239 results found for: solar thermal
Concentrating PV Technology Concentrating PV Technology (CPV) is a niche solar technology in which mirrors are used to concentrate sun rays on high efficiency solar PV materials. […]
We at Greenworldinvestor had sounded the end of the solar thermal technology almost 3 years ago, when we had said the technology was no longer competitive […]
New $5B Solar Thermal plant in California For many years, we at Greenworldinvestor have forecasted the demise of the solar thermal technology and sure enough all […]
Solar Thermal – Australia The South Australian government has given an approval for $650 million solar thermal plant to be built by USA company SolarResevere. This […]
Solar thermal technology has failed to upgrade its niche technology status, with solar PV technology taking over the solar energy space with its ever falling costs […]
Pure play Electric Vehicle producer Tesla which has got a lot of press for its “Roadster” Electric Vehicle has found another partner in Toyota.Tesla has earlier […]
M&A and Joint Venture in the Solar Industry picking up pace as Stocks trade at Rock Bottom Valuation
Acquisitions and Alliances have shown an increasing trend in the Concentrated Solar Thermal (CSP) segment in contrast with the Solar Photovoltaic (PV) segment. However the conditions […]
Green Investing gone Haywire Masdar,Abu Dhabi’s Renewable Energy company is facing a rocky time as top executives have left the company or been shown the door.The […]
President Obama declared $1.85 Billion in Combined Loan Guarantees to Concentrated Solar Power Giant Abengoa and Cadmium Tellurium startup Abound Solar.These huge guarantees is nothing new […]
Spain has been in the media spotlight for its proposed retroactive solar subsidy cuts which were strongly opposed by the Solar Industry Association in Spain.These Feed […]
South Korean Conglomerate Hanwha subsidiary Hanwha Chemicals has taken a controlling 49.99% stake buying 36 million shares fro m Solarfun at $10.72 (4.6% premium) and the complete shareholding of promoters Good Energies (controls German Q-Cells as well ) and Chairman Mr. Yonghua Lu .Solarfun is the 4th largest Chinese company which has been executing well on a vertical integration strategy.
China has come under a lot of criticism recently from conglomerates like GE and Siemens over discrimination being practised against non-Chinese companies.Massive implicit and explicit subsidies are bolstering Chinese companies against the Western ones as the government pushes the creation of National Champions in Green Technology.Through clever use of regulations and subsidies,Chinese companies are even challenging Western and Japanese companies in their own turf.
Note the Solar EPC business typically is a low margin business like the general Enginereering Procurement and Contract (EPC) Sector.A number of Solar Companies like Q-Cells,MEMC,Sunpower and First Solar in recent times have entered this segment to generate a captive demand for their solar products.Nobody derives significant profits from this part of the supply chain due to its lower margin structure.With low barriers of entry and little bargaining power,this part of the Solar Food Chain is the last place you would expect a high technology company like Toshiba to enter.The Nikkei report says that Toshiba wants to enter the Smart Grid business by leveraging its experiece of the Solar EPC business.
Abu Dhabi has got the largest sovereign wealth fund in the world with asset of over $600 Billion.The small emirate which is a part of the larger United Arab Emirates is one of the richest countries in the world due to its Oil Riches.The country had made ambitious Renewable Energy Plans setting up a Fund/Company dedicated to its Green Ambitions called Masdar.The Company has faced a number of reverses as it tried a number of things all at once in a new industry.Its “Jack of All Trades” Strategy has proven to be a failure as it lost/fired a number of top executives.Its Solar Plans have also come up a cropper as Thin Film Technology has faced a lot of reverses in recent times.The Company has tried to change tactics by concentrating now on Solar Thermal Technology partnering with Abengoa and Total in building a CSP plant near Abu Dhabi.With its Renewable Energy Arm facing a number of reverses,its plan for a futuristic,zero carbon Green Masdar City has also been scaled down.
