Concrete Block Insulating Systems had a $60,000-a-year electricity bill.
But it also had a 55,000-square-feet of roof space at its factory on Freight House Road that faces south and a partner, Soltas Energy, willing to help it turn that roof into a resource.
“It was a no-brainer,” Jeffrey S. Nickerson, president of the family-owned manufacturer, said Tuesday prior to the ceremonial ribbon cutting for the solar power plant that’s now installed on his roof. “We can reduce those costs and make ourselves more green at the same time.”
Soltas Energy, which is headquartered in New York City, installed 1,500 solar panels on the roof of Nickerson’s factory this winter. In total those panels are capable of generating 373 kilowatts of power, enough to supply 80 percent of the factory’s needs. That’s enough power for about 200 average suburban homes, said Richard A. Chase, a project manager for Soltas based at the company’s Lawrence offices.
Soltas owns and installed the panels and other equipment and sells the power back to Concrete Block Insulating Systems at a discount. Nickerson said Concrete Block Insulating Systems will save about $20,000 a year on its power bill between the discount and not having to pay power-company distribution charges on the power generated on its own roof. Concrete Block Insulating sells excess power to National Grid or buys power from National Grid when its needs exceed the rooftop panels' ability to supply.
Founded in 1972 by Nickerson’s uncle, David L. Nickerson, Concrete Block Insulating Systems grew by selling foam insulation for the inside of concrete-block walls after the 1970s energy crisis brought on insulation requirements. The company still makes those insulating blocks, Jeffrey Nickerson said, along with a host of other building products and insulated packaging for the biotechnology and seafood industries. Concrete Block Insulating Systems ships foam coolers to the scallop fishing fleet in New Bedford as one example.
The solar project cost $1.6 million, said D. Kirt Mayland, Soltas’ in-house counsel. Soltas received a 30-percent cash rebate from the federal government, a program that has since changed into a less-attractive tax credit. Soltas is also selling clean-energy credits from the project to utilities through a state program meant to encourage clean-energy development.
Soltas is a year-old company owned by international clean technology investment fund Barron Partners, Mayland said. Barron also owns a stake in solar-panel maker CNPV Solar Power, which is best known in Europe and Asia. The panels used in the project were made in China, Mayland said.
But the inverter, a device that takes the direct current from the panels and makes it into the alternating current used in the factory and in homes, was built by Selectra Renewables in Lawrence, where it has 130 employees. The brackets that hold the panels to the roof were also made by a Massachusetts company called PanelClaw in North Andover, Mayland said.
Soltas has several other projects around the state, including a much larger 2 megawatt ground-level installation in Orange and Athol. That project needs local approval. The company also has projects in Lawrence and Methuen, Mayland said.
“I think you will see a lot of solar projects in Massachusetts in the next few months,” he said.
Developers are worried that government incentives might go away. Also, the price of solar panels is falling. It was $3 or $4 per watt of generating capacity a few years ago. Now the panels cost $1 a watt.
“We are approaching grid parity,” Mayland said. “That’s the point where solar power costs the same as power generated from other sources.”
State Sen. Stephen M. Brewer, D-Barre, said projects like the solar panels at Concrete Block Insulating Systems help make the country more energy independent.
2012年3月1日星期四
Obama's Green Energy Failures Continue To Abound
Another stimulus-backed solar panel maker, one the president touted in a weekly radio address, lays off most of its workers. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result.
President Obama is the Little Orphan Annie of presidents. He is always singing that the sun will come out tomorrow and shine on the American economy and his dreams of green energy. Yet companies such as Solyndra have proved the rule rather than the exception, producing more pink slips than green jobs as solar power and alternative energy continue to be eclipsed by advances in fossil fuel production.
The latest casualty is Abound Solar Manufacturing. The Longmont, Colo.-based recipient of a $400 million federal loan guarantee to expand solar panel production said Tuesday it is laying off 280 workers and delaying a new factory in Indiana. That amounts to a 70% reduction in its workforce.
The company says it's merely restructuring. "We are facing tough market conditions and falling prices," said Steve Abely, Abound's chief financial officer, in remarks eerily reminiscent of Solyndra's last will and financial testament.
