Is thin really back in?
Thin-film solar, that is. Nanosolar announced Thursday that it had signed contracts to supply up to one gigawatt of its thin-film photovoltaic panels to European solar power plant builders over the next three to six years.
Nanosolar is one of several Silicon Valley startups that have attracted billions of dollars in venture capital to develop a thin-film technology called copper indium gallium selenide, or CIGS. Such solar cells use little expensive silicon, the main ingredient of conventional photovoltaic cells.
Thin-film cells can be printed on glass or flexible materials and though they’re less efficient at converting sunlight into electricity, the big pitch was that they can be manufactured at a lower cost. But then came a 50 percent fall in the price of conventional crystalline silicon photovoltaic modules as Chinese manufacturers rapidly ramped up production and many CIGS companies backed off their earlier optimistic projections.
And so those impressive 10-figure orders from customers need to be taken with a grain of salt as they don’t always materialize. For instance, in September 2009, Nanosolar announced a whopping $4.1 billion in orders and a manufacturing capacity of 640 megawatts at its German plant.
A year later when I met with a Nanosolar executive at the Solar Power International confab in Los Angeles, he acknowledged that not all those orders would be fulfilled, given the state of the economy and falling solar cell prices. The company had also ratcheted back its estimated manufacturing capacity. (On Thursday, Nanosolar said it would have an annual capacity of 115 megawatts by this fall.)
The latest orders are with two German companies, Belectric and Plain Energy, and with EDF Energies Nouvelles, a unit of the French energy giant. The developers will deploy the Nanosolar Utility Panel in photovoltaic power plants.
“Through this partnership with Nanosolar, we look forward to achieving a very competitive levelized cost of energy for our solar installations,” David Corchia, EDF Energies Nouvelles, said in a statement.
2011年4月28日星期四
New Jersey company building solar panels on telephone poles
In an effort to create the amount of solar power it generates throughout the state, the largest utility company in New Jersey recently began installing small solar panels on its telephone poles.
Public Service Electric and Gas Company, the largest power provider in the Garden State, is now installing more than 200,000 individual solar panels on poles throughout its coverage area, which accounts for about three-quarters of the state, according to a report from the New York Times. The plan is part of a $515 million investment in solar development by PSE&G, and experts say the pole-by-pole approach can be just as effective as erecting a massive single solar farm.
Currently, New Jersey requires its power providers to get the total electricity generated by solar power to 23 percent by 2021, the report said. PSE&G's panels, if laid side-to-side, would cover about 170 acres, but some residents in towns where they're being installed say they detract from neighborhood aesthetics.
New Jersey is the nation's second-largest solar producer, behind only California, because it offers generous incentives to both residents and businesses that install panels.
Public Service Electric and Gas Company, the largest power provider in the Garden State, is now installing more than 200,000 individual solar panels on poles throughout its coverage area, which accounts for about three-quarters of the state, according to a report from the New York Times. The plan is part of a $515 million investment in solar development by PSE&G, and experts say the pole-by-pole approach can be just as effective as erecting a massive single solar farm.
Currently, New Jersey requires its power providers to get the total electricity generated by solar power to 23 percent by 2021, the report said. PSE&G's panels, if laid side-to-side, would cover about 170 acres, but some residents in towns where they're being installed say they detract from neighborhood aesthetics.
New Jersey is the nation's second-largest solar producer, behind only California, because it offers generous incentives to both residents and businesses that install panels.
Evergreen, ReneSola Fall After Reporting Weak Solar Panel Sales
Evergreen dropped 54 cents, or 26 percent, to $1.54 as of 10:221 a.m. in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. Earlier it was down as much as 34 percent, the largest intra-day decline since October 2002. ReneSola’s American depositary receipts fell as much as 78 cents, or 8.8 percent, to $8.07 a share. A close at that price would be the lowest since Dec. 17.
Evergreen Chief Executive Officer Michael El-Hillow said slower-than-expected sales may force the company to raise cash. Marlboro, Massachusetts-based Evergreen held about $33 million in cash and cash equivalents as of April 26, down from $38.5 million on April 2.
“Uncertainties regarding feed-in-tariffs and other subsidy programs have substantially slowed the demand for solar panels in 2011,” El-Hollow said in a statement yesterday.
Wunderlich Securities Inc. analyst Theodore O’Neill downgraded the company today to “sell” from “hold.”
ReneSola said product sales slumped 15 percent in the first quarter to $328.2 million, from $386.4 million in the fourth quarter. For the second quarter, sales will be in the range of $280 million to $300 million, less than the $337.1 million that analysts had expected.
“We hold a cautious outlook for demand in Europe, particularly due to the uncertainty and policy changes in Italy,” the Jiashan, China-based company’s Chief Executive Officer Xianshou Li said today in a statement.
Evergreen Chief Executive Officer Michael El-Hillow said slower-than-expected sales may force the company to raise cash. Marlboro, Massachusetts-based Evergreen held about $33 million in cash and cash equivalents as of April 26, down from $38.5 million on April 2.
“Uncertainties regarding feed-in-tariffs and other subsidy programs have substantially slowed the demand for solar panels in 2011,” El-Hollow said in a statement yesterday.
Wunderlich Securities Inc. analyst Theodore O’Neill downgraded the company today to “sell” from “hold.”
ReneSola said product sales slumped 15 percent in the first quarter to $328.2 million, from $386.4 million in the fourth quarter. For the second quarter, sales will be in the range of $280 million to $300 million, less than the $337.1 million that analysts had expected.
“We hold a cautious outlook for demand in Europe, particularly due to the uncertainty and policy changes in Italy,” the Jiashan, China-based company’s Chief Executive Officer Xianshou Li said today in a statement.
2011年4月26日星期二
MiaSole Turns to Intel for Manufacturing Tips
Intel is known for its manufacturing might, and its ability to roll out chips speedily in giant factories. Can that knowledge help a solar startup? MiaSole announced Tuesday it has enlisted the chip giant to help the company scale up its thin-film solar production.
Eight Intel folks have been embedded at MiaSole’s factory since last month to provide advice and employee training, said Rob DeLine, VP of marketing at MiaSole. MiaSole makes solar panels using copper, indium, gallium and selenium (CIGS), a combination that requires precise layering and distribution of the materials to achieved desired efficiencies. CIGS panels have the potential to rival the more popular silicon panels in efficiency and price, but the vast majority of CIGS companies are small and in the process of working on beefing up their manufacturing operations.
Turning to Intel for consultation seems unusual, given Intel isn’t a solar manufacturer, though it has invested in some solar production, including another CIGS solar panel manufacturer in Germany: Surfurcell. There are some similarities between chips and solar panels, mainly, that they rely primarily on silicon wafers as the building block. Chips are, in fact, much more complex to engineer and make.
Though making solar cells and assembling them into panels is more simple than making chips, scaling up a solar factory is no easy task. Plenty of companies have learned that controlling the quality and consistency of their production can take far longer than expected.
DeLine made it clear the Intel experts aren’t stationed at MiaSole to help MiaSole tinker with its core technology of making CIGS solar cells. Instead, the experts will offer a slew of recommendations for key areas of factory efficiency that may not be obvious to those who aren’t familiar with manufacturing in general.
“Regardless of the product types, anybody who is in high volume manufacturing faces some common issues, such as tool uptime, how fast you do preventive maintenance and when and how you do (employee) shift changes,” DeLine said. “We are delighted and absolutely thrilled to be able to learn from one of the best regarded manufacturers in any industry.”
With Intel’s help, MiaSole hopes to speed up its near-term plan to boost production and lower costs. MiaSole has about 50 MW of annual production capacity and expects to cross over 150 MW by the end of this year, DeLine said. MiaSole hopes the chip giant’s advice can help it achieve that year-end goal earlier rather than later in the fourth quarter, he added. The contract with Intel will last through 2012, and the companies aren’t disclosing financial terms of the contract.
MiaSole shipped 22 MW of solar panels in 2010 and expects to ship over 80 MW in 2011, then more than 200 MW in 2012, DeLine said. The company’s large customers include Germany-based Juwi Solar, which signed a 600MW supply agreement last year. MiaSole also inked a supply deal with SolarCity to install its panels on Walmart stores last year; MiaSole has completed the 5 MW delivery and expects “further opportunity in 2011,” DeLine said.
Make or Break Time
MiaSole is at a critical juncture where it needs to boost its production capacity and speed quickly. The company has had its share of struggles developing a technology that can rival others in efficiency and start developing it in large volumes. The current CEO, Joseph Laia, took over in 2007 to fix these problems, and the company hunkered down for about a year before announcing new progress. The company didn’t start commercial shipment until October 2009, Laia told me.
While MiaSole works out its kinks, the solar market has grown quickly and attracted the entrance of well-funded manufacturers who have built factories in the hundreds of megawatts. Several of the top 10 manufacturers in the world today make silicon panels and boast more than 1 GW of production capacity. Many of MiaSole’s fellow CIGS solar panel producers are working on building larger factories. Stion, for example, is working on a 100 MW factory in Mississippi. SoloPower is planning a factory in Oregon that eventually could reach 400 MW of annual capacity.
MiaSole previously has set a goal of reaching a manufacturing cost of 85 cents per watt, which it believes it could hit when it reaches 120 MW of production capacity, DeLine said. The company previously had hoped to reach that by the end of 2010. MiaSole and its peers are chasing after First Solar, which claims to have the lowest manufacturing cost and achieved 75 cents per watt by the end of 2010. But it reached that figure with 1.4 GW of factories. Incidentally, First Solar’s manufacturing operation has grown under the watch of a former Intel executive, Bruce Sohn, who’s leaving the solar company at the end of the month.
