SunPower Acquires French Solar Company

Posted on January 31, 2012 by quest

San Francisco bay area based SunPower a manufacturer of high-efficiency solar cells, solar panels and solar systems today announced it has completed its acquisition of the wholly-owned Total SA subsidiary Tenesol SA, a global solar provider headquartered in La Tour de Salvagny, France for $165.4 million in cash. Concurrently with the closing of this acquisition, Total purchased 18.6 million shares of SunPower common stock in a private placement at $8.80 per share. Total now owns approximately 66 percent of SunPower’s common stock.”SunPower is well positioned to gain share during the current market transition with the addition of Tenesol’s established European and global customer channels and strong manufacturing base in Europe and Africa,” said Tom Werner, SunPower president and CEO. “Tenesol’s well-established engineering and sales channels and strong team will complement SunPower’s world-leading high efficiency, high reliability solar panels and systems global footprint.”

Tenesol has been designing, engineering, manufacturing, installing and managing solar energy systems for its global customer base since 1983. It is a leading solar energy operator in Europe with a strong pipeline in the French market for large industrial and commercial photovoltaic rooftop solutions. The company has installed more than 15,000 solar systems worldwide totaling approximately 500 megawatts (MW) dc. In addition, Tenesol is a leader in the global off-grid market sector and expects to record revenue of approximately EUR 200 million in 2011. Post acquisition, SunPower will have deployed more than 2,500 MW dc of solar technology globally.

“With SunPower’s industry-leading technology, attractive long-term cost roadmap, our joint collaboration on research and development and Tenesol‘s established downstream presence, the combined company is well positioned to open new, largely untapped markets for solar,” said Arnaud Chaperon, senior vice president, Total Gas and Power Division.

Where is your water?

California Selected For 2013 Solar Decathlon

Posted on January 27, 2012 by quest

Now just after President Obama’s State of the Union Address The United States Department of Energy today announced that the Orange County Great Park has been selected as the site for the 2013 Solar Decathlon. The Solar Decathlon challenges international collegiate teams to design and build solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient and attractive while promoting the education and economic benefits of renewable energy and energy efficiency. Visitors will be able to tour the renewable energy houses that combine energy-efficient construction and appliances at a specially-constructed Great Park Solar Village in the fall of 2013.

“I am extremely proud that after carefully evaluating sites throughout the nation, the Department of Energy selected our Great Park as the location of this important international event,” said Mike Ellzey, Chief Executive Officer, Orange County Great Park Board Corporation. “Staging the 2013 Solar Decathlon at the Great Park will focus worldwide attention on the entire solar renewable energy industry in Orange County and throughout California. The event will also greatly stimulate the local economy by bringing in tourism dollars from those attending.”

“The Orange County Great Park is proud and honored to be chosen as the host site for the 2013 U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon,” said Beth Krom, Chair of the Orange County Great Park Corporation Board of Directors. “This unique event fits perfectly with our vision and focus on innovation, sustainability and community engagement. We are excited and look forward to working with the Department of Energy, the participating universities and our community partners to put on an extraordinary event.”The Solar Decathlon is a biennial event that was launched in 2002. The 2013 Solar Decathlon at the Orange County Great Park will be the first Decathlon held outside of Washington D.C.. The Great Park was selected through a national competition.

Dickson Despommier on The Vertical Farm

Obama Goes Green In State of The Union

Posted on January 25, 2012 by quest

President Obama put it out there in last night’s State of the Union Address at one point saying, “Millions of Americans who work hard and play by the rules every day deserve a government and a financial system that do the same,” Obama said. “It’s time to apply the same rules from top to bottom. No bailouts, no handouts, and no cop-outs. He focused on four areas – American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values.There it was the energy, the passion, the truth telling and a vision for a new clean green tech America. Was that Barrack Obama calling for innovation and entrepreneurship to drive a new era of energy prosperity? Or was it Obama channeling former President Jimmy Carter who back in 1977 proposed a new National Energy Policy. I wonder where we’d be if his policies had remained in effect. Who knows maybe there would have been no need for a war in Iraq.

And just last week President Obama went thumbs down on the Keystone XL Pipeline project which opponents had called an environmental disaster in the making. In his State of the Union speech last night he went directly after big oil. He said,”Our experience with shale gas, our experience with natural gas, shows us that the payoffs on these public investments don’t always come right away. Some technologies don’t pan out; some companies fail. But I will not walk away from the promise of clean energy. I will not walk away from workers like Bryan. I will not cede the wind or solar or battery industry to China or Germany because we refuse to make the same commitment here. We’ve subsidized oil companies for a century. That’s long enough. It’s time to end the taxpayer giveaways to an industry that rarely has been more profitable, and double-down on a clean energy industry that never has been more promising. Pass clean energy tax credits. Create these jobs”

While conceding the logjam in Congress he said, “We can also spur energy innovation with new incentives. The differences in this chamber may be too deep right now to pass a comprehensive plan to fight climate change. But there’s no reason why Congress shouldn’t at least set a clean energy standard that creates a market for innovation. So far, you haven’t acted. Well, tonight, I will. I’m directing my administration to allow the development of clean energy on enough public land to power 3 million homes. And I’m proud to announce that the Department of Defense, working with us, the world’s largest consumer of energy, will make one of the largest commitments to clean energy in history -– with the Navy purchasing enough capacity to power a quarter of a million homes a year.