Lost in the tap-dancing verbiage is the simple fact that solar power is not financially competitive without subsidies like Abound and Solyndra have received.
This is a far cry from the bright future painted by the president in his weekly radio address of July 3, 2010. Touting his push for a clean energy economy, Obama said Abound would "manufacture advanced solar panels at two new plants, creating more than 2,000 construction jobs and 1,500 permanent jobs" at plants in Indiana and Colorado.
Apparently Abound was not helped by last July's $9.2 million Export-Import Bank loan to support exports of thin-film solar photovoltaic modules from Abound Solar to Punj Lloyd Solar Power Ltd., a company in India building a five-megawatt solar project on a 62.5-acre site near the village of Bap.
In a January report, Sharyl Attkisson of CBS News counted at least 12 clean energy companies that were having trouble after collectively being approved for more than $6.5 billion in federal assistance. Five have filed for bankruptcy: the junk bond-rated Beacon, Evergreen Solar, SpectraWatt, AES' subsidiary Eastern Energy and the infamous Solyndra.
President Obama is the Little Orphan Annie of presidents. He is always singing that the sun will come out tomorrow and shine on the American economy and his dreams of green energy. Yet companies such as Solyndra have proved the rule rather than the exception, producing more pink slips than green jobs as solar power and alternative energy continue to be eclipsed by advances in fossil fuel production.
The latest casualty is Abound Solar Manufacturing. The Longmont, Colo.-based recipient of a $400 million federal loan guarantee to expand solar panel production said Tuesday it is laying off 280 workers and delaying a new factory in Indiana. That amounts to a 70% reduction in its workforce.
The company says it's merely restructuring. "We are facing tough market conditions and falling prices," said Steve Abely, Abound's chief financial officer, in remarks eerily reminiscent of Solyndra's last will and financial testament.
Lost in the tap-dancing verbiage is the simple fact that solar power is not financially competitive without subsidies like Abound and Solyndra have received.
This is a far cry from the bright future painted by the president in his weekly radio address of July 3, 2010. Touting his push for a clean energy economy, Obama said Abound would "manufacture advanced solar panels at two new plants, creating more than 2,000 construction jobs and 1,500 permanent jobs" at plants in Indiana and Colorado.
Apparently Abound was not helped by last July's $9.2 million Export-Import Bank loan to support exports of thin-film solar photovoltaic modules from Abound Solar to Punj Lloyd Solar Power Ltd., a company in India building a five-megawatt solar project on a 62.5-acre site near the village of Bap.
In a January report, Sharyl Attkisson of CBS News counted at least 12 clean energy companies that were having trouble after collectively being approved for more than $6.5 billion in federal assistance. Five have filed for bankruptcy: the junk bond-rated Beacon, Evergreen Solar, SpectraWatt, AES' subsidiary Eastern Energy and the infamous Solyndra.
2012年2月1日星期三
Biogas stations fastest growing renewable energy source in 2011
Biogas stations were developing at the fastest pace from all domestic renewable energy sources last year and their installed output for which the Energy Regulatory Office (ERU) issued licences rose by 63 megawatts in the year - to 168 megawatts, according to ERU data.
On the other hand, the output of solar power plants increased by only 6 megawatts to 1,959 megawatts.
Installed output of solar power plants in 2010 more than quadrupled to 1,953 megawatts. The state then toughened conditions for investors into photovoltaic plants, which slowed down their development last year.
Only 158 photovoltaic power plants were built last year, while in 2010, nearly 7,000 new photovoltaic sources were built.
High subsidies pulled the growth by biogas stations last year when their number rose by 84 to 264. The government began to fear that there could be the same problem like by the solar power plants whose development has caused higher energy prices.
The Agriculture Ministry and Industry and Trade Ministry therefore abolished programmes of subsidies for biogas stations last year. Under new minister Petr Bendl, the Agriculture Ministry renewed the subsidies in November.
Installed output of wind power plants also grew very slowly last year - by 3 megawatts to 218 megawatts. The situation was similar by small hydroelectric plants whose installed output increased by only 1.5 megawatts to 142 megawatts last year.
