[ May 2018 ]　　　

■ Azure bags US$135 million financing for 200MW of Indian rooftop solar projects

(May 31, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Indian solar developer Azure Power has secured US$135 million in debt financing for 200MW of rooftop PV projects across India from a consortium of development finance institutions.

The line of credit was led by International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group and included FMO - the Dutch development bank, Société de Promotion et de Participation pour la Coopération Economique (Proparco) – the French development finance institution, and Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank AG (OeEB) – the development bank of Austria.

Inderpreet Wadhwa, founder, chairman and chief executive, Azure Power, said: “We are pleased to announce the largest solar rooftop financing in India. This financing will enable us to rapidly expand our Azure Roof Power platform in India and lower the energy bills of our customers by providing clean and sustainable solar energy. Rooftop financing in India remains challenging and this facility is a testament to our strong financing, project development, engineering and execution capabilities.”

Azure Roof Power, the firms’ rooftop unit, already has more than 190MW of solar assets across 23 states.

Azure Power recently surpassed 1GW of operating solar capacity, with the completion of a 50MW project in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

■ Sterling & Wilson to build Africa’s ‘largest’ battery storage project beside solar-diesel microgrid

(May 31, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Indian EPC firm Sterling and Wilson has won its first large-scale hybrid and energy storage turnkey EPC contract order in Western Africa, including what it believes to be both the largest battery storage project and single battery installation in the whole continent.

The scope of work – the company’s formal entry into the hybrid and energy storage space – includes design, EPC and O&M of a captive hybrid microgrid powered by solar, diesel and battery storage.

In a release, Sterling and Wilson said this would be a "first of its kind" project powering behind-the-meter clients in the educational sector in Western Africa with 30MWh of battery energy storage spread across three sites, including a single battery installation of 17MWh.

The microgrid backed with batteries will be able to provide one-day power autonomy to the educational institutions, helping them to run efficiently and to spend more on school programs.

Deepak Thakur, CEO, hybrid and energy storage, Sterling and Wilson, said: “Lack of power supply is a primary barrier in imparting effective learning and development of any nation. We are extremely glad to have bagged our landmark first project in the hybrid and energy storage space, which not only consists of the largest battery installation in Africa to date but also hopefully proves to be a marquee installation empowering future generations. We are confident of meeting the most stringent quality, safety and financial needs of our client given our combined global expertise of having delivered over 7GW of solar, diesel and gas-based power plants on a turnkey basis to date.”

Having recently announced its major foray in hybrid energy storage solutions, Sterling and Wilson’s newly-formed business unit is actively pursuing further such opportunities across Europe, the Middle-East, Africa, Asia and Australia as well as the US.

The company declined to comment on which specific country the African project will be located. However, in an exclusive interview with PV Tech's sister site Energy-Storage.News, Vish Iyer, global head of business development, strategy and marketing for the hybrid and energy storage division at Sterling and Wilson, has provided more details of the win.

■ Tata Power to provide entire village with universal rooftop PV installation in Gujarat

(May 31, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Indian integrated power company Tata Power has signed off on a partnership with Coastal Gujarat Power Ltd (CGPL) to develop a universal rooftop solar installation for the entire village of Tunda in the Indian state of Gujarat.

The project, which targets 100% of the households in the region, will give individual household rooftops PV installations that will be connected to the grid without needing a battery bank.

Gujarat Energy Development Authority (GEDA) has been selected to install the rooftop project. So far, 17 homes have been outfitted with PV systems and connected to the grid.

Ashok Sethi, COO & executive director of Tata Power, said: “At Tata Power, we are committed towards a greener and cleaner future with focus on renewable energy. We continue to seek potential areas across India for the development in the sector. To execute this vision, we aim to initiate growth in capacity through organic and inorganic means to achieve 30-40% generation capacity of Tata Power from clean energy sources. … The initiative in Tunda, Gujarat is an affirmative step towards providing clean energy to our communities."

■ Suntech supplying 1500V solar modules to a 116MW power plant project in Egypt

(May 31, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Integrated PV manufacturer, Wuxi Suntech is supplying 1500V (dc) solar modules to a 116MW power plant project in Aswan, Egypt

Suntech noted that its STP330-24/vfw (1500V) modules were expected to be fully delivered by the end of the third quarter of 2018.

Enerray, a leading solar power company on designing, construction and management of utility scale and industrial PV systems is building the plant and has partnered with Suntech in the past.

