GE Solar Inverter

GE is one of the biggest companies in the world and has one of the biggest Green businesses as well.GE is the most profitable wind turbine manufacturer and is one of the largest renewable energy developers in the globe as well.GE like other electrical and power conglomerates like Siemens  has decided to invest billions of dollars into Green Energy.Till recently Solar Energy had gotten scant attention from GE just like Siemens too has not invested a lot.However the 50% CAGR rates of Solar Energy,the fast declining costs have made it imperative for GE to have a presence in this market.GE had bought a thin film solar company Prime Solar a few years ago to acquire the Cadmium Tellerium Technology which First Solar uses in its Solar Panels.

However it won’t be easy in Solar Energy

GE is now looking to dethrone the No.1 Solar Energy Producer First Solar using its all round strengths.GE had invested in a Cadmium Tellurium Startup Prime Solar which is ramping up production.Note Cd-Te is the same technology which is used by First Solar.GE has said that it has managed to attain 15% efficiency on commercial glass.Don’t know how much of it is true since First Solar only manages around 12% efficiency despite around 10 years of dedicated R&D.However if GE can even manage to get near to that level then it would surely give First Solar a run for its money.GE has also tied up with Japanese Solar Frontier to market its CIGs based modules.Note Solar Frontier or Showa Shell is building a massive 900 MW plant in Japan.This would make Frontier Solar one of the biggest Solar Players in the world.GE is offering an integrated solution comprising of modules,inverters,services and other BOS equipment to get a leg up on competition.

GE Solar Panels Review

GE Solar Panels are being offered in the 78,80 and 83 Watt ranges which is considerable less than that supplied by other thin film solar panel suppliers like Kaneka,First Solar and others.However the product range should increase with commercial production.GE’s CdTe thin film module is comprised of 116 thin film cells  at 75 volts. The module is frameless and has a durable glass laminate

Specifications

• Length: 1200 mm (47.2 in)
• Width: 600 mm (23.6 in)
• Thickness: 7.5 mm (0.30 in)
• Weight: 13 kg (28.7 lb)
• Front Glass: 3.2 mm (0.13 in) Heat Strengthened Glass
• Back Glass: 4.0 mm (0.16 in) Tempered Glass
• Frame: None
• Cell Type: CdS/CdTe, 116 Active Cells
• Cell Orientation: Parallel to the 600 mm Dimension
• Bypass Diode: None
• Cable Length: 610 mm (24 in)
• Connectors: MC4 Compatible
• Encapsulation: EVA with Edge Seal

GE does not manufacture solar panels in large scaleyet but will start to do so in 2012 when it starts production in the “largest solar panel factory in the USA.GE is getting into the solar module space when solar manufacturers in the USA are dying because of the low cost Chinese solar panel competition.This has caused the bankruptcies of some big solar panel companies in recent times like Solyndra,Spectrawatt and Evergreen Solar.Only those solar panel companies with the lowest cost and good quality will manage to survive the price war in solar panels that is currently on.Most companies are running losses as the prices of solar panels have decreased by 40% in 6 months.

GE Solar Manufacturing and Expansion

GE plans to invest about $300 million in the facility at the Denver suburb of Aurora.The plant will make photovoltaic panels with a capacity of  400 megawatts yearly.The National Renewable Energy Laboratory, part of the U.S. Energy Department, has given a 12.8% efficiency rating to the thin-film solar panels produced by PrimeStar.This in layman terms implies that if 100 units of solar energy strikes a General Electric Solar Panel then on an average 13 units of solar electricity will be produced.First Solar is claiming that the efficiency of the solar cells made in its lab has reached more than 17% and it would in future would be able to sell solar panels with an efficiency of 15% which sets the bar high for GE in the future.

Also Read about Reviews on

Sharp Solar Panels

Sanyo Solar Panels

First Solar Solar Panels

Bosch Solar Panels

BP Solar Panels

GE Solar Inverter Review

GE is one of the biggest producers of Wind Inverters in the world and so getting into the Solar Inverter market was easy for the company.Solar Inverters can make a huge difference in the amount of electricity generated by solar panels over the lifetime of the solar array.You should be careful of any lesser known inverter brand they are offered as part of a home solar power system before installing them. While some of these inverters may have certification this does not mean they can perform as well as the good brands.Skimping of a few dollars here and there may make you penny wise and pound foolish.

GE  Brilliance Solar Inverter

General Electric makes solar inverters for the utility scale market mostly and the power ratings of the solar invertesr are in the 100-1000 kw range.Its most famous inverter is the 1 megawatt (MW) Brilliance Solar Inverter.The 1 MW inverter’s two-stage power conversion provides a standard 480vac output voltage works both in 50 and 60 HZ.

Specifications

• Height: 2,350 mm
• Width: 3,400 mm
• Depth: 1,300 mm
• Weight: 4107 kg
• Peak Conversion Efficiency: 98.0% (50 Hz); 97.5% (60 Hz
• Operating Temperature: -30.0 to 50.0 °C