ERU expects the output of solar power plants to grow only moderately in the coming years. Power distributing companies recently allowed again connection of new solar panels on the roofs of buildings.
Grid operator CEPS said that solar power plants and wind farms with total output of 65 megawatts could be safely connected to the grid this year.
According to the National Action Plan for renewable sources, these "green energy producers" are to cover 13.5 percent of total energy consumption in 2020. The plan sets limits on the individual kinds of renewable energy sources.
However, by photovoltaic power plants the limit has already been reached and so the Industry and Trade Ministry prepares to redraw the action plan.
Data on the share of renewable energy sources in total energy consumption for last year are not yet available. Their share in 2010 stood at roughly 8.5 percent.
In particular photovoltaic power plants are being criticised for taking up the biggest part of support for renewable energy sources and thus contributing most to the increase in electricity prices.
Of the total annual costs of renewable energy sources worth Kc36bn, more than Kc22bn goes to photovoltaic plants. The state provides a subsidy worth less than Kc12bn to prevent even higher electricity prices.
Over 60 percent of the contribution to renewable energy sources is for solar power plants, according to ERU data. However, solar power plants have only a 11.5 percent share in electricity produced by renewable sources.
On the other hand, the output of solar power plants increased by only 6 megawatts to 1,959 megawatts.
Installed output of solar power plants in 2010 more than quadrupled to 1,953 megawatts. The state then toughened conditions for investors into photovoltaic plants, which slowed down their development last year.
Only 158 photovoltaic power plants were built last year, while in 2010, nearly 7,000 new photovoltaic sources were built.
High subsidies pulled the growth by biogas stations last year when their number rose by 84 to 264. The government began to fear that there could be the same problem like by the solar power plants whose development has caused higher energy prices.
The Agriculture Ministry and Industry and Trade Ministry therefore abolished programmes of subsidies for biogas stations last year. Under new minister Petr Bendl, the Agriculture Ministry renewed the subsidies in November.
Installed output of wind power plants also grew very slowly last year - by 3 megawatts to 218 megawatts. The situation was similar by small hydroelectric plants whose installed output increased by only 1.5 megawatts to 142 megawatts last year.
ERU expects the output of solar power plants to grow only moderately in the coming years. Power distributing companies recently allowed again connection of new solar panels on the roofs of buildings.
Grid operator CEPS said that solar power plants and wind farms with total output of 65 megawatts could be safely connected to the grid this year.
According to the National Action Plan for renewable sources, these "green energy producers" are to cover 13.5 percent of total energy consumption in 2020. The plan sets limits on the individual kinds of renewable energy sources.
However, by photovoltaic power plants the limit has already been reached and so the Industry and Trade Ministry prepares to redraw the action plan.
Data on the share of renewable energy sources in total energy consumption for last year are not yet available. Their share in 2010 stood at roughly 8.5 percent.
In particular photovoltaic power plants are being criticised for taking up the biggest part of support for renewable energy sources and thus contributing most to the increase in electricity prices.
Of the total annual costs of renewable energy sources worth Kc36bn, more than Kc22bn goes to photovoltaic plants. The state provides a subsidy worth less than Kc12bn to prevent even higher electricity prices.
Over 60 percent of the contribution to renewable energy sources is for solar power plants, according to ERU data. However, solar power plants have only a 11.5 percent share in electricity produced by renewable sources.
2011年12月7日星期三
Solar power goes rural
Two developments this week, fittingly, in the final days of the COP17 climate control conference in Durban, show some innovative thinking - interestingly both are from cellphone operators.
Vodacom, which uses solar-powered cellphone base stations in rural areas, is providing Emfihlweni, a community in northern KwaZulu-Natal, with electricity for the first time.
It is part of a pilot project that could be rolled out to other areas, said Vodacom managing director Sipho Maseko.
"Twenty-five percent of the total electricity generated by Vodacom's base station in Emfihlweni is being used to supply power to the community water pump, a local shop that will provide a cellphone charging station for people living in the area and the local high school, which today switched on the power to its computer centre for the first time," said Maseko.