Shuangquan He, the president of Suntech, said: "In recent years, the PV market in Egypt is speeding up rapidly due to its excellent investment conditions, sufficient sunshine resources and sufficient support by government. To meet the increasing demand for electric power, the proportion of renewable energy supplying will reach 42% by 2025.

“We are so glad to cooperate with Enerray S.p.A. and look forward to having deeper and strengthened collaboration with Enerray S.p.A in the future. In the past 18 years, we have achieved great progress in product technology and gained brand reputation in PV market. Suntech offers an industry-leading 12-year product warranty and a 25-year linear performance warranty which is reinsured by the world-leading reinsurance company - Munich Re. We could expand the global business chart together based on a long and stable good partnership. Suntech is adhering to its original intention and sparing no effort to light each corner of the world by using the solar energy."

■ India’s 2.5GW hybrid renewables tender plan the ‘right step’

(May 30, 2018/pv-tech.org)

The sanctioning of a tendering scheme for 2.5GW of hybrid wind and solar capacity in India, to be allocated through a transparent bidding process, has been branded as “the right step”, by consultancy firm Bridge to India.

Once the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) had released its finalised ‘National Wind-Solar Hybrid Policy’ earlier this month, Bridge to India had said it completely lacked a framework for converting existing wind or solar plants into hybrids and the only real opportunity would lie in new specific procurements by government agencies.

Thus, the government’s subsequent appointment of Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) as the nodal agency to implement a 2.5GW tender scheme has been welcomed.

Vinay Rustagi, managing director of Bridge to India, told PV tech: “We don’t expect existing wind or solar projects will find a viable means of switching over to hybrid technologies because that is going to be on a very opportunistic basis. But if the government brings out these large specific hybrid tenders, that is the best way to develop this market.”

The projects are to be connected to the Interstate Transmission System (ISTS), adding to the 7GW of ISTS tenders already out from SECI and state-run utility NTPC. Moreover, SECI this week also released a 5GW PV manufacturing RfS, which also seeks to tie the factory allocations with another 10GW of solar projects connected to the ISTS.

Bids for hybrid capacity will be for a minimum of 200MW capacity and a maximum of 500MW, with each individual project at least 50MW in size, set up on a build, own and operate (BOO) basis. Meanwhile, developers will be allowed to install any energy storage facility to help power output from these hybrid projects.

However, Rustagi added a caveat to the hybrid tender plan: “The challenge in our view is again going to be, is that really going to lead to any substantial savings over solar only or wind only tenders? My personal view is that the savings which have been touted are far too high.

“I think the savings will be much less, so once a few such tenders are out and we can see some concrete evidence in terms of tariffs and interest in the market, that will give us a much better sense of the future direction of the market, but this is the right step by issuing specific hybrid tenders in our view.”

Bridge to India has also previously described the well-touted grid stability advantages offered by hybrid projects as “debatable”, noting that there are other easier and cheaper ways to achieve the same result including better forecasting techniques, ancillary services market, and demand-side management.

An RfS will be released within the next two weeks and SECI will sign PPA’s for 25 years with successful project bidders.

PV Tech recently attended the inauguration of Hero Future Energies major hybrid wind and solar plant in Karnataka, the first in India. All the power generated will be sold to private customers.

■ World Bank financing for Bangladesh PV mini-grids, solar lamps and cookstoves

(May 30, 2018/pv-tech.org)

The World Bank has signed a US$55 million financing agreement with the government of Bangladesh to expand renewable energy applications in rural areas.

This additional financing to the Second Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Development (RERED II) Project will support the installation of 1,000 solar irrigation pumps, 30 solar mini-grids, and about 4 million improved cookstoves in rural areas. The credits are from the International Development Association, the World Bank’s concessional lending arm.

Bangladesh already has one of the world’s largest domestic solar power programs, covering 14% of the population. However, the Asian country is one of the most densely populated on Earth so land availability is a key constraint to larger-scale solar progress.

“Since 2003, the World Bank has been helping Bangladesh to improve access to electricity through renewable energy. Following a successful demand-driven public-private partnership programme, Bangladesh installed 4.2 million solar home systems,” said Qimiao Fan, country director for Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal. “This additional financing will help scale up use of clean and renewable energy such as solar irrigation pumps and solar mini-grids, which will help reduce poverty, improve the environment, create jobs, and open up new opportunities for rural people.”