MiaSole, which had been making solar panels with 10.5 percent efficiency for some time, began shipping panels with higher efficiency this month, DeLine said. While he declined to say how efficient, DeLine said the panels are more efficient than the 11.6 percent panels achieved by First Solar by the end of 2010.
MiaSole last raised a $106 million round in the fourth quarter of last year, DeLine said. The company is reportedly looking to go public as early as this year. DeLine said MiaSole’s managers and investors have been thinking about doing an IPO but the company isn’t saying more at this point.
Eight Intel folks have been embedded at MiaSole’s factory since last month to provide advice and employee training, said Rob DeLine, VP of marketing at MiaSole. MiaSole makes solar panels using copper, indium, gallium and selenium (CIGS), a combination that requires precise layering and distribution of the materials to achieved desired efficiencies. CIGS panels have the potential to rival the more popular silicon panels in efficiency and price, but the vast majority of CIGS companies are small and in the process of working on beefing up their manufacturing operations.
Turning to Intel for consultation seems unusual, given Intel isn’t a solar manufacturer, though it has invested in some solar production, including another CIGS solar panel manufacturer in Germany: Surfurcell. There are some similarities between chips and solar panels, mainly, that they rely primarily on silicon wafers as the building block. Chips are, in fact, much more complex to engineer and make.
Though making solar cells and assembling them into panels is more simple than making chips, scaling up a solar factory is no easy task. Plenty of companies have learned that controlling the quality and consistency of their production can take far longer than expected.
DeLine made it clear the Intel experts aren’t stationed at MiaSole to help MiaSole tinker with its core technology of making CIGS solar cells. Instead, the experts will offer a slew of recommendations for key areas of factory efficiency that may not be obvious to those who aren’t familiar with manufacturing in general.
“Regardless of the product types, anybody who is in high volume manufacturing faces some common issues, such as tool uptime, how fast you do preventive maintenance and when and how you do (employee) shift changes,” DeLine said. “We are delighted and absolutely thrilled to be able to learn from one of the best regarded manufacturers in any industry.”
With Intel’s help, MiaSole hopes to speed up its near-term plan to boost production and lower costs. MiaSole has about 50 MW of annual production capacity and expects to cross over 150 MW by the end of this year, DeLine said. MiaSole hopes the chip giant’s advice can help it achieve that year-end goal earlier rather than later in the fourth quarter, he added. The contract with Intel will last through 2012, and the companies aren’t disclosing financial terms of the contract.
MiaSole shipped 22 MW of solar panels in 2010 and expects to ship over 80 MW in 2011, then more than 200 MW in 2012, DeLine said. The company’s large customers include Germany-based Juwi Solar, which signed a 600MW supply agreement last year. MiaSole also inked a supply deal with SolarCity to install its panels on Walmart stores last year; MiaSole has completed the 5 MW delivery and expects “further opportunity in 2011,” DeLine said.
Make or Break Time
MiaSole is at a critical juncture where it needs to boost its production capacity and speed quickly. The company has had its share of struggles developing a technology that can rival others in efficiency and start developing it in large volumes. The current CEO, Joseph Laia, took over in 2007 to fix these problems, and the company hunkered down for about a year before announcing new progress. The company didn’t start commercial shipment until October 2009, Laia told me.
While MiaSole works out its kinks, the solar market has grown quickly and attracted the entrance of well-funded manufacturers who have built factories in the hundreds of megawatts. Several of the top 10 manufacturers in the world today make silicon panels and boast more than 1 GW of production capacity. Many of MiaSole’s fellow CIGS solar panel producers are working on building larger factories. Stion, for example, is working on a 100 MW factory in Mississippi. SoloPower is planning a factory in Oregon that eventually could reach 400 MW of annual capacity.
MiaSole previously has set a goal of reaching a manufacturing cost of 85 cents per watt, which it believes it could hit when it reaches 120 MW of production capacity, DeLine said. The company previously had hoped to reach that by the end of 2010. MiaSole and its peers are chasing after First Solar, which claims to have the lowest manufacturing cost and achieved 75 cents per watt by the end of 2010. But it reached that figure with 1.4 GW of factories. Incidentally, First Solar’s manufacturing operation has grown under the watch of a former Intel executive, Bruce Sohn, who’s leaving the solar company at the end of the month.
MiaSole, which had been making solar panels with 10.5 percent efficiency for some time, began shipping panels with higher efficiency this month, DeLine said. While he declined to say how efficient, DeLine said the panels are more efficient than the 11.6 percent panels achieved by First Solar by the end of 2010.
MiaSole last raised a $106 million round in the fourth quarter of last year, DeLine said. The company is reportedly looking to go public as early as this year. DeLine said MiaSole’s managers and investors have been thinking about doing an IPO but the company isn’t saying more at this point.
3 Bigger Hitters in CA: SunPower
This morning, I got to tinkering around with some numbers from California Solar Statistics, a program of the state’s Energy Commission and Public Utilities Commission. What did I find?
Well, beyond a wealth of details on system size, average installed cost and California solar incentives, I verified that most solar home energy systems in the state use name-brand panels from large, well established manufacturers.
Here’s a breakdown of all California residential photovoltaic (PV) systems, by solar panel manufacturer:
3 Bigger Hitters in CA: SunPower, BP Solar & Sharp
I wasn’t that shocked to see California-based SunPower at the top of the list. But I was somewhat surprised to discover that the top three manufacturers — SunPower, Sharp and BP Solar — account for nearly half of all residential solar installations. The top ten manufacturers (in terms of total number of residential systems), meanwhile, account for around 80 percent of installations to date.
A few notes:
First, the data presented here go back to 2006, when the California Solar Initiative first came into effect. My guess is that a look at data only from the past year or so would reveal a rise in the number of installations from manufacturers like Suntech Power, Canadian Solar and Trina Solar relative to makers like Evergreen Solar and SolarWorld. (More on this in a later post.) Bottom line: I’d argue that the above chart tells us more about where we’ve been than where we’re headed.
Second, the stats here are for the total number of solar PV home systems installed statewide — not total generating capacity. That is, we’re talking about the number of individual California homeowners who looked at a particular solar quote and said, yes, I’d like to buy X system with solar panels from Y manufacturer. It’s entirely plausible that a manufacturer that ranks relatively low in total number of residential systems actually sells more panels than what meets the eye. Especially when non-residential solar PV systems are considered…
Finally, it’s worth noting that I’ve excluded commercial systems from this brief analysis. Fans of First Solar, a maker of solar thin-film panels, are sure to know that that company’s relative rank is much higher when commercial systems are taken into account.
Well, beyond a wealth of details on system size, average installed cost and California solar incentives, I verified that most solar home energy systems in the state use name-brand panels from large, well established manufacturers.
Here’s a breakdown of all California residential photovoltaic (PV) systems, by solar panel manufacturer:
3 Bigger Hitters in CA: SunPower, BP Solar & Sharp
I wasn’t that shocked to see California-based SunPower at the top of the list. But I was somewhat surprised to discover that the top three manufacturers — SunPower, Sharp and BP Solar — account for nearly half of all residential solar installations. The top ten manufacturers (in terms of total number of residential systems), meanwhile, account for around 80 percent of installations to date.
A few notes:
First, the data presented here go back to 2006, when the California Solar Initiative first came into effect. My guess is that a look at data only from the past year or so would reveal a rise in the number of installations from manufacturers like Suntech Power, Canadian Solar and Trina Solar relative to makers like Evergreen Solar and SolarWorld. (More on this in a later post.) Bottom line: I’d argue that the above chart tells us more about where we’ve been than where we’re headed.
Second, the stats here are for the total number of solar PV home systems installed statewide — not total generating capacity. That is, we’re talking about the number of individual California homeowners who looked at a particular solar quote and said, yes, I’d like to buy X system with solar panels from Y manufacturer. It’s entirely plausible that a manufacturer that ranks relatively low in total number of residential systems actually sells more panels than what meets the eye. Especially when non-residential solar PV systems are considered…
Finally, it’s worth noting that I’ve excluded commercial systems from this brief analysis. Fans of First Solar, a maker of solar thin-film panels, are sure to know that that company’s relative rank is much higher when commercial systems are taken into account.
MIT Professors Use Virus to Boost Solar Cell Efficiency
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is famed around the world for developing some of the biggest innovations in science and technology over the past century. This week, researchers at the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based university announced they are working with viruses to help boost the efficiency of solar panel systems.
According to MIT researchers, viruses help ensure that nanoscale components in solar modules work properly; using the tiny microbes, the scientists discovered they could boost solar module efficiency by over 30 percent - a vast improvement.
Scientists had previously worked with carbon nanotubes to increase solar panel efficiency, but the tools had their own drawbacks. However, the MIT researchers discovered that M13, a bacteria-eating virus, has the ability to bind to carbon nanotubes and make the process of increasing the effectiveness of the cells go much more smoothly than it would otherwise.
The viruses help keep the carbon nanotubes in place and are also genetically engineered to generate a layer of titanium dioxide, a key component in certain solar cells. In total, the virus helped researchers to increase the solar cell's power conversion by 10.6 percent from 8 percent, representing an improvement of about 30 percent.
