Solar Light Flashes: February 10, 2008

Select Photovoltaic News Tidbits

This is the first Solar Light Flashes of 2008. Somehow, I didn’t have anything to report on a company name starting with the letter “S”, the most popular first letter for “s”olar companies.

AE Polysilicon

An AE Polysilicon DEP Resolution concerning a sewer module was approved at a Special Meeting of the Falls Township Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, January 22, 2008. An online video of the vote on AE Polysilicon resolution 08-06 is available at the Falls Township Board Of Supervisors Meeting - January 22, 2008. Click on:

Part 1 of 1 - 6:32pm to 6:57pm (timestamp range 6:54:54 to 6:56:45)

and allow the video to load before advancing the time index unless you find the political squabbling between Supervisor Vislosky and Board Chairman Robert Harvie, Jr. (or see Harvie) amusing.

What is the relevance of this regulatory trivia? In the wake of REC ASA - Silicon expansion project - delay and cost overrun or Polysilicon Plant Costs On the Rise by Jennifer Kho at Greentech Media, it seems almost impossible for AE Polysilicon Corporation to begin production by the end of 2008.

APWR

The old AstroPower stock symbol now belongs to A-Power Energy Generation Systems, Ltd. (NASDAQ:APWR). This company does not have a website and was formerly named Chardan South China Acquisition Corp., a Blank Check IPO by Chardan Capital. See this BARRON’s article, Blind-Pool Danger by Leslie P. Norton, for unflattering background on the management behind this Special Purpose Acquisition Corporation (SPAC).

I noticed recent online news reported under this stock symbol has been confused with AstroPower.

Green Light blog at Greentech Media

The post SunPower and First Solar: Two Men Enter. One Man Leaves. by Daniel Englander seems long on provocation and short on arguments. First, I don’t see near term competition between SunPower and First Solar as a zero sum game. Each company’s technology can thrive in photovoltaic applications depending on the specifics of the installation size, area, and location. And any thin film threat as cited from Nanosolar or Sharp to First Solar is an even greater threat to SunPower because of their higher cost per Watt silicon solar cells. SunPower is not “a vertically integrated poly producer” as Mr. Englander states and needs polysilicon prices to decline just to keep up with First Solar and maintain their gross margins. Exploiting their own increasing returns to scale, First Solar can continue to lower their variable manufacturing costs and defend their industry leading cost position.

Thomson Financial chimes in on the First Solar versus SunPower debate in this YouTube video, Squawkbox: On The Radar 01-25-08.

GUNTHER Portfolio is also among the featured blogs at Greentech Media.

INVEST IN GERMANY

Invest in Germany has revamped their website as noted in Newsletter Issue 01/2008. The "Incentives" - Brochure by Invest in Germany looks useful to companies interested in locating in Germany. The last new publication in the Photovoltaics Industry Downloads area remains Fast Track - Photovoltaics as reported in Schmid Silicon Technology: From East Germany with Polysilicon.

In the Jobs & Careers section, there is an opening for a Manager/Senior Manager Renewable Energies & Resources. For those with a long term vision, this position has proven to be a spring board to lucrative opportunities in the renewable energy industry.

NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

In this YouTube video, Dr. Lawrence Kazmerski, Director of the National Center for Photovoltaics (NCPV) at NREL, delivers an entertaining and informative lecture on Photovoltaics: At the Tipping Point at Vanderbilt University on December 3, 2007.

PHOTON International

Cheers to PHOTON International, The Photovoltaic Magazine, for posting articles to their website on a regular basis in 2008. With a massive database of articles, I always thought this would be a great way to leverage their content and entice new subscribers via the teaser content page for the latest issue.

pvresources.com

A new report by Denis Lenardic:

Large-Scale Photovoltaic Power Plants
Cumulative and Annual Installed Power Output Capacity
pvresources.com
Annual Report 2007

can be downloaded from the pvresources.com homepage by clicking on the Annual Report 2007 link.

