March 2016

Climate Scientist Calls For Pricing Fossil Fuels To Accelerate Energy Transition

Former NASA climate director and Columbia University scientist, James Hansen has long called for a straightforward rising price on greenhouse gas emissions, which he argues would “quicken the transition to cleaner energy.” We could already be phasing out fossil fuel emissions, if only we stopped allowing the fossil fuel industry to use the atmosphere as a free dumping ground for their waste. “This is a tragic situation, because it is unnecessary,” he says

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Thailand: Trina Solar Begins PV Production With 700MW Annual Cells Capacity

The manufacturing facility is located in Rayong, Thailand and Trina Solar has also secured $143m in financing agreements with Siam Commercial Bank Public Company Limited (SCB) and China Minsheng Banking Corporation Ltd (CMBC). “The investment in Thailand fits our strategy of prudent capacity expansion in select overseas markets to deliver industry-leading products to customers in the US and Europe in particular as we strive to increase the profitability of the company,” said Mr. Jifan Gao, Chairman and CEO of Trina Solar.

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42MW Futtsu Solar Power Facility Completion Will Serve Tokyo Energy Needs

The facility is one of the largest solar PV projects serving Tokyo.”Japan is an exciting market – it is the third-largest electric grid in the world and renewables represent the only domestic energy resource. With modest improvements, innovation and effective utilisation of the current 27GW of pumped hydro facilities, the Japanese grid offers one of the best opportunities in the world to transition to carbon-free electrical generation”, said Mike Garland, CEO of Pattern Development.

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SolarCity Completes East Coast Solar Projects From $1Billion SolarStrong Plan

The 1,300 rooftop solar installations in Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island are the first east coast projects of SolarStrong, SolarCity’s plan to build more than $1 billion in solar projects to provide power to 120,000 military homes throughout the United States. In addition, the projects employ veterans, where possible. “Forward-thinking projects like SolarStrong strengthen communities and are an important part of our transition to a clean energy future,” said U.S. Sen.Cory Booker of New Jersey.

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South Africa And Saudi Arabia Inaugurate $325m Bokpoort CSP Project

The R5 Billion ($325m) project has one of the highest solar radiation footprints in the world with the plant providing 220,000 MWh per annum power to more than 200,000 homes, day and night; and having a thermal storage capacity of 9.3 hours of full load operation. It has already earned industry accolades including African Community Project of the Year; Project Finance ‘Deal of the Year’ by PFI, and World Finance’s Solar Deal of the Year.

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As European Solar PV Installations Slow, China, US, Japan Surge Ahead

Five countries; China, the United States, Japan, Germany and Italy will account for 70 percent of global installed PV capacity, projected to be 310GW at the end of 2016. A substantial increase from 40GW at the end of 2010. Continued stagnation of major European PV markets due to weaker financial incentives has caused PV additions in Europe to slow dramatically in recent years, but global demand remains strong. IHS says, “the supply chain continues to benefit from a period of relatively stable pricing, and there could be a new wave of capacity expansions.”

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New Energy Storage System Introduced To Improve South Korean Grid Reliability

Kokam’s 56MW energy storage project features the world’s largest lithium NMC Energy Storage System for Frequency Regulation. New 24MW and 16MW energy storage systems will use the Ultra High Power Lithium-ion NMC technology to deliver high-power output, fast recharging and long-cycle life to Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO). Kokam batteries were also used in the Solar Impulse, the first plane to attempt to circle the earth using only solar power.

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Saudi Arabian Acwa Power Acquires 50MW Solar Project In Jordan

The acquisition for an undisclosed fee comes as the government of Jordan has awards power purchase agreements for 12 solar energy projects, seeking to install 200 megawatts in total. It will result in about 2.3 million tonnes of CO2 saved during its PPA term, which is roughly enough to power 15,000 homes. Prior to the acquisition a 20-year power purchase agreement had already been signed with Jordan’s National Electric Power Company (NEPCO). Germany’s ET Solutions AG will be providing engineering, procurement and construction services.

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City of Las Vegas Installs World’s First Solar-Kinetic Street Lights

The City of Las Vegas will partner EnGoPLANET in a world first installation of street lighting powered by combining kinetic and solar energy, where the Kinetic energy is harvested from pedestrians’ footsteps via kinetic energy pads. “The city of Las Vegas is a leader in sustainability, from our commitment to renewable energy to recycling, our alternative-fuel vehicles and streetlights,” said Mayor Carolyn G. Goodman.

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