MIT professor Angela Belcher, who heads the research, said the experiment illustrated the interplay of different scientific disciplines - in this case, physics and biology. "A little biology goes a long way," Belcher affirmed.
According to MIT researchers, viruses help ensure that nanoscale components in solar modules work properly; using the tiny microbes, the scientists discovered they could boost solar module efficiency by over 30 percent - a vast improvement.
Scientists had previously worked with carbon nanotubes to increase solar panel efficiency, but the tools had their own drawbacks. However, the MIT researchers discovered that M13, a bacteria-eating virus, has the ability to bind to carbon nanotubes and make the process of increasing the effectiveness of the cells go much more smoothly than it would otherwise.
The viruses help keep the carbon nanotubes in place and are also genetically engineered to generate a layer of titanium dioxide, a key component in certain solar cells. In total, the virus helped researchers to increase the solar cell's power conversion by 10.6 percent from 8 percent, representing an improvement of about 30 percent.
MIT professor Angela Belcher, who heads the research, said the experiment illustrated the interplay of different scientific disciplines - in this case, physics and biology. "A little biology goes a long way," Belcher affirmed.
2011年4月24日星期日
Please respect FT.com's ts&cs and copyright policy which allow you to: share links; copy content for personal use; & redistribute limited extracts. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights or use this link to reference the article - http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8122616e-6ecd-11e0-a13b-00144feabdc0.html#ixzz1KUplpiyB My solar panel payback time has gone from 10 to 30 years
Sir, I was interested to read David Blair’s article “Companies affected by solar rethink demand judicial review” (April 20) about “feed-in tariffs” for photo-voltaic solar panels. I have had discussions with Greg Barker about our predicament, which concerns the lower generation level of below 4KW rather than the above 50KW mentioned in the article. Mr Barker happens to be our local MP.
We installed our panels in mid-2009 when a rate of 36p had been mooted for each KW generated from April 1 2010. We were given the option of 28p from the electricity supplier for the period from installation until March 31 2010. Having applied for the 41.3p rate, we learnt that there had been a cut-off date in July 2009, which meant that installations before that date would receive only 9p. We installed one day before the cut-off date, the existence of which was not known either to us or to the solar installer. Worse was to follow since we installed a further set of panels a week after the cut-off date, only to be informed by Ofgem that all installations within a year of the first (9p) installation would also carry the 9p rate. I have been unable to discover from Ofgem or the Department of Energy and Climate Change why this one-year rule applies.
My grievance is that there is a huge discrepancy between 9p and 41.3p (a rate of 28p in our case would have been reasonable). Mr Barker states that “extending FITs to existing installations would not only increase the costs of the scheme, but would not encourage additional installations”. I would argue that the 41.3p generation rate was too high to start with, and the feed-in rate of 3p was too low. These figures could have been reversed. Households that use generated power in fact have 41.3p plus the cost charged per unit (at least 20p).
I feel aggrieved that my pay-back time has been increased from 10 to 30 years, while the installers of huge solar arrays have made a fortune by utilising the excessively generous 41.3p generation rate.
We installed our panels in mid-2009 when a rate of 36p had been mooted for each KW generated from April 1 2010. We were given the option of 28p from the electricity supplier for the period from installation until March 31 2010. Having applied for the 41.3p rate, we learnt that there had been a cut-off date in July 2009, which meant that installations before that date would receive only 9p. We installed one day before the cut-off date, the existence of which was not known either to us or to the solar installer. Worse was to follow since we installed a further set of panels a week after the cut-off date, only to be informed by Ofgem that all installations within a year of the first (9p) installation would also carry the 9p rate. I have been unable to discover from Ofgem or the Department of Energy and Climate Change why this one-year rule applies.
My grievance is that there is a huge discrepancy between 9p and 41.3p (a rate of 28p in our case would have been reasonable). Mr Barker states that “extending FITs to existing installations would not only increase the costs of the scheme, but would not encourage additional installations”. I would argue that the 41.3p generation rate was too high to start with, and the feed-in rate of 3p was too low. These figures could have been reversed. Households that use generated power in fact have 41.3p plus the cost charged per unit (at least 20p).
I feel aggrieved that my pay-back time has been increased from 10 to 30 years, while the installers of huge solar arrays have made a fortune by utilising the excessively generous 41.3p generation rate.
Solaria Dedicates Solar Panel Plant in Fremont
On Earth Day, Solaria held its dedication of a new solar panel manufacturing plant in Fremont, positioning the company to be a leader in renewable energy and manufacturing jobs.
“California has been instrumental in implementing incentives that help foster the growth of solar and other green technologies. Solaria is an exemplar of clean tech job growth in California — the kind of growth that can be furthered through effective public-private partnerships,” said Lt. Governor Newsom.
Also in attendance were: Sierra Club's Executive Director Michael Burne, EPA Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld, CPUC Commissioner Mark Ferron, CEC Commissioner Karen Douglas and Assemblymember Bob Wieckowski (D- Fremont).
With a new headquarters and a manufacturing plant in Fremont, Solaria plans to to produce 25 MW per year, an equivalent to supply electricity to about 25,000 homes during the day, according to CEO Dan Shugar.
In total, the company, which contracts with a plant in Hyderabad, India, expects to produce capacity for about 50 MW per year. With the Fremont plant running since January 2011, the company plans to expand production and double jobs, from about 100 to 200, in the next 12 months.
CEO Dan Shugar's former position was president of SunPower Systems, a subsidiary of SunPower Corp. Ten days earlier, in Milpitas, SunPower Corp. dedicated its first full-scale domestic solar manufacturing plant.
Unlike SunPower's federal funds, Solaria's funding is mostly private. In the third quarter of 2010, Solaria secured $65 million in financing, according to the company.
With an early seed grant from the National Renewable Energy Lab, Solaria developed a new, high-efficiency solar panel that uses 50 percent less of the silicon PV cell material as a standard panel, yet produces the same power, according to the company.
This year, a loan from the CEC helped Solaria procure some of the high-tech automation equipment that enables the company to manufacture in California and remain competitive in the marketplace.
A grant from the CPUC assisted Solaria with a 110 KW solar panel system which powers half of the factory operations.
The city of Fremont, to attract clean tech companies, has an agreement with Solaria, to exempt them from business taxes to the city for the first five years.
“California has been instrumental in implementing incentives that help foster the growth of solar and other green technologies. Solaria is an exemplar of clean tech job growth in California — the kind of growth that can be furthered through effective public-private partnerships,” said Lt. Governor Newsom.
Also in attendance were: Sierra Club's Executive Director Michael Burne, EPA Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld, CPUC Commissioner Mark Ferron, CEC Commissioner Karen Douglas and Assemblymember Bob Wieckowski (D- Fremont).
With a new headquarters and a manufacturing plant in Fremont, Solaria plans to to produce 25 MW per year, an equivalent to supply electricity to about 25,000 homes during the day, according to CEO Dan Shugar.
In total, the company, which contracts with a plant in Hyderabad, India, expects to produce capacity for about 50 MW per year. With the Fremont plant running since January 2011, the company plans to expand production and double jobs, from about 100 to 200, in the next 12 months.
CEO Dan Shugar's former position was president of SunPower Systems, a subsidiary of SunPower Corp. Ten days earlier, in Milpitas, SunPower Corp. dedicated its first full-scale domestic solar manufacturing plant.
Unlike SunPower's federal funds, Solaria's funding is mostly private. In the third quarter of 2010, Solaria secured $65 million in financing, according to the company.
With an early seed grant from the National Renewable Energy Lab, Solaria developed a new, high-efficiency solar panel that uses 50 percent less of the silicon PV cell material as a standard panel, yet produces the same power, according to the company.
This year, a loan from the CEC helped Solaria procure some of the high-tech automation equipment that enables the company to manufacture in California and remain competitive in the marketplace.
A grant from the CPUC assisted Solaria with a 110 KW solar panel system which powers half of the factory operations.
The city of Fremont, to attract clean tech companies, has an agreement with Solaria, to exempt them from business taxes to the city for the first five years.
2011年4月21日星期四
Study Finds Solar Panels Increase Home Values
All those homeowners who have been installing residential solar panels over the last decade may find it was a more practical decision than they thought. The electricity generated may have cost more than that coming from the local power company (half of which, nationwide, comes from burning coal), but if they choose to sell their homes, the price premium they will get for the solar system should let them recoup much of their original capital investment.
That is the conclusion of three researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, who looked at home sales — both homes with photovoltaic systems and homes without — in California over an eight-and-a-half-year period ending in mid-2009. The abstract of their study states, “the analysis finds strong evidence that California homes with PV systems have sold for a premium over comparable homes without PV systems.”
The premium ranged from $3.90 to $6.40 per watt of capacity, but tended most often to be about $5.50 per watt. This, the study said, “corresponds to a home sales price premium of approximately $17,000 for a relatively new 3,100-watt PV system (the average size of PV systems in the study).”
And the bottom line: “These average sales price premiums appear to be comparable to the investment that homeowners have made to install PV systems in California, which from 2001 through 2009 averaged approximately $5/watt.”
If the California findings can be extrapolated nationally, it would mean that the owners of 139,000 homes can collect a premium at resale time. For those who promote photovoltaic systems, it is a second line of defense against the argument (and reality) that the initial cost of installing the solar means using it for many years before the savings on electricity are enough to pay back the investment.