Military Has Gigawatts Of Solar Energy Potential

Solar 3D Casting New Solar Market Paths

Posted on January 23, 2012 by quest

Solar3D, Inc. the developer of a breakthrough 3-dimensional solar cell technology to maximize the conversion of sunlight into electricity, today explained how its breakthrough 3-dimensional solar cell technology will create new solar market opportunities by changing the economics of solar energy to enable many new cost-effective applications.“Today’s cost per watt metric for measuring solar cell competitiveness, while tempting in its simplicity, is inadequate to quantify the total cost of a solar system,” said Jim Nelson, President and CEO of Solar3D. “A recent article by Marcelo Gomez in Renewable Energy World predicted that Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) will become the standard by which solar systems will be evaluated. Solar3D’s high efficiency solar cells, occupying a smaller space, will result in a TCO that will be lower than conventional solar cells.”

Conventional, less efficient, solar cells require more space, maintenance, and other collateral support expenses. Solar3D’s 3-dimensional solar cells are predicted to be substantially more efficient than low efficiency, cheap imported products. As a result of higher power density in a smaller space, all of the associated support components can be less costly and less bulky. Smaller panels and frames, less support structure, less weight per watt, and less land or building space will be used to build high power solar systems.

“With our high efficiency 3-dimensional cells, area or space limited applications that were not suitable for photovoltaics in the past can now be considered for solar systems,” said Nelson, “New and existing rooftop, mobile, military, law enforcement and consumer product applications will all be able to take advantage of much less collateral-cost-hungry solar systems constructed with Solar3D cells. By using our high efficiency, 3-dimensional cells, many of these new applications will benefit from a smaller solar footprint, as well a significantly lower TCO, as compared to conventional solar cells.”Nelson continued, “I believe that this is the future of solar. The time will come that high efficiency cells like ours will cover every application, including utility scale solar farms.”The company has received numerous inquiries from prospective partners and customers and is initiating business development efforts to establish Solar3D cells in the marketplace.

A Vision of Real Corporate Leadership on Sustainability

Yingi Solar Meets New Sustainability Footprint

Posted on January 19, 2012 by quest

Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Limited one of the world’s leading vertically integrated photovoltaic product manufacturers, today announced that it has accomplished the carbon footprint lifecycle assessment of its multi-crystalline and mono-crystalline PV modules. The Assessment was conducted according to the international carbon footprint standard, a publicly available specification that provides a method for assessing the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions of various goods and services. The Assessment was controlled and verified by TUV Rheinland Group, a leading global services provider in the testing of PV modules and components. Yingli Green Energy is the first company in the global PV sector to obtain Product Carbon Footprint Verification from TUV Rheinland. According to the Assessment, the carbon dioxide emitted during the manufacturing phase is significantly less than that will be reduced during the 25-year usage phase.

Ralf Scheller, CEO of TUV Rheinland Greater China said “We are pleased to have supported Yingli for the pioneer project in the global PV industry. We are also impressed by Yingli’s strong commitments to corporate social responsibility, carbon emission reduction, environmental protection and sustainable development. With our expertise in carbon management and energy efficiency, TUV Rheinland looks forward to continuously working with Yingli to contribute to the global climate change issue.”

“As a leading renewable energy company, Yingli Green Energy has long been committed to sustainable development and corporate social responsibility,” said Mr. Jingfeng Xiong, Vice President of Yingli Green Energy. “We have gained a comprehensive understanding of the lifecycle emissions of our products, and remain dedicated to ensuring a low energy pay-back period for our modules. As a result, we plan to launch more carbon-neutral products in the future, optimize our energy management systems and keep improving energy efficiency within our manufacturing facilities. With today’s Verification from TUV Rheinland, we are able to further support our customers and end users who care about carbon footprint reduction.”

Jessica Alba Launches Eco-Friendly Business

Future Engineers Using Solar And Renewable Energy

Posted on January 18, 2012 by quest

Hundreds of future engineering students from all across New Jersey flocked to Rutgers’ University this past Saturday to gain insight and encouragement from New Jersey American Water engineers as they competed in the 5th Annual New Jersey Engineers Future Cities Competition. The competition, held at the Rutgers University Livingston Campus, featured students’ models of future cities designed to meet energy needs and maintain a healthy planet.“The innovation of their cities and the detailed though that went into their design showed that these students are wise beyond their years. New Jersey American Water is proud to have supported this year’s Future Cities Competition and we look forward to coming back for another year.”

Throughout the university’s student center, student vied for more than two dozen awards with models of cities made from recycled materials that showcased different forms of alternative energy such as wind mills, solar power, and magnets. New Jersey American Water sponsored two of the awards: 5th place overall, which was awarded to Iselin Middle School for their city named “Verison City,” and the specialty category of Healthiest City, given to St. Paul Interparochial School for their city named “Findiger City.”Iselin Middle School received a $500 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Grant for materials used in their school’s classrooms as well as the opportunity to be the special guests of the company at the American Water Works Association’s New Jersey (AWW-NJ) chapter’s annual conference held in Atlantic City . St. Paul Interparochial School in Ramsey, NJ will also take a behind the scenes tour of a New Jersey American Water treatment plant.

In between presenting their designs, students stopped by the New Jersey American Water booth to seek academic and career advice, as well as to marvel at the company’s “magic floating faucet” and collect giveaways.“It is so important to encourage students at this early age to explore engineering and technology as a career interest,” said Suzanne Chiavari, New Jersey American Water Vice President of Engineering, and Future Cities Competition judge. “The innovation of their cities and the detailed though that went into their design showed that these students are wise beyond their years. New Jersey American Water is proud to have supported this year’s Future Cities Competition and we look forward to coming back for another year.”