PV-Tech.org

Per this Photovoltaic Technology About Us:

PV-Tech independently collects and disseminates news and in-depth technical information exclusively for PV manufacturers.

Since this publication showed potential, I added it to my SOLAR LINKS. But what is with the .org designation? Non-profit organizations are the main users of the .org (dot-org) domain, and PV-Tech.org is a for profit company operated by the Henley Media Group. Over a period of one month, PV-Tech.org failed to respond to my emails asking about the .org domain though they did find the time to trumpet themselves in PV-Tech.org - building a sustainable future one cell at a time.

In The INQUIRER Guide to Modern 21st Century Journalism, Mike Magee shares seven (7) Modern Journalist Rules that true journalists and Bloggers alike will find amusing.

Solar Light Flashes: December 31, 2007

Select Photovoltaic News Tidbits

In this final Solar Light Flashes of 2007, I need to catch up on accumulated tidbits I’ve collected over the past few months.

Advent Solar, Inc.
If recent events at Miasolé regarding former CEO David Pearce are the precedent (see Former Miasolé Employees Confirm Cuts by Jennifer Kho at Greentech Media), then Advent Solar Appoints Peter Green as new President and CEO, tends to indicate Rusty Schmit’s days with Advent may be numbered despite the claim:

Company founder Rusty Schmit will remain a member of the Board of Directors in an active role focused on strategic initiatives and will be working with Peter to ensure a smooth transition.

This development also lends credence to anonymous rumors the retooling and layoffs are masking process issues.

Blue Square Energy
While I was on my best behavior at the Dow Jones VentureWire Alternative Energy Innovations 2007 conference in Redwood City, California, AlternativeEnergy.com captured this video of Blue Square Energy (BSE) President and CEO Jeff Barnett’s presentation.

Concentrix Solar GmbH
In the under reported Concentrix passes all tests required for starting construction of its 500 kW power plant in Spain (October 2007), the company’s 5.75 kW prototype system passed ISFOC, Instituto de Sistemas Fotovoltaicos de Concentración S.A. or Institute of Concentration Photovoltaics Systems, required qualification tests including draft IEC standard 62108 D8d (now IEC 62108 Ed. 1.0). Construction of the 200 kW Puertollano, Castilla La Mancha – Spain, installation was supposed to begin in early November 2007.

Greentech Media
Greentech Media: Conversations has so far rolled out two of a six part discussion series with Dr. Richard Swanson, co-founder, President, and Chief Technical Officer (CTO) of SunPower Corporation. Since the series is sponsored by SunPower and mirrored over at the SunPower website as the Richard Swanson Podcast Series, this series has the appearance of an infomercial. Then again, what photovoltaic company would want to sponsor a series about a competitor? Nonetheless, I am sure these podcasts with Dr. Swanson are worth a listen.

Izusu Glass Co., Ltd.
DigInfo (Digitized Information, Inc.) has a short video about Izusu Glass compound parabolic concentrators (CPC) produced using a glass mold process to reduce manufacturing costs.

Oerlikon Solar
I just noticed this public relations Oerlikon Solar Image Film on the website available via streaming (English, Deutsch) or download. And here is an apparent bootleg video Report on solar energy from CASH-TV in German (Deutsch) aired back on October 7, 2007. Oerlikon Solar is a business segment of OC Oerlikon Corporation AG (VTX:OERL).

REC Solar Grade Silicon LLC
This REC Silicon Groundbreaking video by Grant County EDC showed up on YouTube before Christmas even though the ceremony to mark the construction of the new Solar Grade Silicon manufacturing facility in Moses Lake, Washington USA, was held way back on August 16, 2006.

A few updated photos of the construction are posted on the Grant County Economic Development Council website at REC Silicon Project. Slated to ramp in the second half of 2008, the new plant is based on a proprietary FBR (Fluidized Bed Reactor) process and will add 6500 MT (Metric Tons) of granular Solar Grade Silicon production capacity. REC Solar Grade Silicon LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Renewable Energy Corporation ASA (OSL:REC).