But there is a caveat. Homeowners who install solar on existing houses get nearly three times the premium of homeowners whose house came with solar panels. The study speculates about the reasons, suggesting that “new home builders may also gain value from PV as a market differentiator, and have therefore often tended to sell PV as a standard (as opposed to an optional) product on their homes and perhaps been willing to accept a lower premium in return for faster sales velocity.”
Residential solar installations have been growing at an average 51 percent rate annually for the last five years, according to Larry Sherwood, a consultant to the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, a nonprofit group that works on helping interested parties navigate various legal, technical and economic aspects of renewable energy. As of 2010, the total capacity of these systems was 677 megawatts, he said. (His most recent report can be found here.)
And Jared Blanton, a spokesman for the Solar Energy Industries Association, reports that in 2010, the residential market was 30 percent of the national solar PV market, above the utility market (28 percent) but behind commercial installations (42 percent).
A news release on Thursday from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory said that over all, approximately 2,100 megawatts of grid-connected solar photovoltaic systems (residential and nonresidential) have been installed across the country, almost half of this total in California.
The growth in residential solar systems, of course, is taking place on a tiny base. About a tenth of a percent of all households have photovoltaic systems, and all solar systems combined — industrial and residential and everything else, as well as concentrated-solar plants in the California deserts — amount to about two-tenths of 1 percent of all renewable electricity in the country, according to the federal Energy Information Administration. Renewable electricity, in turn, makes up about 8 percent of the electricity used in this country.
But the backers of solar power might talk about thousand-mile journeys beginning with a single step.
That is the conclusion of three researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, who looked at home sales — both homes with photovoltaic systems and homes without — in California over an eight-and-a-half-year period ending in mid-2009. The abstract of their study states, “the analysis finds strong evidence that California homes with PV systems have sold for a premium over comparable homes without PV systems.”
The premium ranged from $3.90 to $6.40 per watt of capacity, but tended most often to be about $5.50 per watt. This, the study said, “corresponds to a home sales price premium of approximately $17,000 for a relatively new 3,100-watt PV system (the average size of PV systems in the study).”
And the bottom line: “These average sales price premiums appear to be comparable to the investment that homeowners have made to install PV systems in California, which from 2001 through 2009 averaged approximately $5/watt.”
If the California findings can be extrapolated nationally, it would mean that the owners of 139,000 homes can collect a premium at resale time. For those who promote photovoltaic systems, it is a second line of defense against the argument (and reality) that the initial cost of installing the solar means using it for many years before the savings on electricity are enough to pay back the investment.
But there is a caveat. Homeowners who install solar on existing houses get nearly three times the premium of homeowners whose house came with solar panels. The study speculates about the reasons, suggesting that “new home builders may also gain value from PV as a market differentiator, and have therefore often tended to sell PV as a standard (as opposed to an optional) product on their homes and perhaps been willing to accept a lower premium in return for faster sales velocity.”
Residential solar installations have been growing at an average 51 percent rate annually for the last five years, according to Larry Sherwood, a consultant to the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, a nonprofit group that works on helping interested parties navigate various legal, technical and economic aspects of renewable energy. As of 2010, the total capacity of these systems was 677 megawatts, he said. (His most recent report can be found here.)
And Jared Blanton, a spokesman for the Solar Energy Industries Association, reports that in 2010, the residential market was 30 percent of the national solar PV market, above the utility market (28 percent) but behind commercial installations (42 percent).
A news release on Thursday from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory said that over all, approximately 2,100 megawatts of grid-connected solar photovoltaic systems (residential and nonresidential) have been installed across the country, almost half of this total in California.
The growth in residential solar systems, of course, is taking place on a tiny base. About a tenth of a percent of all households have photovoltaic systems, and all solar systems combined — industrial and residential and everything else, as well as concentrated-solar plants in the California deserts — amount to about two-tenths of 1 percent of all renewable electricity in the country, according to the federal Energy Information Administration. Renewable electricity, in turn, makes up about 8 percent of the electricity used in this country.
But the backers of solar power might talk about thousand-mile journeys beginning with a single step.
2011年4月20日星期三
Solar-Panel Makers Gain as Fukushima Spurs Japan's Anti-Nuclear Movement
Akiko Hirai says the Hamaoka power station 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) from home evokes such dread of the crippled Fukushima plant that she would spend $6,000 installing solar panels if it helped make Japan nuclear free.
“Who can really guarantee that they’re 100 percent safe? I want nuclear plants to be halted if they’re so frail,” said the 53-year-old housewife, who’s lived in Shizuoka prefecture in central Japan, for more than 20 years. “It’s not that I’m worried about myself, it’s my daughter and other small children I’m concerned about.”
Hirai helps illustrate Japan’s growing anti-nuclear movement in the wake of the world’s biggest nuclear accident since Chernobyl. That’s creating an opportunity for makers of solar equipment such as Panasonic Corp. (6752) and Sharp Corp. to capitalize on orders that analysts estimate may exceed $100 billion over the next decade, bringing down costs for consumers.
“It’s become clear we can’t keep relying on nuclear power or fossil fuels,” said Koji Toda, chief fund manager at Resona Bank Ltd. in Tokyo. “Still, solar power is too expensive for the market to bloom without subsidies. It’s easy to agree on the big picture but not so easy to determine who pays the price.”
Toshiba Corp. (6502) and Hitachi Ltd. (6501), Japan’s two largest makers of nuclear reactors, have underperformed Japan’s Topix index, while shares of Panasonic and Sharp have outperformed the benchmark since last month’s natural disaster.
Japan’s Power Plan
Last June, Japan laid out plans to build nine atomic reactors by 2020 and at least five more the following decade to increase the nation’s portion of nuclear energy to 50 percent of overall power generation by 2030 from 29 percent in 2009. Prime Minister Naoto Kan said March 31 the country needs to revise those policies.
That means Japan will probably step up a campaign to encourage the use of solar cells for years at the expense of atomic power, Takashi Watanabe, a Tokyo-based analyst at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., wrote in an April 1 report. Solar may be the strongest option because of restrictions on where wind and thermoelectric power stations can be built, he said.
Replacing the proposed nuclear plants with solar ones would need 108 gigawatts of photovoltaic generation by 2020, according to Goldman. Based on the current estimated costs of solar cells, that capacity would cost more than $150 billion.
Solar panel prices will likely fall to $1.50 per watt in the second half of 2011 compared with about $1.80 in 2010, Jenny Chase, a solar analyst for Bloomberg New Energy Finance, said March 29.
Japanese Beneficiaries
Panasonic and Sharp, Japan’s biggest maker of solar panels, would benefit from increased domestic adoption of solar power as the companies earn about half of their solar-panel revenue from Japan, Watanabe said. The strength of their brands and relations with home builders would also help the Japanese companies over Chinese solar companies, he said. Sharp spokeswoman Miyuki Nakayama declined to comment.
“Interest in solar power and other alternative energy sources will probably rise further,” said Akihiko Oiwa, a spokesman for Sanyo Electric Co., Panasonic’s solar-panel unit. “Although they’re unlikely to replace nuclear energy right away, solar and other alternative energies will likely supplement existing power facilities.”
Politicians may help. Governor Yuji Kuroiwa held a 90- centimeter (3 foot) solar panel on the streets of Kanagawa prefecture this month as he pledged to install solar panels to support as many as 2 million households. Kanagawa, located south of Tokyo, will “kick off the revolution” to end Japan’s dependency on nuclear power, Kuroiwa said April 11, the day after the former journalist drew twice as many votes as his opponent in the election.
Insecurity
On the same day in Shizuoka prefecture, Governor Heita Kawakatsu said he aims to make Shizuoka the top municipality in terms of rate of solar panel usage. Kawakatsu plans to reduce Shizuoka’s reliance on nuclear energy from 80 percent by providing subsidies for consumers and funding research that could improve the efficiency of photovoltaic power.
“I’ve never felt such insecurity before,” said Tamako Sato, a 69-year-old housewife who lives in Kashiwazaki city, where the world’s biggest nuclear plant is located. “I want the plant to be out of the town.”
Reactors at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Kashiwazaki Kariwa plant have been halted since an earthquake hit the plant in 2007 and caused radiation to leak.
“Who can really guarantee that they’re 100 percent safe? I want nuclear plants to be halted if they’re so frail,” said the 53-year-old housewife, who’s lived in Shizuoka prefecture in central Japan, for more than 20 years. “It’s not that I’m worried about myself, it’s my daughter and other small children I’m concerned about.”
Hirai helps illustrate Japan’s growing anti-nuclear movement in the wake of the world’s biggest nuclear accident since Chernobyl. That’s creating an opportunity for makers of solar equipment such as Panasonic Corp. (6752) and Sharp Corp. to capitalize on orders that analysts estimate may exceed $100 billion over the next decade, bringing down costs for consumers.
“It’s become clear we can’t keep relying on nuclear power or fossil fuels,” said Koji Toda, chief fund manager at Resona Bank Ltd. in Tokyo. “Still, solar power is too expensive for the market to bloom without subsidies. It’s easy to agree on the big picture but not so easy to determine who pays the price.”
Toshiba Corp. (6502) and Hitachi Ltd. (6501), Japan’s two largest makers of nuclear reactors, have underperformed Japan’s Topix index, while shares of Panasonic and Sharp have outperformed the benchmark since last month’s natural disaster.
