http://www.pvgeneration.comNews from PV Generation(c)Obzcure Ltd 20085Despatch Industries has booked a $5 million order for photovoltaic manufacturing equipment with an unnamed European solar-cell manufacturer. The deal is for multiple units of the process tool company's newest generation of multilane firing infrared furnaces. The Minneapolis-based firm said that the new furnace is an important addition to its in-line product portfolio and fits well with the industry's commitment to in-line processing results. The CDF-9024 drying-firing model has a wider belt to accommodate multiple lanes of cell processing and is capable of producing more than 2400 cells per hour. - www.pv-tech.org/newshttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=155Tue, 06 Jan 2009 www.pv-tech.org/newspvgen_atk155Taiwan Power to invest NT$3.57 billion in solar power News Detail: "Taiwan Power Co, a government-owned electric power utility on the island, said on Wednesday that the company will invest NT$3.57 billion to expand its solar power generating capacity by 10 megawatts by 2011. 3,016.4 kilowatts of the enlarged capacity will be operational by the end of 2009, the company said. With a generating capacity of more than 37,370 MW, the government-owned utility Taiwan Power Co serves nearly 11.7 million industrial, commercial, and residential customers. - www.yourrenewablenews.comhttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=156Tue, 06 Jan 2009 www.yourrenewablenews.compvgen_atk156"The Sun," said Jalal al-Din Rumi, one of the world's greatest poets, "must come." And the Arab world, which was an engine for centuries of innovation in science, philosophy and the arts, is now poised to become a leader in solar technology. Though reported to have 8.5% of the world's oil reserves and 3.3% of the world's gas reserves, Abu Dhabi has launched a fund worth more than US $10 billions to find advanced renewable energy technology solutions to climate change. Solar energy is also set to power another major Abu Dhabi project — Masdar City. The ultra modern city, due to be completed by 2015, aims to be the first zero-carbon emission and car-free city in the world housing 50,000 inhabitants, and 1,500 companies. - www.renewableenergyworld.comhttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=152Mon, 05 Jan 2009 www.renewableenergyworld.compvgen_atk152Generating clean electricity that's as cheap as power from fossil fuels is the Holy Grail of green-energy companies. A new solar project powering California homes appears to be closing in on that prize. Sempra Generation, a subsidiary of Sempra Energy in San Diego, just took the wraps off a 10-megawatt solar farm in Nevada. That's small by industry standards, enough to light just 6,400 homes. But the ramifications are potentially huge. A veteran analyst has calculated that the facility can produce power at a cost of 7.5 cents a kilowatt-hour, less than the 9-cent benchmark for conventional electricity. If that's so, it marks a milestone that renewable fans have longed for: "grid parity," in which electricity from the sun, wind or other green sources can meet or beat the price performance of such carbon-based fuels as coal and natural gas. - www.latimes.comhttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=153Mon, 05 Jan 2009 www.latimes.compvgen_atk153Toshiba Corp has announced its full-scale entry into the solar photovoltaic systems business. On January 1, Toshiba's Transmission Distribution & Industrial Systems Co established the Photovoltaic Systems Division, a business management and promotion organization that will take the initiative in responding to a surge in demand for solar photovoltaic systems, widely recognized as a key measure against global warming. Solar photovoltaic systems are moving beyond residential applications to large, megawatt-scale projects for utility and industrial plants. According to Toshiba, it will secure orders for large solar power generation systems by drawing on its competitive advantages. In components, the company's expertise includes high-efficiency power conditioning systems and the SCiB, the super charge ion battery, a breakthrough rechargeable battery claimed to offer excellent safety, long life and rapid charging. - techon.nikkeibp.co.jphttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=154Mon, 05 Jan 2009 techon.nikkeibp.co.jppvgen_atk154The world's biggest solar tower will open early this year in Spain. The race for leadership in the next generation of solar power is taking off. The U.K. Guardian reports that in the desert 20 miles outside Seville, the Spanish company Abengoa will be deploying over 1,000 sun-tracking mirrors -- each "about half the size of a tennis court" -- to superheat water to 260°C to drive a steam turbine and generate 20MW of electricity. - gristmill.grist.orghttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=151Sun, 04 Jan 2009 gristmill.grist.orgpvgen_atk151HONG KONG, Jan. 2, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- China Technology Development Group Corporation (Nasdaq:CTDC) ("CTDC" or "the Company"), a provider of solar energy products and solutions in China focusing on a-Si thin film technology, announced that the Company and Qinghai New Energy Group Co., Ltd ("QNE") have signed an agreement with