Solarvalue AG
The stockings of Solarvalue AG (XETRA:SV7) shareholders were empty this Christmas. No (char)coal, wood chips, quartz, or Solar Grade Silicon (SGS) sample material from a US lab. But did the Solarvalue ÜberBull get high sulfur coal from Santa Claus?

Two series begun in 2007 remain unfinished. I have noticed significant interest in Timminco Limited: O Canada! Solar Grade Silicon, Eh? – Part 1. This is a top priority at the start of 2008, and I have two additional parts planned. There was also supposed to be a Part 3 after Sunways goes its own Silicon ways – Part 2 to cover the Automotive solar segment of Sunways. I have the material but just have not gotten to the write up.

Once again I wish everyone a Happy New Year 2008 and may it be happy and prosperous for us all.

Media developments during the 22nd EU PVSEC

Greentech Media, Photovoltaik, and PHOTON

Although Greentech Media Launches Independent News and Analysis Website occurred on September 4, 2007, I bumped into Greentech Journalist Rachel Barron at the official 22nd EU PVSEC press conference on Monday after the Opening Session. Greentech Editor Jennifer Kho and Ms. Barron are both Red Herring alumni. I was an avid reader of Ms. Kho’s solar articles last fall and even linked to one.

Greentech Media, Inc., was founded by Scott Clavenna and Rick Thompson last of Light Reading, an online publication with the tagline: NETWORKING THE TELECOM INDUSTRY. Greentech Media’s President and CEO Clavenna introduces the website in Welcome to Greentech Media. Greentech has established partnerships with the Prometheus Institute and Rob Day of @Ventures as the exclusive host of his Cleantech Investing Blog. Greentech Media secured $1 Million in Series A funding back on May 21, 2007, in a round led by Northport Private Equity and Lightspeed Venture Partners.

I think I need to purge my broken RED HERRING Energy link and replace it with Greentech Media.

Since Intersolar 2007, the folks who launched Photovoltaik - Das Magazin für Profis, Solarpraxis AG (FRA:SPA) and Alfons W. Gentner Verlag GmbH & Co. KG, have been busy developing a Special 2007 International/American oriented English edition of Photovoltaik – The Professional’s Magazine. The cover story is Ewing Oil Turns Solar interviewing Larry Hagman, Actor and Renewable Energy Supporter. Mr. Hagman is presenting at the Closing Plenary Session of Solar Power 2007.

Solarpraxis was providing gratis sample copies of the Special 2007 edition from a shared stand with pvXchange at the 22nd EU PVSEC Exhibition. I had a chance to chat with Solarpraxis AG CEO Karl-Heinz Remmers on the Metro back from the FIERA MILANO RHO, and the Solarpraxis team will be in attendance at Solar Power 2007, and I believe (almost 100% certain) Solar Power 2007 attendees can expect copies of the Special 2007 edition to be available.

I can’t confirm if this is new news, but Solar Verlag GmbH, the publisher of PHOTON magazines, will launch an Italian version, PHOTON – il Mensile del Fotovoltaico (link points to PHOTON International at post time), starting with the January 2008 edition (see PHOTON 9/2007, p. 27). The magazine has a cover price of €4.20. If I am reading the italiano right, a 12 month annual subscription costs €44 per year (€36 for students) and €84 for subscriptions outside the European Union.

This pricing is similar to German and Spanish PHOTON versions, but, for some reason, a 12 month subscription to the PHOTON International English version costs €214 per year! PHOTON International does not even have a price printed on the cover. PHOTON International claims the regular newsstand price for 12 issues is €321 or an eye popping €26.75 per issue. PHOTON International sells back issues since February 2002 for €25 (PI 9/2007, p. 47) versus the 22nd EU PVSEC Special Conference Price of €15.

While, in fairness, PHOTON International subscribers have more perks than even PHOTON - das Solarstrom-Magazin subscribers, do these perks justify an almost five (5) times higher subscription price?

This pricing discrepancy could make spot market Polysilicon look cheap.