Japan’s Power Plan
Last June, Japan laid out plans to build nine atomic reactors by 2020 and at least five more the following decade to increase the nation’s portion of nuclear energy to 50 percent of overall power generation by 2030 from 29 percent in 2009. Prime Minister Naoto Kan said March 31 the country needs to revise those policies.
That means Japan will probably step up a campaign to encourage the use of solar cells for years at the expense of atomic power, Takashi Watanabe, a Tokyo-based analyst at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., wrote in an April 1 report. Solar may be the strongest option because of restrictions on where wind and thermoelectric power stations can be built, he said.
Replacing the proposed nuclear plants with solar ones would need 108 gigawatts of photovoltaic generation by 2020, according to Goldman. Based on the current estimated costs of solar cells, that capacity would cost more than $150 billion.
Solar panel prices will likely fall to $1.50 per watt in the second half of 2011 compared with about $1.80 in 2010, Jenny Chase, a solar analyst for Bloomberg New Energy Finance, said March 29.
Japanese Beneficiaries
Panasonic and Sharp, Japan’s biggest maker of solar panels, would benefit from increased domestic adoption of solar power as the companies earn about half of their solar-panel revenue from Japan, Watanabe said. The strength of their brands and relations with home builders would also help the Japanese companies over Chinese solar companies, he said. Sharp spokeswoman Miyuki Nakayama declined to comment.
“Interest in solar power and other alternative energy sources will probably rise further,” said Akihiko Oiwa, a spokesman for Sanyo Electric Co., Panasonic’s solar-panel unit. “Although they’re unlikely to replace nuclear energy right away, solar and other alternative energies will likely supplement existing power facilities.”
Politicians may help. Governor Yuji Kuroiwa held a 90- centimeter (3 foot) solar panel on the streets of Kanagawa prefecture this month as he pledged to install solar panels to support as many as 2 million households. Kanagawa, located south of Tokyo, will “kick off the revolution” to end Japan’s dependency on nuclear power, Kuroiwa said April 11, the day after the former journalist drew twice as many votes as his opponent in the election.
Insecurity
On the same day in Shizuoka prefecture, Governor Heita Kawakatsu said he aims to make Shizuoka the top municipality in terms of rate of solar panel usage. Kawakatsu plans to reduce Shizuoka’s reliance on nuclear energy from 80 percent by providing subsidies for consumers and funding research that could improve the efficiency of photovoltaic power.
“I’ve never felt such insecurity before,” said Tamako Sato, a 69-year-old housewife who lives in Kashiwazaki city, where the world’s biggest nuclear plant is located. “I want the plant to be out of the town.”
Reactors at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Kashiwazaki Kariwa plant have been halted since an earthquake hit the plant in 2007 and caused radiation to leak.
2011年4月19日星期二
Boeing's South Carolina 787 line to run on solar power
The Boeing Co. will power its second 787 final assembly line in South Carolina solely using renewable energy, the company said Tuesday.
The aerospace company is partnering with South Carolina Electric and Gas for the project, which will include covering the roof of Boeing's North Charleston site with thin-film solar laminate panels. The panels are owned and will be maintained by the utility.
"Our 787 Dreamliner is manufactured using fewer hazardous materials and designed to consume less fuel, and produce fewer emissions," said Jim McNerney, Boeing's chief executive, in a statement. It only makes sense that our business operations in South Carolina reflect the environmental progressiveness of the airplane we'll build here."
This solar installation will provide up to 2.6 megawatts of electrical power for the site, enough to power approximately 250 homes. The installation will be the largest in the Southeast by production capacity, and the sixth largest in the United States.
Kevin Marsh, the president of SCE&G, said the company is installing and maintaining more than 18,000 solar panels on the roof of the assembly building, an area of about 10 acres.
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Boeing's decision to use solar power will be noted nationwide.
"The fact that Boeing would lead the way is going to make it easier for other businesses in South Carolina and in the country to follow," he said.
Jack Jones, vice president and general manager for Boeing South Carolina, said the new assembly plant should be operational in July. The first 787 built there is expected to take off in about a year.
The $750 million assembly plant represents the largest industrial investment in South Carolina history.
The aerospace company is partnering with South Carolina Electric and Gas for the project, which will include covering the roof of Boeing's North Charleston site with thin-film solar laminate panels. The panels are owned and will be maintained by the utility.
"Our 787 Dreamliner is manufactured using fewer hazardous materials and designed to consume less fuel, and produce fewer emissions," said Jim McNerney, Boeing's chief executive, in a statement. It only makes sense that our business operations in South Carolina reflect the environmental progressiveness of the airplane we'll build here."
This solar installation will provide up to 2.6 megawatts of electrical power for the site, enough to power approximately 250 homes. The installation will be the largest in the Southeast by production capacity, and the sixth largest in the United States.
Kevin Marsh, the president of SCE&G, said the company is installing and maintaining more than 18,000 solar panels on the roof of the assembly building, an area of about 10 acres.
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Boeing's decision to use solar power will be noted nationwide.
"The fact that Boeing would lead the way is going to make it easier for other businesses in South Carolina and in the country to follow," he said.
Jack Jones, vice president and general manager for Boeing South Carolina, said the new assembly plant should be operational in July. The first 787 built there is expected to take off in about a year.
The $750 million assembly plant represents the largest industrial investment in South Carolina history.
2011年4月18日星期一
Harnessing Solar Power without Cells?
Home solar power is a beautiful thing. An already sound investment, state and federal incentives continue to bring costs down every day. Most homeowners are surprised at what they can save on new systems (and if you’re curious what it would cost you, you can get an estimate here).
But large, utility-scale solar has a lot of growing to do. Many critics of industrial solar argue that costs of manufacturing are still too high for solar energy to compete with coal, nuclear or natural gas on a national level.
University of Michigan researchers, however, may have found an alternative way to harness photonic energy from the sun, and although the technology may not be perfected or deployed for years, it has given environmentalists new hope that clean, reliable energy sources are not so far off.
Professor Stephen Rand described the university’s latest discovery in a recent press release. He explained that the power of magnetic energy may be the key to realizing solar’s full potential. Essentially, they learned that light passing through non-conductive materials creates magnetic fields over 100 million times stronger than previous theories had predicted.
Says Rand, this level of magnetic energy can generate similar power to that of traditional electricity. It is a discovery that could lead to the development of new technology without the need for solar cells, semiconductors or a number of other key components used in today’s solar panels.
The team also cautions that sunlight must focus on these cells at an end intensity of 10 million watts/square centimeter. Sunlight isn’t this intense on its own, but the university and their partners are working on alternative materials that could generate the magnetic energy at lower levels of focus intensity.
It could take years before the tech is fully refined and the new solar cells are deployed in any number, and these cells will most likely be installed first in military facilities, government buildings, and universities before they become available in American homes.
Are solar cells truly an efficient way to replace power lines? Time (and research) will tell.
But large, utility-scale solar has a lot of growing to do. Many critics of industrial solar argue that costs of manufacturing are still too high for solar energy to compete with coal, nuclear or natural gas on a national level.
University of Michigan researchers, however, may have found an alternative way to harness photonic energy from the sun, and although the technology may not be perfected or deployed for years, it has given environmentalists new hope that clean, reliable energy sources are not so far off.
Professor Stephen Rand described the university’s latest discovery in a recent press release. He explained that the power of magnetic energy may be the key to realizing solar’s full potential. Essentially, they learned that light passing through non-conductive materials creates magnetic fields over 100 million times stronger than previous theories had predicted.
Says Rand, this level of magnetic energy can generate similar power to that of traditional electricity. It is a discovery that could lead to the development of new technology without the need for solar cells, semiconductors or a number of other key components used in today’s solar panels.
The team also cautions that sunlight must focus on these cells at an end intensity of 10 million watts/square centimeter. Sunlight isn’t this intense on its own, but the university and their partners are working on alternative materials that could generate the magnetic energy at lower levels of focus intensity.
It could take years before the tech is fully refined and the new solar cells are deployed in any number, and these cells will most likely be installed first in military facilities, government buildings, and universities before they become available in American homes.
Are solar cells truly an efficient way to replace power lines? Time (and research) will tell.
2011年4月17日星期日
Facebook Turns to A Little Solar For Its Data Center
Turns out social network giant Facebook has been eying clean power after all for its new data center in Oregon. Well, a very small amount of solar compared to the sizable power needs of its data center. According to Data Center Knowledge, Facebook has built a 100 kW solar panel array, which will produce 204,000 kilowatt hours of solar power per year, next to its data center. The solar system will provide power for some of the facility’s office rooms, but not power for the rooms that house the servers themselves.
What you need to know is that a 100 kW system, generating 204,000 kWh per year, is a fraction of the amount of power that a 300,000 square foot data center facility would commonly use. For comparison’s sake (these aren’t apples to apples, but just to give you an indicator) according to a 2009 MIT study, 16,000 servers used by eBay are thought to use 60,000 MWh per year. Forty thousand servers used by Akamai are thought to use 170,000 MWh per year. For those that forget physics class, 1 megawatt (MW) is 1,000 kilowatts (kW).
But small as it is, Facebook’s move suggests a couple things to me. First off, Facebook is ready to take baby steps into clean power and explore the types of deals and contracts needed to add in renewable energy outside of a utility. Facebook built its data center in Oregon in the footprint of utility Pacific Power that largely derives its electricity from coal, which is why Facebook is now the focus of Greenpeace’s media campaign, “Facebook Unfriend Coal.” That campaign looks like it generated a Guinness World Record for how many comments a single Facebook post has received in a 24-hour period.