local government of Qinghai Haixi Mongolian-Tibetan Autonomous Region to build a 30MW on-grid solar power station in Qaidam Basin of northwestern China. The signing ceremony was held at Xining, the capital city of Qinghai Province, and many important government leaders, including Mr. Luo Yulin, Vice Governor of Qinghai Province and Mayor of Xining, attended the event. Under the agreement, CTDC and QNE will design, construct and manage the solar power station. - www.msnbc.msn.comhttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=149Sat, 03 Jan 2009 www.msnbc.msn.compvgen_atk149The Grand Canyon Visitor Center near the South Rim is getting a solar-power system that will help educate about 1 million visitors annually about solar power. The effort is being funded by donations from utility customers who support renewable energy. Arizona Public Service Co. is giving the $185,000 system to the National Park Service. The system will include three ground-based solar-panel platforms and a digital readout to show how much electricity is being generated and to explain how the system works. Additional panels will be installed on the roof. APS customers can choose to pay an extra penny per kilowatt-hour of electricity as part of the Green Rates program. The utility uses the money for renewable projects like the Canyon solar panels. "This is a great location to interact and educate a large number of visitors, and also a lot of non-Arizonan visitors, allowing us to associate Arizona with solar energy," said Phil Smithers, APS technical-services leader for renewable energy. - www.azcentral.comhttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=150Sat, 03 Jan 2009 www.azcentral.compvgen_atk150A US gym has installed specially-adapted exercise bikes that recycle energy generated by people as they work out. The Green Microgym in Portland, Oregon, aims to be a carbon neutral exercise facility through the use of solar power and human-generated energy from clients as they pedal and run. "The big challenge has been finding the right equipment and adapting the technology," says Adam Boesel, the gym owner. The science behind generating electricity from gym equipment is not new. For decades people have been using dynamos on their bikes to power the front and rear lamps. Generating power in a gym setting is based on the same principle. - news.bbc.co.ukhttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=146Fri, 02 Jan 2009 news.bbc.co.ukpvgen_atk146Toyota aims to have the first all-solar commercial car Toyota, maker of the Prius, is the indisputable king of the hybrid market, for better or worse. Despite a downturn in hybrid sales, the company continues to push ahead, looking forward to the release of its upcoming third generation Prius. However, more iterative improvements may not be enough to turn around sales; Toyota may have to look to something akin to what GM did when it threw its weight behind the all-electric Volt. In response, Toyota is considering radical new designs which could turn the car industry on its head if successful. - www.dailytech.comhttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=147Fri, 02 Jan 2009 www.dailytech.compvgen_atk147The new year has started amid a global recession, making many people hesitant to even say, "A happy New Year." The biggest problem is the economy. Frankly speaking, the government should take the initiative to improve the situation. Private think tanks forecast that the economy will contract by an average of 1 percent in 2009 for the second consecutive year. If this is true, Japan will undergo the most serious recession in the post-war period. Since the scale of Japan's economy is 500 trillion yen, it will have contracted by 10 trillion yen over a two-year period. It is problematic that outstanding deficit-covering bonds continue to accumulate. However, unless the government takes action, the recession will worsen and adversely affect the government's plan to balance the deficit-ridden state budget. The government should not hesitate to use extra taxpayers' money to prop up the economy if it is really needed. - mdn.mainichi.jphttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=148Thu, 01 Jan 2009 mdn.mainichi.jppvgen_atk148Several of the most popular stories in the Power Generation section of PV-Tech were related to research on new technologies for the improvement of cell efficiencies. A very recent report by Greentech Media on First Solar’s apparent achievement of grid parity created ripples throughout the industry. Mark Bachman, a senior research analyst with Pacific Crest, presented his aggregated numbers via the report that claimed that First Solar has indeed reached the grid parity mecca. A disappointing development in November saw the denial of planning permission for San Diego Gas & Electric’s (SDG&E) joint initiative with Phoenix-based Stirling Energy Systems in the southern California desert. The potential 900MW installation would have seen the construction of a $1 billion power transmission line, which was criticised by many due to its potential cost to the environment, and as a result, the California Public Utilities Commission put a halt to the development. - www.pv-tech.orghttp://www.pvgeneration.com/default.aspx?atk=144Tue, 30 Dec 2008 www.pv-tech.orgpvgen_atk144