Note Solar Panels prices differ widely depending on the technology,power,brand and quality.Thin Film Panels in general cost lower than crystalline silicon panels.Higher Power Panels have a higher price as they generate more electricity.Good Brands also have a higher price tag while cheap imported Chinese panels cost less.Solar Panel prices have decreased by almost 50% in the last 2-3 years and now sell for around Rs 1800-2500 per panel internationally and should fall to around Rs 1000 in the next 3-4 years . However for small installations on house of 1-5 KiloWatts,panels sold by distributors is more expensive and can cost you almost 50% more.Also Solar Panels form only a part of the total Solar System Cost.The total cost of installation,equipment and wiring can cost upto Rs 30,000/Kilowatt.
The JV with the Adani Group is a win-win for both companies.Adani Group is setting up 16000 MW of Thermal Based Plants in India over the next few years and has also planned a 100 MW Solar Plant in Gujarat.It has started a company Adani Renewable Energy to take forward its Green Energy initiatives.The tie-up with Siemens will allow it to access cutting edge Green Technology while Siemens will get a huge customer for its Energy Equipment.Renewable Energy in India is a huge growth opportunity considering that India will have to increase its Renewable Energy by almost 45 GW over the next 10 years if it has to meet 15% of its Electricity Requirements from Green Sources as mandated by the CERC.
Solar Power in India is growing at a rapid clip with the strong government support through the ambitious Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM).Rapidly Falling Costs,Massive Power Deficits,Huge Growing Energy Demand and Peak Oil all make Solar Energy in India one of the biggest energy opportunities in the 21st Century.People are slowly recognizing this large Green Money Making Opportunity with companies like Suntech,Siemens and Trina Solar entering into partnership with local players.Suntech has tied up with independent power producer IPP while Siemens has tied up for solar thermal energy with the Adani Conglomerate.This is just the initial trickle with large foreign companies waiting to flood the Indian market.There have been some initial hiccups in Debt Financing of Solar Energy in India but I expect the long term secular growth story to be unaffected. Solar Power Companies in India can be divided into various categories based on solar equipment manufacturing,independent power producer,renewable arms of large power companies etc.I have already covered the Top 10 Solar Module Production Companies in my Solar Panels in India article.Here is the list once again.
Solar Energy is currently the amongst the costliest form of energy generation and except in niche applications is not economic without some sort of government subsidies.However growth in solar energy has been one of the fastest in the past decade upwards of 50% CAGR as costs have declined and technology improved manifold.Solar Energy forms just 0.1% of the the total energy supply of the planet currently and analysts and decisionmakers don’t think that Solar Energy can form a big chunk in the future as well.However I differ strongly in that aspect.The main reason for my very bullish opinion on Solar Energy is based on the simple fact that Solar Energy is the only form of Energy whose costs are declining rapidly on a secular basis.In a world facing the prospects of “peak commodity”,solar energy remains vastly abundant and it remains upto human technology to capture it at the lowest costs.
Siemens as a part of its Energy Efficinecy Efforts will go on a Green Makeover of its Office Locations in India.LED Lightining and other measures will be adopted to save Rs 3 crore in Energy Costs annually.15% of its current Energy needs will be cut by spending around $2.2 million in the next 2 years with a payback time of around 3 years.Siemens hopes to establish its Green Credentials in the Green Building Category by showcasing its inhouse efforts in Energy Efficiency.Note Energy Efficiency is the cheapest way to cut carbon emissions and is the lowest hanging fruit in mitigating Climate Change.It is perhaps the only Green Sector which does not require a subsidy to be economic.India is on a massive infrastructure building spree with $500 billion expected to be spent over the next 5 years.Green Buildings will go a long way in reducing India’s growing carbon emissions and will save money as well.
Solar PV Technology have made a huge advance in the last 2-3 years leading to a demand explosion with more than 100% growth forecast this year.Crystalline PV Technology as well as Thin Film Technology like CIGs and CdTe have reduced their costs drastically.While Solar PV still requires generous government subsidies for their growth,grid parity has come very close.Solar PV Technology has become economically competitive in parts of Italy where a unique combination of high electricity rates and sunshine have made Solar PV Technology very attractive.Costs are being reduced at more than 10% per year which would make Solar PV competitive in 2-3 years in most parts of the world.However mainstream and reputed forecasters and companies like Boston Consulting Group remain blind and ignorant to this.BCG in a recent report has said that biofuels and Concentrated Solar Thermal (CSP) Technology will become competitive.I have issues with both of these technologies.