He believes "it shows how mobile operators can bridge the energy divide in communities by oversupplying base stations with renewable energy which can be diverted to critical points within the community".
African mobile operator Econet Wireless's subsidiary, Econet Solar, has launched its own solar generator for home use.
Called the Home Power Station, it is a standalone unit that can be used for power and lighting, but also to charge cellphones.
Cleverly it uses a prepaid system to "remove the requirement for high upfront costs which have until now prevented hundreds of millions of people across Africa benefiting from solar-powered lighting systems in their homes".
It has four LED lights (which use the least electricity) and a cellphone charger. A solar panel charges a battery, and needs only half a day's worth of sun to enable the lights to illuminate for five hours a day per charge.
Strive Masiyiwa, founder and executive chairman of Econet Wireless, said: "More than 500million people in Africa are living in areas where there is no access to a reliable source of power. If we are to improve the lives and prospects of Africans living beyond the reach of the grid, it is imperative that we find practical and sustainable solutions to meet their needs.
"While there are already well-intentioned solar-powered lighting systems on the market, the reality is that they are just too expensive for people to afford. We are launching the Home Power Station to change all that."
Vodacom, which uses solar-powered cellphone base stations in rural areas, is providing Emfihlweni, a community in northern KwaZulu-Natal, with electricity for the first time.
It is part of a pilot project that could be rolled out to other areas, said Vodacom managing director Sipho Maseko.
"Twenty-five percent of the total electricity generated by Vodacom's base station in Emfihlweni is being used to supply power to the community water pump, a local shop that will provide a cellphone charging station for people living in the area and the local high school, which today switched on the power to its computer centre for the first time," said Maseko.
He believes "it shows how mobile operators can bridge the energy divide in communities by oversupplying base stations with renewable energy which can be diverted to critical points within the community".
African mobile operator Econet Wireless's subsidiary, Econet Solar, has launched its own solar generator for home use.
Called the Home Power Station, it is a standalone unit that can be used for power and lighting, but also to charge cellphones.
Cleverly it uses a prepaid system to "remove the requirement for high upfront costs which have until now prevented hundreds of millions of people across Africa benefiting from solar-powered lighting systems in their homes".
It has four LED lights (which use the least electricity) and a cellphone charger. A solar panel charges a battery, and needs only half a day's worth of sun to enable the lights to illuminate for five hours a day per charge.
Strive Masiyiwa, founder and executive chairman of Econet Wireless, said: "More than 500million people in Africa are living in areas where there is no access to a reliable source of power. If we are to improve the lives and prospects of Africans living beyond the reach of the grid, it is imperative that we find practical and sustainable solutions to meet their needs.
"While there are already well-intentioned solar-powered lighting systems on the market, the reality is that they are just too expensive for people to afford. We are launching the Home Power Station to change all that."
2011年10月7日星期五
Why Americans like solar energy
Listening to an NPR story yesterday about a San Diego company that makes solar-powered parking meters and has doubled its number of employees during the past year was a nice counterpoint to all the frantic attempts recently by supporters of dirty energy to disparage the solar industry. Fortunately, most Americans haven’t been buying it. Recent polling and surveys indicate that, by and large, regardless of our politics, we still think developing solar energy is a great idea.
Think about that last sentence for just a second. People in this country who vote Democratic think that solar energy is smart for the country, and people who vote Republican feel the same way. It’s an issue that unites us. There don’t seem to be that many of those these days, so it’s worth examining why.
No, I don’t think it’s because the U.S. solar power market grew a record 67 percent last year, which makes it our fastest-growing energy sector. And it’s probably not solely because the solar industry created jobs at a much higher rate than the rest of the U.S. economy during the past year. I don’t even think it’s because the cost of residential solar panels has dropped to the point where it’s now affordable for millions of homeowners to buy or lease a system and start saving on energy while helping the environment.
These are all great things, obviously. The Sierra Club even has a program to promote solar-leasing to our members and supporters that runs through the end of this month. Too many homeowners still don’t realize that they can get a solar system installed for little — or even zero — money down.
