., North American investors have been expressing some concerns with what is to come in the second half of 2016 and beyond. Analysts at Deutsche Bank have addressed the major concerns and have given some forecasting about what may be to come.

The report begins by suggesting that the solar sector has not fully recovered from the SunEdision bankruptcy earlier in the year, which shook the industry to its core. However, SunEdison aside, the biggest concern for solar investors right now is the risk of an upcoming oversupply in the industry.

A dramatic drop in demand from China is expected to cause the oversupply, as PV installations are expected to fall by 80% in the third quarter, after the feed-in tariff in the country will be chopped on June 30. On top of this, huge cell and module production capacity increases in the country are expected to exacerbate the situation.

There is no market that is currently looking like it will fill the void left by China, while an expected rush for installations in the U.S. has been put on hold as the country’s Investment Tax Credit program has been extended past 2016.

Another emerging concern in North America, especially for the residential leasing sector, is related to changes over the net metering policy in certain states. The residential leasing sector remains the weakest in the U.S. and there are worries that the financing require to execute growth plans is not available.

“A combination of improving bookings momentum and execution on the financing front would be required for investor sentiment to improve,” wrote the research. “In the medium term, we also believe net metering policy overhang would need to be resolved for residential solar stocks to see meaningful share price appreciation.”

Increasing competition from Chinese PV companies is causing an impact on module segment margins for U.S. solar developer and manufacturers. This is causing a lack of profitability, which has caused investors to focus on the companies’ EBITDA outlook. However, Deutsche Bank have offered somewhat encouraging outlooks for large U.S. companies First Solar and SunPower, noting that fears over a 2017 earnings drop for First Solar are overblown, while the 2017 EBITDA for SunPower should be similar to 2016 “due to 600MW of capacity expansion as well as more diversified business model mix.”

And there are concerns about Chinese companies as well, as investors worry about peaking margins, rising receivables and subsidy payment delays. While the research also highlighted that it expects margin pressure in the inverter segment to also increase.

The homebuilding company will introduce the PV solar systems as a standard feature in all of its new homes, making it the first company in South Florida to do so.

To go along with Stellar Homes’ organic vegetable gardens and electric car ports, the company’s new-built homes in South Florida will also include solar panels as a standard feature to make them even greener. It represents a growing trend in the U.S. to make homes as green and energy efficient as possible, and leads the way in Florida.

The new homes being built by Stellar Homes Group are green in a number of other ways, including passive solar day lighting through the positioning of windows and doors, hybrid water heaters, low flow shower heads, and organic vegetable gardens.

The PV systems that will be installed on the homes have a retail value of $9,160 to $16,128 per home, and will be offered to house buyers without raising prices. The systems will be installed by local company Solar-Ray and come with a 30 year warranty.

“Our 5Kw PV solar panel package, combined with Stellar Homes Group’s additional energy conservation features, is expected to result in an estimated energy cost savings of approximately$81,000 over 20 years,” said Stellar Homes Group Vice President Tony Valle. “Our homebuyers can choose a solar package to suit their needs and can take advantage of the 30 percent federal tax credit.”

It comes as part of a growing trend for increased energy efficiency and greener houses across the U.S. Stellar Homes wants to get ahead of the trend in Florida with its new initiative, and sees it as one of the most effective ways for future sustainability.

“We are constantly striving to advance our energy conservation efforts in our homes for South Florida, and this is the next step in our commitment,” added Stellar Homes Group Managing Partner Larry Baum. “Creating beautiful homes in an environmentally sustainable way can be done well by incorporating green practices from the start of the building process. It’s our mission to present a healthier home and lifestyle for today’s families.”