Australia has shortlisted 8 projects with 4 Solar PV and 4 Solar Thermal Projects for its Solar Flagship Program which will be decided in 2011.BP Solar with 150 MW and Suntech/Infigen with 195 MW are on the shortlist.The other 2 companies are energy utilities which are proposing to use Cd-Te Panels ( I think from First Solar).Note both of these energy utilities are small and might face problems in fund raising and execution.The firms shortlisted for the Solar Thermal Projects don’t inspire much confidence either.The selection procedure and how the subsidy will be disbursed has ran into controversy with accusations of bias and partiality.WA has not gotten any projects while Queensland province has gotten most of the projects.The firms shortlisted have also come under fire as they don’t have much experience.Not much information on how the firms were shortlisted but these companies are definitely not the best or cheapest by a big margin.Australia has generally made a mess of promoting renewable energy with New South Wales cutting feed in tariffs sharply after giving an overly generous subsidy.The Solar Flagship Program looks like an expensive mistake in the making if it comes to fruition.
Siemens has planned to increase its Environmental Revenues to Euro 40 Billions by 2014 which is quite a big jump considering the large base.GE is its biggest competitor which is also rapidly increasing investment and research into Renewable Energy.Areva,ABB,Samsung,LG,Hyundai,Toshiba,Sharp,Panasonic,Mitsubishi are other industrial giants looking to rapidly increase revenue from Clean Technology.Siemens has a definite technological and incumbent advantages however the competition is quite formidable.Siemens has made important wins recently in the field of high speed railways,new generation high voltage DC electricity transmission,offshore wind etc.But it lacks size and scale in the fields of nuclear and solar energy and has little presence in the area of Energy Storage as well.While Siemens has bought Soliel in the Solar Thermal field,it lacks a Solar PV product portfolio.Siemens however remains a good long term safe green investment in a volatile cleantech sector.
India’s 150 MW Solar Allocation to PV Technology has seen overbidding upto 10 times and the winners will be decided based upon the discounting on the Rs 17.91/Kwh (40c/KwH).The discounting promises to be clearly be irrational and loss making as Large Conglomerates and Integrated Solar Companies fight with each other to win projects at any cost.Feed in Tariffs across the world has only worked out well where there is no discounting or bidding mechanism.In case of bidding,especially in immature nascent markets,the winners of the projects end up as the losers.Renewable Energy also ends up on the losing side as many of these projects are not completed or have to be restructured defeating the entire purpose of the Subsidy Scheme.India’s Solar Energy Sector promises to be one of the biggest energy opportunities in the 21st Century.However this will require a very smart subsidy strategy by the government
Solar Energy in India represents one of the best Energy opportunities in the 21st Century.However the growth at least in the initial stages will be geographically unequal.This is due to the fact that Solar Power requires strong government support and subsidy currently.Without a proactive administration which smooths out the process of setting up a solar plant,growth of solar energy is almost impossible.The Indian Federal Government has already given it a strong push targeting 1000 MW by 2013 and 20 GW by 2022 under the JNSSM.While the Subsidy Program is facing some initial hurdles due to debt financing and aggressive project bidding,the long term secular growth story remains good.Some states have also been aggressive in supporting solar energy namely the western states of Gujarat and Rajasthan.
India has a huge potential in Solar Energy Generation which is being strongly supported by the Federal Government under the JNNSM Scheme and by individual States […]
Solar Panels has suddenly become one of the biggest industrial consumers of the Silver Metal in 2010.The massive growth of the solar industry has surprised analysts and forecasters alike and caused surprising demand in the most unlikely of places.With 15-17 GW of Solar Panel Production estimated in 2010,the silver consumption will be around 65 million ounces or 1800 tons.With production of around 21000 tons,the Solar Industry is now responsible for around 9% of the global Silver production.Note Despite Silver touching new record highs,it has not affected the solar prices much which have continued to decline by almost 50% in the last couple of years.