But I don’t think economic stats are what’s behind solar energy’s broad-based support from the American public. Instead, it’s something so basic and obvious that folks just “get it”: Capturing energy from the sun is renewable and sustainable, while burning fossil fuels is not. Clean energy is easier. And that means that solar energy will always make more sense economically in the long run.
But what a lot of people might not realize is that we aren’t just talking about the long run anymore. Solar makes more sense economically right now. Compare it, for example, to generating electricity by burning coal. An article in the August issue of the American Economic Review (the journal of the American Economic Association, a group that no one has ever accused of being a bunch of tree-huggers), shows that the overall costs to our economy of burning coal are so high that they’re actually greater than the market price of the energy that’s generated. In other words, the roughly $53 billion in damages that the coal industry inflicts on our economy every single year is greater than the value of the electricity it generates!
And yet the supporters of Big Coal want us to believe that solar energy (the fast-growing, job-creating, renewable-energy alternative) doesn’t make economic sense? I think their meter’s in the red and their time is up. Want to help get the real facts out there? Take this Solar Energy Quiz and share it with your friends. I bet you already know more about solar than certain members of Congress.
Think about that last sentence for just a second. People in this country who vote Democratic think that solar energy is smart for the country, and people who vote Republican feel the same way. It’s an issue that unites us. There don’t seem to be that many of those these days, so it’s worth examining why.
No, I don’t think it’s because the U.S. solar power market grew a record 67 percent last year, which makes it our fastest-growing energy sector. And it’s probably not solely because the solar industry created jobs at a much higher rate than the rest of the U.S. economy during the past year. I don’t even think it’s because the cost of residential solar panels has dropped to the point where it’s now affordable for millions of homeowners to buy or lease a system and start saving on energy while helping the environment.
These are all great things, obviously. The Sierra Club even has a program to promote solar-leasing to our members and supporters that runs through the end of this month. Too many homeowners still don’t realize that they can get a solar system installed for little — or even zero — money down.
But I don’t think economic stats are what’s behind solar energy’s broad-based support from the American public. Instead, it’s something so basic and obvious that folks just “get it”: Capturing energy from the sun is renewable and sustainable, while burning fossil fuels is not. Clean energy is easier. And that means that solar energy will always make more sense economically in the long run.
But what a lot of people might not realize is that we aren’t just talking about the long run anymore. Solar makes more sense economically right now. Compare it, for example, to generating electricity by burning coal. An article in the August issue of the American Economic Review (the journal of the American Economic Association, a group that no one has ever accused of being a bunch of tree-huggers), shows that the overall costs to our economy of burning coal are so high that they’re actually greater than the market price of the energy that’s generated. In other words, the roughly $53 billion in damages that the coal industry inflicts on our economy every single year is greater than the value of the electricity it generates!
And yet the supporters of Big Coal want us to believe that solar energy (the fast-growing, job-creating, renewable-energy alternative) doesn’t make economic sense? I think their meter’s in the red and their time is up. Want to help get the real facts out there? Take this Solar Energy Quiz and share it with your friends. I bet you already know more about solar than certain members of Congress.
2011年8月1日星期一
Solar outlook expected to brighten
Solar investors should brace themselves for some downright dreadful second-quarter earnings reports in the coming weeks, though the rest of the year may provide some relief to battered solar stocks as panel prices stabilize and profit margins recover.
The solar market likely bottomed in the second quarter after pullbacks in subsidies in No. 2 solar market Italy stalled development of projects there this spring, creating an oversupply of solar panels in the market and sparking a more than 20-per-cent drop in prices.
“It’s going to be probably the most challenging quarter we’ve seen in the space since the financial crisis,” Kaufman Bros analyst Jeff Bencik said. “Volumes are starting to pick back up, but we have pricing declines of 25 to 30 per cent across the supply chain.”
Solar power relies on government subsidies to compete with electricity generated by fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas. In general, drops in the price of solar power are a good thing for the subsidy-dependent industry — but manufacturers struggle if they can’t cut costs at a similar rate.
Solar modules cost about $1.80 per watt in the first quarter, and are now selling for $1.40 per watt or less.
