Trade And Rumours Of Solar War

Posted on July 20, 2012 by QuestPoint

The Coalition for American Solar Manufacturing (CASM) today issued the following statement, attributable to Gordon Brinser, president of SolarWorld Industries America Inc., based in Oregon.

“Today’s announcement by the Chinese government proves once and for all that China is intent on unfairly and illegally allowing its manufacturers to dominate the global solar industry. While it was not unexpected, the announcement of retaliatory investigations into U.S. polysilicon production is harmful to the international trade system. The Chinese government has been telegraphing this move since last October. It is a common Chinese tactic and an abuse of international trade rules. It represents yet another cynical attempt by the Chinese government to bully the U.S. government by injecting politics into a judicial investigation that is sanctioned under international trade rules, as today’s announcement tacitly confirms. Fortunately, when the Chinese government has attempted such blatant retaliatory actions in the past, those actions have been declared illegal by the World Trade Organization.

“The American people understand that the Chinese do not play by the rules and are demanding action. In one recent poll, more than two-thirds of voters think China’s violations of international trade rules are costing the U.S. jobs. As a result, 62 percent of voters favor getting tough on China’s illegal trade practices.

“Today’s announcement is also an attempt to decimate another competitive American industry: the polysilicon industry. It is an attempt to shut down the Chinese market all while the Chinese government injects billions of dollars of likely WTO-illegal subsidies to build up its own domestic polysilicon companies, as it outlined in its latest Five Year Plan. At the same time, the Chinese government and its agents are browbeating U.S. manufacturers into arguing for unilateral trade disarmament. This ploy affects not just the U.S. solar industry, but also the semiconductor industry, another industry in which Chinese companies lag American manufacturers.”

In March, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced preliminary countervailing duties ranging of up to 4.73 percent against Chinese solar manufacturers in response to WTO-illegal government subsidies. This was followed by preliminary antidumping subsidies of 31 percent to 249.96 percent in May. The Commerce Department will announce its final determination in both cases on October 9, 2012. The International Trade Commission will announce its final ruling on the cases in November 7, 2012.

Solar And Silver Investing

Posted on July 16, 2012 by QuestPoint

Analysts and politicians would lead you to believe that our economic outlook is still souring, however they aren’t telling the whole story because of their own agendas. The global economic outlook is actually positive, with manufacturing steadily on the rise, unemployment down and the crisis in Europe will undoubtedly experience easing through stimulus efforts.Add that to the fact that the value ratio of gold to silver is completely out of whack right now, and you have a winning recipe for silver to respond bullishly, and a potential wealth creation for investors of the precious metals market. Stephen M Smith who is the managing member at Smith McKenna has been accurately predicting macroeconomic trends and following the precious metals market for over two decades. Smith firmly believes that silver is going to emerge as the leader in the next few years, potentially making a lot of people very wealthy.

It’s the perfect time to invest in silver. Mostly because its current mid $20s spot price is attractively affordable for first time investors, creating low barriers to entry and risk, but also because if we can count on history repeating itself like it always does, silver will close the roughly 58 to 1 ratio gap to gold, being underpriced, to a more common and predictable say 30 to 1. The key however is to own the physical asset, rather than derivatives, futures and ETF’s.

Most people put off learning how to invest in silver and other precious metals due to fear or uncertainty, but really they should be a part of anyone’s investment portfolio because of diversification, investment quality, and as a hedge against inflation. Commodities are not infinite in supply, and silver is largely tied to its industrial demand and applications. Silver is a necessity metal and is used in all kinds of electronic, pharma, and solar panel production. Above ground supply of silver is limited, only up just over 1% last year according to The Silver Institute, and with global production of these products not slowing down it’s likely going to create scarcity; driving the price of silver due north.

War On Coal Charged

Intersolar Rises And Shines

Posted on July 11, 2012 by QuestPoint

Innovation and collaboration were familiar themes at this years Intersolar North America. Intersolar a premier solar industry exhibition and conference for solar professionals to exchange information and develop business opportunities in the U.S. returned to San Francisco to mark its fifth year in the heart of the largest solar market in the United States. San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee delivered remarks for the conference alongside directors of the worlds-leading research institutions during the conference’s official opening on July 10 in the Intercontinental Hotel. While welcoming the conference to San Francisco, Mayor Lee also reminded the conference about the California senate’s ground breaking decision to begin financing high speed rail between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

SunShot Director Ramamoorthy Ramesh welcomed participation in new national initiatives such as solar “Plug and Play.” Reflecting renewed global collaboration and innovation, Dr. Dan Arvizu, director of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL); Dr. Michio Kondo, director of the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Japan; and Prof. Dr. Eicke Weber, director of the Fraunhofer Institute of Solar Energy Systems (FhG ISE) in Germany signed of a Memorandum of Understanding to form a Global Alliance of Solar Energy Research Institutes (GA-SERI). Over 850 exhibitors from over 25 countries are at the show.

Singer, songwriter and Sessions Solar marketing executive Christie McCarthy welcomed attendees of the Intersolar Awards Ceremony, a sort of Academy Awards for Solar Projects in the US with her very engaging song” Rise and Shine.” Wednesday evening will feature Solar Battle of the Bands Round 2 where industry musicians such as Sungevity’s Killa Watts and SolarCity’s Soulmetrics will compete for your vote.