The US Government has recently approved a number of Large Scale Solar Thermal and Photovoltaic Projects as Renewable Energy Projects rush to meet the December 2010 Deadline for getting the 30% Subsidy Cash Grants from the US Treasury.California has been leading the way with gigawatts of solar thermal plants being approved.However these projects are facing resistance from local groups due to different reasons.Green Activists are questioning the Environment Friendliness of these projects due to the harmful effects on endangered desert wildlife.While some projects have dedicated millions of dollars for the Rehabilitation and Resettlement of Tortoises and other wildlife,Green NGOs are not convinced.The 660 MW,$2 Billion Tessera Solar Thermal Plant has been put under a review of its approval due to protests that the approval was done with haste and without following proper procedures.Note Large Solar Thermal Projects need hundreds of acres of land and are being frequently built on public land.
India has set up ambitious targets of meeting 15% of its Energy Needs from Renewable Sources up from around 5.5-6% in 2010.WIth India’s Electricity Capacity expected to rise to 450 GW from around 165 GW,this would imply that around 67.5 GW of Electricity Capacity would be needed up from around 16 GW.This would mean around 5 GW of Capacity addition every year in the next decade which is a very tall order.20 GW could be met by Solar Energy according to the Jawaharlal Nehru Solar Mission (JNNSM).Most of the rest would have to met by Wind Energy.Biomass Energy has high costs and reliability problems which mini hydro potential is only 1 GW.Note this is just the capacity I am talking about,for meeting the electricity generation,capacity additions would have to be greater as Solar Energy and Wind Energy have only 20-30% Load Factor compared to 60-80% for Fossil Fuel Energy Sources.Nuclear Energy can contribute another 20 GW.
Renewable Energy in India is growing at a rapid pace increasing its share of the total capacity from 2% in 2003 to around 10% in 2010.However the share of electricity generation is still quite low at 3% due to the lower capacity load factors of Green Energy Sources compared to Fossil Fuel Sources.The Total Installed Capacity of Renewable Energy in India is around 16 GW with Wind Energy taking the Lion’s share at almost 70% followed by Small Hydro at 15% and Biomass Energy at 12%.Solar Energy in India till now has a capacity of just 6 MW which is estimated to grow to 22 GW by 2022 making Solar Energy one of the Biggest Growth Opportunities in the Field of Indian Energy.
India’s JNNSM Phase 1 which is targeting 1000 MW of Solar Power Capacity by 2013 is in jeopardy due to irrational bidding,financing and small size.The 150 MW Solar PV and ~500 MW of Solar Thermal Capacity which has been put to bidding is going to see massive discounts.This will eventually lead to project winners abandoning these projects or delaying it inordinately,leading to a failure of the first phase.India Solar Thermal Bidding has already seen Massive Discounts from the base prices of Rs 15.31 set by CERC and the Solar PV project bidding for 150 MW is going to see equally ferocious discounts.Tata Power,which is India’s largest private utility is staying away from these auctions due to the above problems.Renewable Energy in India has a huge growth potential with Solar Energy the brightest Green Energy Sector.This has attracted companies in droves leading to hyper competition for the first phase of India’s Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission.However huge competition in this subsidy driven sector is not necessarily good for the growth of Renewable Energy as irrational bidding by small players would lead to project failures.
NextEra Energy Resources which was previously known as FPL Energy has bought a number of Solar Energy Generating Assets in the past few months.NextEra is the largest Renewable Energy utility in the USA with around 18 GW of Capacity out of which around 6.5 GW is Gas and 7.5 GW of Wind Powered Capacity plus 2.5 GW of Nuclear Energy.NextEra Energy with its long experience in Green Energy Generation has now decided to expand its Solar Asset Portfolio buying equity stakes in Solar Thermal as well as Solar PV Farms in USA and Canada.NextEra Energy is already the biggest Wind Energy Producer in the United States and on the way to become the biggest Solar Energy Producer as well.While Wind Energy is facing uncertain times in the USA,Solar Energy is growing at a rapid clip driven by the sharp fall in Solar Panel Costs which have more than halved in the last 2 years.