Facebook could add in much more solar capacity to this facility or others, and now has learned a little something about sourcing these clean power deals. For any future data center projects, Facebook could also use this knowledge to work with clean power developers in advance of construction on much larger projects, as the anchor tenant, in the way that Google or Sprint has done.
Beyond education, part of what Greenpeace was asking for in its campaign, is leadership and some sort of commitment to move toward clean energy. In a blog post on Friday Greenpeace said: “Through some combination of direct on-site installation and investment in clean energy development (a la Google), Facebook should set a target to use more renewable energy to power its data center, and use its bulk purchasing power to work with Pacific Power on getting more renewable energy onto the grid.” Well, one (albeit small) part of that challenge has been met.
I reached out to Greenpeace and will update this post, with their thoughts. My guess is this move will be no where close enough to what Greenpeace wants. Another lesson: these types of media campaigns can be particularly effective and seems to have worked in some small way with Facebook.
Greenpeace plans to launch a report at our Green:Net event this Thursday called “How Dirty Is Your Data?” which it explains as examining the “energy choices of Facebook and its IT peers.” At Green:Net Google and Yahoo will discuss their green data center plans. Register for our awesome event here.
The solar panels for Facebook’s solar project were reportedly produced by Oregon’s own SolarWorld, the project was developed by Sunlight Solar Energy, and the trackers for the panels (which move the panels throughout the day to follow the movement of the sun) were made local manufacturer PV Trackers. Data Center Knowledge’s Rich Miller took this fine photo of the array.
What you need to know is that a 100 kW system, generating 204,000 kWh per year, is a fraction of the amount of power that a 300,000 square foot data center facility would commonly use. For comparison’s sake (these aren’t apples to apples, but just to give you an indicator) according to a 2009 MIT study, 16,000 servers used by eBay are thought to use 60,000 MWh per year. Forty thousand servers used by Akamai are thought to use 170,000 MWh per year. For those that forget physics class, 1 megawatt (MW) is 1,000 kilowatts (kW).
But small as it is, Facebook’s move suggests a couple things to me. First off, Facebook is ready to take baby steps into clean power and explore the types of deals and contracts needed to add in renewable energy outside of a utility. Facebook built its data center in Oregon in the footprint of utility Pacific Power that largely derives its electricity from coal, which is why Facebook is now the focus of Greenpeace’s media campaign, “Facebook Unfriend Coal.” That campaign looks like it generated a Guinness World Record for how many comments a single Facebook post has received in a 24-hour period.
Facebook could add in much more solar capacity to this facility or others, and now has learned a little something about sourcing these clean power deals. For any future data center projects, Facebook could also use this knowledge to work with clean power developers in advance of construction on much larger projects, as the anchor tenant, in the way that Google or Sprint has done.
Beyond education, part of what Greenpeace was asking for in its campaign, is leadership and some sort of commitment to move toward clean energy. In a blog post on Friday Greenpeace said: “Through some combination of direct on-site installation and investment in clean energy development (a la Google), Facebook should set a target to use more renewable energy to power its data center, and use its bulk purchasing power to work with Pacific Power on getting more renewable energy onto the grid.” Well, one (albeit small) part of that challenge has been met.
I reached out to Greenpeace and will update this post, with their thoughts. My guess is this move will be no where close enough to what Greenpeace wants. Another lesson: these types of media campaigns can be particularly effective and seems to have worked in some small way with Facebook.
Greenpeace plans to launch a report at our Green:Net event this Thursday called “How Dirty Is Your Data?” which it explains as examining the “energy choices of Facebook and its IT peers.” At Green:Net Google and Yahoo will discuss their green data center plans. Register for our awesome event here.
The solar panels for Facebook’s solar project were reportedly produced by Oregon’s own SolarWorld, the project was developed by Sunlight Solar Energy, and the trackers for the panels (which move the panels throughout the day to follow the movement of the sun) were made local manufacturer PV Trackers. Data Center Knowledge’s Rich Miller took this fine photo of the array.
2011年4月14日星期四
IBM cools solar cells for water and power
Pumping water through micro-channels on the surface of a solar panel not only makes it more efficient but can also make seawater drinkable.
Concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) cells use lenses to focus large areas of solar energy onto a relatively small section of photovoltaic material, so it is not surprising that they can reach temperatures of 120 °C. These high temperatures make the cells less efficient, reducing the amount of electricity they can produce.
That is why keeping them cool is so important, says Bruno Michel, head of advanced thermal packaging at IBM's Zurich Research Laboratory in Switzerland. So with this in mind IBM has developed the "ultra-high concentrated PV", a hybrid solar panel that incorporates technology originally developed to help cool computer chips. The idea is to use water-filled microchannels to cool the cell - the hot water would then be used in desalination.
In arid areas where power generation is difficult this can solve two problems at once, producing electricity and clean water, says Michel. "Usually in areas with high solar irradiance there is little demand for heating," he says. "There is more demand for water."
One method of desalination uses hot water to distil seawater, evaporating it to remove the salt. This is expensive and you normally need to heat the water first. So it is far more energy-efficient to use water already warmed from cooling solar cells.
This is not the first hybrid of this sort, says Ian Tansley, chief technology officer of True Energy, an engineering firm specialising in renewable energy in Gwynedd, UK. "There have been some poorly designed incarnations of this on the market for some time ranging from a serpentine of pipes stuck to the back, to a stream of water trickling down the front," he says.
Michel claims IBM's approach is more efficient because each microchannel is etched onto the cell itself, which makes it better at cooling because the water is closer to the heat source. In tests, a 1-centimetre ultra-high CPV cell operated at between 70 to 90 °C, even with 5000 times the normal amount of solar radiation focused on it. This is five times as much as existing CPVs can handle.
Michel presented the findings at the International Conference on Concentrating Photovoltaic Systems in Las Vegas. He told our sister site New Scientist that IBM was working with a team at the Egypt Nanotechnology Research centre in Cairo to scale up the cell to a 10-square-metre prototype.
Concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) cells use lenses to focus large areas of solar energy onto a relatively small section of photovoltaic material, so it is not surprising that they can reach temperatures of 120 °C. These high temperatures make the cells less efficient, reducing the amount of electricity they can produce.
That is why keeping them cool is so important, says Bruno Michel, head of advanced thermal packaging at IBM's Zurich Research Laboratory in Switzerland. So with this in mind IBM has developed the "ultra-high concentrated PV", a hybrid solar panel that incorporates technology originally developed to help cool computer chips. The idea is to use water-filled microchannels to cool the cell - the hot water would then be used in desalination.
In arid areas where power generation is difficult this can solve two problems at once, producing electricity and clean water, says Michel. "Usually in areas with high solar irradiance there is little demand for heating," he says. "There is more demand for water."
One method of desalination uses hot water to distil seawater, evaporating it to remove the salt. This is expensive and you normally need to heat the water first. So it is far more energy-efficient to use water already warmed from cooling solar cells.
This is not the first hybrid of this sort, says Ian Tansley, chief technology officer of True Energy, an engineering firm specialising in renewable energy in Gwynedd, UK. "There have been some poorly designed incarnations of this on the market for some time ranging from a serpentine of pipes stuck to the back, to a stream of water trickling down the front," he says.
Michel claims IBM's approach is more efficient because each microchannel is etched onto the cell itself, which makes it better at cooling because the water is closer to the heat source. In tests, a 1-centimetre ultra-high CPV cell operated at between 70 to 90 °C, even with 5000 times the normal amount of solar radiation focused on it. This is five times as much as existing CPVs can handle.
Michel presented the findings at the International Conference on Concentrating Photovoltaic Systems in Las Vegas. He told our sister site New Scientist that IBM was working with a team at the Egypt Nanotechnology Research centre in Cairo to scale up the cell to a 10-square-metre prototype.
2011年4月13日星期三
Call Climate embraces electricity savings of solar panels
Few people have ever watched their electricity meter run backwards. Scott Call of Kaysville is one of those few. The cause of this phenomenon can be seen if you look up to his roof: 16 solar panels.
Call, the manager of Call Climate in Centerville, installed the solar panels one month ago. To date, these solar panels have produced 181 KWh of energy, and this in winter weather with very few full-sun days. According to Call, on April 6, a partly sunny day last week, his solar panels produced 18.5 KWh. The average daily usage in his home is 21 KWh.
The solar power system that Call has installed in his home is the product of a partnership between two companies: Westinghouse (the manufacturer of the solar panels) and Lennox (the manufacturer of the air conditioner). Call explained that the panels feed power directly to his air conditioner, which is the largest energy-consuming household appliance. If more power is supplied than the air conditioner needs, the energy then feeds into the rest of his home’s energy demands. And if more power is supplied than his home needs, the energy then feeds back into the city’s power grid, and his home’s electricity meter runs backwards.
“Everyone needs to do their part in being energy-conscious,” said Call, “I think panels are the way of the future. As more people use them, it will help this world stay a little greener and last a little longer.”
In addition, Call said that he likes to experiment with the Lennox products he sells at his business. He likes to be able to “tell customers how and why their purchases will affect their homes. These solar panels are an investment in their homes and in their futures.” Call also believes that offering the solar panel/energy-efficient products sets him apart from others in the industry, a smart move given that “the cost of energy is going only one direction…up.”