Solar Power in Germany Increases 40 Percent

Posted on July 9, 2012 by QuestPoint

Solar power accounted for 10 percent of Germany’s total electricity production in May, an increase of 40 percent from the previous year, as reported by the Federal Association of the Energy and Water Industry. The significant jump stemmed from heightened capacity complemented by sunny days. This surge in green power generation reveals that the nation is well on its way to expanding the proportion of renewables in the energy mix. The strong market is paving the way for new foreign investors such as bSolar, an Israel-based solar PV cell company. Solar industry experts from Germany Trade & Invest (GTAI) will be at booth #7635 at the Intersolar North America Exhibition in San Francisco from July 10-12 to discuss opportunities within the sector.

“Germany’s decision to replace nuclear energy with other sources is proving to not only be possible, but is creating many valuable prospects for the renewables sector. The continued strength of the solar market has sparked greater investment from abroad,” stated Tobias Homann, photovoltaic industry expert from Germany Trade & Invest in Berlin.With the support of GTAI, bSolar established a plant in Heilbronn that produces high-efficiency bifacial cells. Its decision to invest in Germany reflects the country’s longstanding status as the world’s key PV market. The rooftop cells have the ability to produce more electricity at lower costs.

“Germany is one of the largest producers of PV technology as well as the biggest consumer of per capita solar energy worldwide,” said Dr. Yossi Kofman, Co-founder and CEO of bSolar. “Strong demand partnered with a highly skilled workforce, intensive R&D and a political framework supportive of renewables make Germany an obvious point of investment,” Kofman continued. Germany Trade & Invest is the foreign trade and inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. The organization advises foreign companies looking to expand their business activities in the German market. It provides information on foreign trade to German companies that seek to enter foreign markets.

Solar Power To The People

California Senate Approves High Speed Rail Funding

Posted on July 7, 2012 by QuestPoint

Lawmakers in California approved billions of dollars Friday in construction financing for the initial segment of the nation’s first dedicated high-speed rail line connecting Los Angeles and San Francisco. Governor Jerry Brown said, “In 2008, California voters decided to create jobs and modernize our state’s rail transportation system with a major investment in high-speed rail and key local projects in Northern and Southern California. The Legislature took bold action today that gets Californians back to work and puts California out in front once again.

The Obama administration has been advocating for renewable energy and clean transportation alternatives view the approval as a major political victory for Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown who has promoted bullet trains as job generators and clean transportation alternatives.The bill authorizes the state to begin selling $4.5 billion in voter-approved bonds that includes $2.6 billion to build an initial 130-mile stretch of the high-speed rail line in the Central Valley. That will allow the state to collect another $3.2 billion in federal funding that could have been rescinded if lawmakers failed to act Friday.

California High-Speed Rail Authority Board Chair Dan Richard issued the following statement regarding the Legislature’s passage of Senate Bill 1029 which appropriates federal grant funds and Prop 1A funds for California High-Speed Rail:“Today’s vote to commence high-speed rail construction, like all major public policy decisions, is the result of hard work and collaborative effort. Credit must go to Governor Brown whose courage and steadfast leadership has improved the High-Speed Rail Authority’s plans and operations,” said California High-Speed Rail Authority Chair Dan Richard. “We also express deep gratitude to Assembly Speaker John Perez and Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg for passing this measure through their houses. The Legislature’s action sets in motion a Statewide Rail Modernization Plan for California. Not only will California be the first state in the nation to build a high-speed rail system to connect our urban centers, we will also modernize and improve rail systems at the local and regional level. This plan will improve mobility for commuters and travelers alike, reduce emissions, and put thousands of people to work while enhancing our economic competitiveness,” said Richard.

Invisible T-shirt Breakthrough for Eco-Fashion

NorCal Solar Launching Solar Energy Resource Guide

Posted on July 6, 2012 by QuestPoint

The Northern California Solar Energy Association (NorCal Solar) will be launching its latest Solar Energy Resource Guide (SERG) on the eve of the 2012 Intersolar North American conference in San Francisco next month. The SERG serves as a requisite tool for northern Californians interested in utilizing solar energy at home and in their businesses.The 9th edition SERG features articles covering a breadth of solar applications from photovoltaics and solar hot water to solar cooking, Passive House, zero net energy design, and more. It will also contain an extensive Solar Resources section. NorCal Solar plans to distribute over 7,500 copies of the SERG through 2014.”We are extremely excited about the 9th edition of the SERG,” said NorCal Solar President Elaine Hebert. “The expanded content will be useful to people who are new to solar and to seasoned professionals on the broad range of what solar can be. People have used past editions as something like a bible of solar, and it has helped them immensely on their career path.”

The launch party takes place Monday, July 9, from 7-9:00 pm, at the Intercontinental Hotel, next door to the Moscone Center on Howard Street, San Francisco. Invited guest speakers include Jeff Spies of QuickMount PV and Amy Reardon of the California Public Utilities Commission. The party is free to NorCal Solar members and supporters and $15 for others. RSVPs are requested at www.norcalsolar.org.

Intersolar NA is an annual conference that provides in-depth alternative energy industry insight by bringing together companies from all over the globe to exchange knowledge and ideas and display new products. This year’s conference and exhibition will take place July 9-12 at the Moscone Center and Intercontinental Hotel. More than 22,000 people are expected. NorCal Solar will be at booth L224.”There are many people looking to break into the green job market, and our networking events are a great way to meet those already working in solar,” said Hebert. In step with its goal to enhance solar energy awareness, NorCal Solar is conducting three bus tours of local solar facilities during Intersolar NA.