That drop has taken a big toll on manufacturers’ profit margins and sent their stocks into a tailspin. Gross margins for photovoltaic module manufacturers have fallen by 25 per cent in the last six months, according to research firm IMS Research.
The solar earnings season will kick off in earnest with First Solar Inc.’s results on Aug. 2, followed by reports from U.S. wafer maker MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. and U.S. solar manufacturing equipment maker GT Solar a day later.
Many German solar companies, including SolarWorld, Centrotherm, Phoenix Solar and SMA Solar, are scheduled to release results the week of Aug. 8.
But some big solar players — including U.S.-based SunPower Corp and China’s Renesola Ltd — have already warned of weak results in the second quarter.
Germany’s Q-Cells SE, which will report results Aug. 12, has also said that demand remained weak during the second three months of the year, while Norway’s Renewable Energy Corp. last week was hit by a $1.16-billion impairment, due to under-used factories.
The industry turmoil has also weighed on share prices. The MAC Solar Energy index is down 27 per cent since the beginning of the second quarter.
Many expect solar companies’ fortunes to improve in the second half of the year as lower prices on panels unleash a new wave of demand.
Solar inverter maker Power-One, for instance, said Thursday that its sales in the third quarter would benefit from increased sales to rising markets in North America and Asia as well as an improved market in Germany.
SunPower’s announcement this week also indicated that demand was strong, as the company said its revenue would be at the high end of a previously forecasted range, despite contracting margins.
Increased demand should help stem the rapid drop in prices that has crippled the industry in recent months.
“A lot of companies are seeing volume increases, which is the good news,” said Jon Sigurdsen, fund manager at DNB NOR unit Carlson in Oslo. “Very recently a lot of companies have said prices are stabilizing.”
Overall, outlooks for the rest of the year should be positive, analysts said, but warned about another round of subsidy cuts in 2012.
“The next cut in feed-in tariffs in January 2012 is just around the corner,” said Michael Tappeiner, an analyst at Unicredit in Munich.
“It’ll remain very tight for the sector overall.”
The question is whether investors will dive into the beaten down sector and pick up solar stocks at bargain prices now that the worst of 2011 is over.
“Do investors play that rally again as they have in the last few years, knowing that it’s a little flash in the pan? Or do they say, ‘You know what? It’s a waste of my time,’ ” Baird analyst Michael Horwitz said, adding that he expects to see some German and minor Chinese solar players go out of business next year.
The solar market likely bottomed in the second quarter after pullbacks in subsidies in No. 2 solar market Italy stalled development of projects there this spring, creating an oversupply of solar panels in the market and sparking a more than 20-per-cent drop in prices.
“It’s going to be probably the most challenging quarter we’ve seen in the space since the financial crisis,” Kaufman Bros analyst Jeff Bencik said. “Volumes are starting to pick back up, but we have pricing declines of 25 to 30 per cent across the supply chain.”
Solar power relies on government subsidies to compete with electricity generated by fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas. In general, drops in the price of solar power are a good thing for the subsidy-dependent industry — but manufacturers struggle if they can’t cut costs at a similar rate.
Solar modules cost about $1.80 per watt in the first quarter, and are now selling for $1.40 per watt or less.
That drop has taken a big toll on manufacturers’ profit margins and sent their stocks into a tailspin. Gross margins for photovoltaic module manufacturers have fallen by 25 per cent in the last six months, according to research firm IMS Research.
The solar earnings season will kick off in earnest with First Solar Inc.’s results on Aug. 2, followed by reports from U.S. wafer maker MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. and U.S. solar manufacturing equipment maker GT Solar a day later.
Many German solar companies, including SolarWorld, Centrotherm, Phoenix Solar and SMA Solar, are scheduled to release results the week of Aug. 8.
But some big solar players — including U.S.-based SunPower Corp and China’s Renesola Ltd — have already warned of weak results in the second quarter.
Germany’s Q-Cells SE, which will report results Aug. 12, has also said that demand remained weak during the second three months of the year, while Norway’s Renewable Energy Corp. last week was hit by a $1.16-billion impairment, due to under-used factories.