As Lennox introduced their solar panel-powered air conditioners, Call responded by taking two courses at Salt Lake Community College in solar photo voltaics. These courses, along with a few solar panel system installations, qualify Call to take the national NABCEP (North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners) examination and become a certified solar panel installer.
The cost of a solar power system can range anywhere from $4,150 for two panels to be installed, to about $24,000 for a system that would supply all the electricity needs of a home. Call said that his company can design a system for each home based upon the energy bills over the past year and the average usage per day. To make a solar panel system even more affordable, there are state and federal tax credits. For example, the $4,150 cost of two solar panels would qualify for $1,400 in combined tax credits from the state and federal governments.
Each utility company has its own net metering agreement with solar panel owners. In Kaysville, the city’s power company installs a bi-directional meter that allows for excess power to be supplied back into the city’s power grid.
Call praises Lennox for “helping people save energy and money on the biggest energy consumer in their homes—their air conditioners. They are doing a wonderful job in their engineering to make them (the solar power systems) safe and easy to install.” And the only maintenance required is a cleaning once every couple of months to keep them working at their most efficient peaks.
With the purchase of a solar panel system comes the ability to view online at any given time, each panel’s individual energy production as well as a monthly and cumulative energy production analysis. On a cloudy day, Call said that his panels provide 30 percent to 40 percent of his household’s energy usage. And on a sunny day, they provide 75 percent or more.
Call, the manager of Call Climate in Centerville, installed the solar panels one month ago. To date, these solar panels have produced 181 KWh of energy, and this in winter weather with very few full-sun days. According to Call, on April 6, a partly sunny day last week, his solar panels produced 18.5 KWh. The average daily usage in his home is 21 KWh.
The solar power system that Call has installed in his home is the product of a partnership between two companies: Westinghouse (the manufacturer of the solar panels) and Lennox (the manufacturer of the air conditioner). Call explained that the panels feed power directly to his air conditioner, which is the largest energy-consuming household appliance. If more power is supplied than the air conditioner needs, the energy then feeds into the rest of his home’s energy demands. And if more power is supplied than his home needs, the energy then feeds back into the city’s power grid, and his home’s electricity meter runs backwards.
“Everyone needs to do their part in being energy-conscious,” said Call, “I think panels are the way of the future. As more people use them, it will help this world stay a little greener and last a little longer.”
In addition, Call said that he likes to experiment with the Lennox products he sells at his business. He likes to be able to “tell customers how and why their purchases will affect their homes. These solar panels are an investment in their homes and in their futures.” Call also believes that offering the solar panel/energy-efficient products sets him apart from others in the industry, a smart move given that “the cost of energy is going only one direction…up.”
As Lennox introduced their solar panel-powered air conditioners, Call responded by taking two courses at Salt Lake Community College in solar photo voltaics. These courses, along with a few solar panel system installations, qualify Call to take the national NABCEP (North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners) examination and become a certified solar panel installer.
The cost of a solar power system can range anywhere from $4,150 for two panels to be installed, to about $24,000 for a system that would supply all the electricity needs of a home. Call said that his company can design a system for each home based upon the energy bills over the past year and the average usage per day. To make a solar panel system even more affordable, there are state and federal tax credits. For example, the $4,150 cost of two solar panels would qualify for $1,400 in combined tax credits from the state and federal governments.
Each utility company has its own net metering agreement with solar panel owners. In Kaysville, the city’s power company installs a bi-directional meter that allows for excess power to be supplied back into the city’s power grid.
Call praises Lennox for “helping people save energy and money on the biggest energy consumer in their homes—their air conditioners. They are doing a wonderful job in their engineering to make them (the solar power systems) safe and easy to install.” And the only maintenance required is a cleaning once every couple of months to keep them working at their most efficient peaks.
With the purchase of a solar panel system comes the ability to view online at any given time, each panel’s individual energy production as well as a monthly and cumulative energy production analysis. On a cloudy day, Call said that his panels provide 30 percent to 40 percent of his household’s energy usage. And on a sunny day, they provide 75 percent or more.
2011年4月11日星期一
Dispelling Myths and Demystifing Solar Energy
Many people have become intrigued with the idea of a solar power system for their home, but remain uninformed about how it works and the myriad of benefits received from installing solar panels. By harnessing the power of the California sun through Beaumont Solar Panels, you are able to reduce your energy bill by about 70% and, in many cases, eliminate your bill entirely.
Some prospective buyers worry about their home going dark on cloudy and overcast days; however, your home works off a hybrid system, remaining on the energy grid, supplementing solar power with electrical power on the days that your solar system does not produce the energy necessary to power your home. Few realize that on the days that your home overproduces solar electricity, your home is putting energy back into the electric grid, resulting in a credit on your energy bill, eventually resulting in profiting from, rather than paying the power company. By making your home a miniature power plant of clean, renewable energy with Beaumont Solar Panels, you not only reduce your own carbon footprint, but that of others by providing them with the excess of power that the Californian sun produces. You will reap the financial rewards as well as the personal satisfaction of reducing your carbon footprint and improving the air in your neighborhood.
Many people consider solar panels unsightly; however, Verengo Solar Panels creates a customized plan, tailored to the look and needs of your home, using attractive materials, flawless attention to detail, and incorporating the look of the solar system naturally into the exterior of your home. Some families have initial trepidation regarding going solar, a misgiving that is quite simply quelled in your initial free consultation from Verengo, in which you can discuss the option of installing a small system to heat the water in your home as a “trial run,” to determine whether or not you want to install a “whole home” system. There are many myths and a general lack of knowledge regarding solar energy systems, all of which can be addressed during your free consultation, answering all of your specific questions and finding the best energy plan to fit you and your home. By understanding the benefits of installing solar panels in your home and by partnering with the excellence of Verengo, you are certain to find the plan and style that is tailored to suit your needs.
Some prospective buyers worry about their home going dark on cloudy and overcast days; however, your home works off a hybrid system, remaining on the energy grid, supplementing solar power with electrical power on the days that your solar system does not produce the energy necessary to power your home. Few realize that on the days that your home overproduces solar electricity, your home is putting energy back into the electric grid, resulting in a credit on your energy bill, eventually resulting in profiting from, rather than paying the power company. By making your home a miniature power plant of clean, renewable energy with Beaumont Solar Panels, you not only reduce your own carbon footprint, but that of others by providing them with the excess of power that the Californian sun produces. You will reap the financial rewards as well as the personal satisfaction of reducing your carbon footprint and improving the air in your neighborhood.
Many people consider solar panels unsightly; however, Verengo Solar Panels creates a customized plan, tailored to the look and needs of your home, using attractive materials, flawless attention to detail, and incorporating the look of the solar system naturally into the exterior of your home. Some families have initial trepidation regarding going solar, a misgiving that is quite simply quelled in your initial free consultation from Verengo, in which you can discuss the option of installing a small system to heat the water in your home as a “trial run,” to determine whether or not you want to install a “whole home” system. There are many myths and a general lack of knowledge regarding solar energy systems, all of which can be addressed during your free consultation, answering all of your specific questions and finding the best energy plan to fit you and your home. By understanding the benefits of installing solar panels in your home and by partnering with the excellence of Verengo, you are certain to find the plan and style that is tailored to suit your needs.
GE Invests $600 Million into Manufacturing New Solar Technology
The manufacturing base (location yet to be announced) is expected to employ 400
workers, create 600 jobs, and manufacture 400-MW worth of solar panels each year.
NextEra Energy has ordered 60 MW of thin film solar panels so far and Invenergy has
ordered 20MW of panels and new GE Brilliance inverters (another technology just
launched by GE).
National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) verified the record-breaking efficiency of GE’
s new technology. It found a 12.8% aperture area efficiency. This technology
actually started out at NREL before its research and development were passed on to
PrimeStar in 2007.
“This panel surpasses all previously published records for CdTe thin film, which is
the most affordable solar technology in the industry,” said GE in a statement.
GE has put a lot into wind energy (has a $6-billion wind energy business) and now,
as another key part of its renewable energy strategy, it is looking to focus a lot
more on solar. It’s specific focus: make solar cheaper.
“Our wind business was just a couple of hundred million dollars in 2002. Now it’s
a $6 billion platform. GE knows how to scale,” Victor Abate, vice president of GE’
s renewable energy business, said. ”We are addressing the biggest barrier for the
mainstream adoption of solar technology – cost – and the NREL certification proves
that we are on track to deliver the most affordable solutions for our customers.”
“Our plan to open a US solar manufacturing facility further demonstrates our
confidence in this technology and is just the first phase in a global, multi-
gigawatt roadmap. We’re not only excited by the efficiency milestone, but by the
speed at which our team was able to achieve it and the innovation runway for future
improvements in this technology.”
Looks like GE is moving fast on solar. Of course, it’s got a lot of competition in
this field, from First Solar in the U.S. to a number of Chinese solar companies that
benefit from cheap labor and much stronger government support for cleantech.
workers, create 600 jobs, and manufacture 400-MW worth of solar panels each year.
NextEra Energy has ordered 60 MW of thin film solar panels so far and Invenergy has
ordered 20MW of panels and new GE Brilliance inverters (another technology just
launched by GE).
National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) verified the record-breaking efficiency of GE’
s new technology. It found a 12.8% aperture area efficiency. This technology
actually started out at NREL before its research and development were passed on to
PrimeStar in 2007.
“This panel surpasses all previously published records for CdTe thin film, which is
the most affordable solar technology in the industry,” said GE in a statement.
