Lease option increases rooftop solar’s appeal, study says
Rooftop solar panels are attracting a new demographic of customers who are choosing to lease rather than buy, and enjoying the low upfront costs and immediate savings.
The new third-party-lease business model lets homeowners save money the very first month, rather than breaking even a decade later after an initial investment of $10,000 or $20,000. (more…)
Solar PV Firm Sets New World Record for Solar Efficiency
With the World Future Energy Summit taking place in Abu Dhabi this week, US company First Solar has just revealed that it has set a new world record for cadmium-telluride (CdTe) photovoltaic (PV) solar module efficiency.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) has confirmed the record, which saw First Solar achieve 14.4pc total area efficiency, bypassing the past record of 13.4pc, which was also set by the company. (more…)
SEIA and the Solar Alliance Merge
The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the national trade association for the US solar energy industry, has merged with the Solar Alliance, an advocacy organization committed to establishing solar policies at the state level. Effective immediately, the Solar Alliance will operate under the SEIA brand in an effort to present a unified solar industry voice in all advocacy efforts at the state level. Carrie Cullen Hitt, president of the Solar Alliance, is now Vice President for State Affairs at SEIA, and the Solar Alliance team joins Hitt as part of SEIA’s new department for State Affairs. (more…)
10 solar trends to watch for in 2012
It’s an understatement to say solar tech companies have suffered in 2011. The year has been marked by financial losses, layoffs, factory closures, trade complaints and bankruptcies afflicting solar manufactures in the U.S., Europe and Asia. The drama will continue in 2012, and here’s a look at what to expect next year: (more…)
Ending the year with another clean energy investment
We’ve made a new $94 million investment in a portfolio of four solar photovoltaic (PV) projects being built by Recurrent Energy near Sacramento, California. This brings our portfolio of clean energy investments to more than $915 million. We’ve already committed to providing funding this year to help more than 10,000 homeowners install solar PV panels on their rooftops. But this investment represents our first investment in the U.S. in larger scale solar PV power plants that generate energy for the grid—instead of on individual rooftops. These projects have a total capacity of 88 MW, equivalent to the electricity consumed by more than 13,000 homes. (more…)
IKEA Expands their Solar Commitment in the Southeast
Swedish furniture retailer IKEA has decided to bring solar power to 33 of its 44 stores, distribution centers and office buildings in the U.S. in its latest expansion of an ambitious renewable energy initiative. (more…)
SCE&G completes solar project at Boeing plant
Cayce-based South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. flipped the switch on the largest single rooftop solar installation in the Southeast during a dedication ceremony last week at The Boeing Co.’s North Charleston plant. (more…)
Envision Solar, a San Diego-based renewable energy company, has installed its trademark ‘solar trees’ at General Motors’ Tech Facility in Warren, Michigan. And they look fantastic. The solar tree is an innovative concept that takes advantage of idle space (parking lots, rooftops) to generate energy. Each of those trees pictured above will charge 6 electric cars, as wells as feeding power into the GM facility. (more…)
Not only is the solar industry the fastest growing industry in the country, it is edging its way into the professional sports sector. Our own South Carolina Stingrays will have a new opponent soon: the Orlando Solar Bears. Seems fitting that the sunshine state would be the first to give a mascot a solar reference, and we couldn’t be more pleased. (more…)
Facebook is teaming up with Cogenra Solar to put a solar cogeneration system in at its headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif.
According Cogenra, one of the company’s dual energy-production systems – which use photovoltaics to produce electricity and solar heat to make hot water – will go on the roof of Facebook’s renovated fitness center. (more…)
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