The industry turmoil has also weighed on share prices. The MAC Solar Energy index is down 27 per cent since the beginning of the second quarter.
Many expect solar companies’ fortunes to improve in the second half of the year as lower prices on panels unleash a new wave of demand.
Solar inverter maker Power-One, for instance, said Thursday that its sales in the third quarter would benefit from increased sales to rising markets in North America and Asia as well as an improved market in Germany.
SunPower’s announcement this week also indicated that demand was strong, as the company said its revenue would be at the high end of a previously forecasted range, despite contracting margins.
Increased demand should help stem the rapid drop in prices that has crippled the industry in recent months.
“A lot of companies are seeing volume increases, which is the good news,” said Jon Sigurdsen, fund manager at DNB NOR unit Carlson in Oslo. “Very recently a lot of companies have said prices are stabilizing.”
Overall, outlooks for the rest of the year should be positive, analysts said, but warned about another round of subsidy cuts in 2012.
“The next cut in feed-in tariffs in January 2012 is just around the corner,” said Michael Tappeiner, an analyst at Unicredit in Munich.
“It’ll remain very tight for the sector overall.”
The question is whether investors will dive into the beaten down sector and pick up solar stocks at bargain prices now that the worst of 2011 is over.
“Do investors play that rally again as they have in the last few years, knowing that it’s a little flash in the pan? Or do they say, ‘You know what? It’s a waste of my time,’ ” Baird analyst Michael Horwitz said, adding that he expects to see some German and minor Chinese solar players go out of business next year.
2011年3月31日星期四
Senate passes bill limiting HOA bans on solar panels
Lawmakers will vote on solar panels again next week when Sen. Royce-West, D-Dallas,
presents his major HOA bill to the Senate. The bill also requires associations to
show greater transparency, ensures homeowners pay late dues before attorney fees and
prevents foreclosure without a court order. A similar bill passed the House last
session but failed by a vote in the Senate.
West, who has pushed for stronger HOA regulation for years, also sponsored the solar
panel legislation that passed today on a fast track calendar. Homeowner supporters
see the reform bill as a barometer for potential change.
The Senate has already passed bills that would give greater voting rights to
homeowners and help prevent military families from returning to foreclosed homes.
The House has yet to act on legislation this session, although the Business and
Industry committee has jumped on a number of bills.
It approved a similar solar panel bill earlier this session, along with ones that
stipulate late dues get paid to HOAs before fines. In a special hearing yesterday
afternoon, the committee passed bills that would ban most fees on the sale of
property, restrict HOAs from prohibiting religious displays, require more
information for new homeowners about their associations and allow residents to put
campers or swimming pools on their adjacent property.
Both association representatives and homeowner supporters say things are moving
quicker than in previous sessions. They should know. Attempts at legislative reform
have stalled in both chambers for more than a decade.
But don't expect any outright bans on HOAs' ability to foreclosure.
presents his major HOA bill to the Senate. The bill also requires associations to
show greater transparency, ensures homeowners pay late dues before attorney fees and
prevents foreclosure without a court order. A similar bill passed the House last
session but failed by a vote in the Senate.
West, who has pushed for stronger HOA regulation for years, also sponsored the solar
panel legislation that passed today on a fast track calendar. Homeowner supporters
see the reform bill as a barometer for potential change.
The Senate has already passed bills that would give greater voting rights to
homeowners and help prevent military families from returning to foreclosed homes.
The House has yet to act on legislation this session, although the Business and
Industry committee has jumped on a number of bills.
It approved a similar solar panel bill earlier this session, along with ones that
stipulate late dues get paid to HOAs before fines. In a special hearing yesterday
afternoon, the committee passed bills that would ban most fees on the sale of
property, restrict HOAs from prohibiting religious displays, require more
information for new homeowners about their associations and allow residents to put
campers or swimming pools on their adjacent property.
Both association representatives and homeowner supporters say things are moving
quicker than in previous sessions. They should know. Attempts at legislative reform
have stalled in both chambers for more than a decade.
But don't expect any outright bans on HOAs' ability to foreclosure.
订阅：
博文 (Atom)