GE has put a lot into wind energy (has a $6-billion wind energy business) and now,
as another key part of its renewable energy strategy, it is looking to focus a lot
more on solar. It’s specific focus: make solar cheaper.
“Our wind business was just a couple of hundred million dollars in 2002. Now it’s
a $6 billion platform. GE knows how to scale,” Victor Abate, vice president of GE’
s renewable energy business, said. ”We are addressing the biggest barrier for the
mainstream adoption of solar technology – cost – and the NREL certification proves
that we are on track to deliver the most affordable solutions for our customers.”
“Our plan to open a US solar manufacturing facility further demonstrates our
confidence in this technology and is just the first phase in a global, multi-
gigawatt roadmap. We’re not only excited by the efficiency milestone, but by the
speed at which our team was able to achieve it and the innovation runway for future
improvements in this technology.”
Looks like GE is moving fast on solar. Of course, it’s got a lot of competition in
this field, from First Solar in the U.S. to a number of Chinese solar companies that
benefit from cheap labor and much stronger government support for cleantech.
2011年4月7日星期四
GE's solar panel push
Stocks staged modest declines. The Dow fell 17 points today to 12,409. The S&P was
down nearly 4 points, while the Nasdaq shed 2 points.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve says consumers in the U.S. borrowed more in
February, so they could buy new cars. At the same time, they cut back on use of
credit cards to make purchases.
NEW YORK (AP) — General Electric plans to spend $600 million to build the nation's
largest solar panel factory. There's no immediate word where it would be built, but
it would eventually employ 400 people.
NEW YORK (AP) — Crude oil futures prices settled higher on the New York Mercantile
Exchange. The near-month contract for the benchmark grade gained $1.47, closing at
$110.30 a barrel.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — Constellation Brands says Americans were buying more wine
through the holiday season, taking advantage of more discounts to trade up to
higher-premium brands. The maker of Robert Mondavi wine, Svedka vodka and Corona
beer reports a nearly $280 million fourth-quarter profit, recovering from a year-ago
loss.
down nearly 4 points, while the Nasdaq shed 2 points.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve says consumers in the U.S. borrowed more in
February, so they could buy new cars. At the same time, they cut back on use of
credit cards to make purchases.
NEW YORK (AP) — General Electric plans to spend $600 million to build the nation's
largest solar panel factory. There's no immediate word where it would be built, but
it would eventually employ 400 people.
NEW YORK (AP) — Crude oil futures prices settled higher on the New York Mercantile
Exchange. The near-month contract for the benchmark grade gained $1.47, closing at
$110.30 a barrel.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — Constellation Brands says Americans were buying more wine
through the holiday season, taking advantage of more discounts to trade up to
higher-premium brands. The maker of Robert Mondavi wine, Svedka vodka and Corona
beer reports a nearly $280 million fourth-quarter profit, recovering from a year-ago
loss.
2011年4月6日星期三
Solar Panels Light Up Dalton
Dalton, Georgia just got a little bit brighter, and greener. The first phase of Dalton Utilities' solar plant was unveiled Wednesday. It includes more than 1,500 solar panels, spanned over 2 acres of land. That's a total of 350 kilowatts, which can power 40 homes at once.
During the day, solar panels save energy when it's used the most. Shana Haywood, Chief Operating Officer of United Renewable Energy, explains: "So when everyone is consuming the most with air conditioning, computers, and it costs the most to produce power, the solar panels can kick in, take care of the biggest problem during the day, and shut off at night when there's no sun."
Crews expect to complete the project by January of 2014. It will be the largest solar plant in the entire state of Georgia.
During the day, solar panels save energy when it's used the most. Shana Haywood, Chief Operating Officer of United Renewable Energy, explains: "So when everyone is consuming the most with air conditioning, computers, and it costs the most to produce power, the solar panels can kick in, take care of the biggest problem during the day, and shut off at night when there's no sun."
Crews expect to complete the project by January of 2014. It will be the largest solar plant in the entire state of Georgia.
2011年4月5日星期二
SolarCity sees U.S. panel prices tumbling in 2011
Solar panel prices in the United States are likely to drop by 20 cents per watt this year, according to the head of SolarCity, one of the nation's largest photovoltaic solar service companies.
That drop would put the price of the panels that convert sunlight into electricity at about $1.40 per watt on average, or about 12.5 percent below prices quoted at the beginning of 2011.
Chief Executive Officer Lyndon Rive said the decline will help privately held SolarCity, which buys the panels from manufacturers and installs them for homes and businesses, to reach its cost-cutting target of 5 to 8 percent this year.
"It's hard to carve out 20 cents anywhere in this business," he told Reuters in an interview.
Prices for solar panels have dropped by about 75 percent in the past decade, and make up less than half the total cost of installing a rooftop system.
Most major solar manufacturers are increasing their output capacity of solar panels this year in a bid to grow their market share, even as key markets in Europe trim spending on the subsidies that are crucial to the fast-growing industry.
That could lead to a glut of solar panels on the market, squeezing margins at companies such as Trina Solar, First Solar Inc and SolarWorld AG.
However, market experts say those price declines are necessary to help the renewable power source compete with other sources of energy such as natural gas and coal, as well as reduce its dependence on government supports.
SolarCity recently bought groSolar, a solar power project developer and distributor, expanding its reach into 10 states.
The company's solar lease program for property owners has been a key part of its growth by enabling its customers to pay a monthly fee for solar panels rather than a large up-front installation price. That monthly fee is often offset by the customer's savings on electric utility bills.
While many states have instituted support mechanisms that aid the solar industry, some -- such as Massachusetts, Oregon and New York -- have set caps on the number of projects or how much of a subsidy a single company can get, which inhibits growth, Rive said.
"It doesn't help anyone but the small guy, and he's going to go away when the subsidy does," Rive said.
Driving down the costs of solar often means that companies must take advantage of economies of scale that are achieved by growing a company's size, he said.
"Unless you plan to (subsidize) this thing forever, you have to let them compete, and see who wins," he said.
That drop would put the price of the panels that convert sunlight into electricity at about $1.40 per watt on average, or about 12.5 percent below prices quoted at the beginning of 2011.
Chief Executive Officer Lyndon Rive said the decline will help privately held SolarCity, which buys the panels from manufacturers and installs them for homes and businesses, to reach its cost-cutting target of 5 to 8 percent this year.
"It's hard to carve out 20 cents anywhere in this business," he told Reuters in an interview.
Prices for solar panels have dropped by about 75 percent in the past decade, and make up less than half the total cost of installing a rooftop system.
Most major solar manufacturers are increasing their output capacity of solar panels this year in a bid to grow their market share, even as key markets in Europe trim spending on the subsidies that are crucial to the fast-growing industry.
That could lead to a glut of solar panels on the market, squeezing margins at companies such as Trina Solar, First Solar Inc and SolarWorld AG.
However, market experts say those price declines are necessary to help the renewable power source compete with other sources of energy such as natural gas and coal, as well as reduce its dependence on government supports.
SolarCity recently bought groSolar, a solar power project developer and distributor, expanding its reach into 10 states.
The company's solar lease program for property owners has been a key part of its growth by enabling its customers to pay a monthly fee for solar panels rather than a large up-front installation price. That monthly fee is often offset by the customer's savings on electric utility bills.
While many states have instituted support mechanisms that aid the solar industry, some -- such as Massachusetts, Oregon and New York -- have set caps on the number of projects or how much of a subsidy a single company can get, which inhibits growth, Rive said.
"It doesn't help anyone but the small guy, and he's going to go away when the subsidy does," Rive said.
Driving down the costs of solar often means that companies must take advantage of economies of scale that are achieved by growing a company's size, he said.
"Unless you plan to (subsidize) this thing forever, you have to let them compete, and see who wins," he said.
2011年4月1日星期五
California Pistachio farm run on solar energy
A Central Valley, California, pistachio farm has installed six acres of solar panels to power the agricultural center.
The project was completed by a California solar installer, Bechtel Power Corp., and the 1-megawatt structure is the first one in Central Valley, according to The Los Angeles Times.
Nichols Farms, a 50 year-old pistachio farm, will have 70 percent of their electrical demand covered by solar energy, the news source reported. The solar panels are propped up on poles, and the waterless energy setup does not cause permanent shadows.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, almost 9,000 farms and ranches around the country are powered by solar panels, methane digesters or wind turbines, either in part, or in full, the news source said. Of those, approximately 8,000 of these farms had solar installations.
California, one of the leading states in solar power, currently has almost 2,000 energy systems that work on renewable resources, according to the news source. Solar panels work by concentrating sunlight onto "solar cells," which absorb the light and turn it into usable electricity.
The project was completed by a California solar installer, Bechtel Power Corp., and the 1-megawatt structure is the first one in Central Valley, according to The Los Angeles Times.
Nichols Farms, a 50 year-old pistachio farm, will have 70 percent of their electrical demand covered by solar energy, the news source reported. The solar panels are propped up on poles, and the waterless energy setup does not cause permanent shadows.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, almost 9,000 farms and ranches around the country are powered by solar panels, methane digesters or wind turbines, either in part, or in full, the news source said. Of those, approximately 8,000 of these farms had solar installations.
California, one of the leading states in solar power, currently has almost 2,000 energy systems that work on renewable resources, according to the news source. Solar panels work by concentrating sunlight onto "solar cells," which absorb the light and turn it into usable electricity.
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