With an additional $20 million support from the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the project will also scale up the use of improved cookstoves, which emit 90% less carbon monoxide and use half as much firewood as a traditional cookstove, which also helps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and indoor air pollution.

“The government of Bangladesh targets a 100% coverage of improved cookstove by 2030,” said Kazi Shofiqul Azam, secretary, Economic Relations Division, Government of Bangladesh.

■ Hanwha Q CELLS to build new US factory in excess of 1.6GW

(May 30, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Hanwha Q CELLS will build a PV module manufacturing plant in the US with a capacity that “will exceed 1.6GW”.

The company said construction in Whitfield County, Georgia will begin this year and is expected to be completed in 2019. The PERC modules will be used to supply the US solar rooftop and ground-mount segments.

“The new manufacturing fab is testament to Hanwha Q CELLS Korea's commitment to the US market, in spite of the recently imposed trade barriers,” it said in a statement released to press.

The company has confirmed to PV Tech that the new facility will be module assembly only. The Section 201 trade duties announced earlier in the year make the import of cells from the main countries of production uncompetitive. In acknowledgement of the shortfall in US cell production, a 2.5GW quote of tariff-free cells can be imported.

"The solar cells supplied into the US fab will be determined based on the supply and demand situation both within and outside of Hanwha Q CELLS (including Hanwha Q CELLS Korea). We are planning to make full use of the 2.5GW tariff exemption for solar cells in the US," the spokesperson confirmed in a statement to PV Tech.

The US market had been Hanwha Q CELLS' largest when supplying a major module order to NextEra Energy Resources in 2016, which was resulted in its largest revenue from the US in its history.

NextEra has subsequently teamed with JinkoSolar for 2018 onwards and is behind the move by the leading SMSL to establish a 600MW module plant in Florida to meet NextEra’s planned PV power plant project plans, which require 2,750MW of module from JinkoSolar over a four year period.

Hanwha Q CELLS Korea Corp, which is a subsidiary of Hanwha Corporation and not a consolidated subsidiary of Hanwha Q CELLS, will build and operate the module plant.

The Korean firm’s manufacturing capacity (3,700MW) of solar cells and PV modules in Korea are currently made available for purchase by Hanwha Q CELLS, which has a nameplate capacity of 4,300MW for cells and 4,300MW for modules with production plants in China and Malaysia.

Hanwha Q CELLS had previously lowered its 2018 full-year shipment guidance range from 5,600MW to 5,800MW, compared to its initial guidance of 6,000MW to 6,200MW.

■ Enphase to develop 4.5MW project in India

(May 29, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Enphase Energy and Waaree Energies, India’s largest Tier 1 solar panel manufacturer, announced a 4.5MW PV project in India that will be installed using Waaree Enphase AC modules.

The project, located in Hosapet, India, will be the largest Enphase microinverter-based solar installation globally. Set to be commissioned in July 2018, the PV plant will be developed over seven hectares of land and will be powered by 13,235 Enphase Energy microinverters.

Once completed, the installation will provide more than 7,500 MWh of clean power on a yearly basis to businesses in Bangalore and the state of Karnataka through a mix of short- and long-term power purchase agreements.

■ India’s NTPC invites bids for three solar projects amounting to 102MW capacity

(May 29, 2018/pv-tech.org)

State-run Indian utility NTPC has issued an invitation for bids for EPC work on three separate solar projects in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka.

The first is for the development of the 65MW Kawas solar project in the state of Gujarat, with a deadline for submissions on 11 July.

The second is for a 22MW solar project at Auraiya in Uttar Pradesh, with a deadline on 18 July.

The third is a 15MW project at NTPC-Kayamkulam in kerala, with a deadline on 16 July.

All the projects are under open category in terms of module procurement, will require three years of O&M provision and will be developed on a turnkey basis.

■ QOS’ cloud-based analytics join DHYBRID’s hybrid diesel plant push

(May 29, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Data intelligence specialist firm QOS Energy is working with DHYBRID, a German manufacturer of modular energy management and smart grid controls, to add monitoring capabilities to PV-plus-storage, energy storage and other hybrid plant configurations.

Software vendor QOS’ cloud-based monitoring and analytics platforms will be added to DHYBRID’s SCADA and controls technologies, making sure that hybrid and off-grid power plants are performing as they should be. This includes QOS’ cloud-based renewable energy management system Quantum. The data collected is converted into analytics to enable all industry stakeholders to improve the operational process. It also includes integrated maintenance management.

Projects will be based around DHYBRID’s Universal Power Platform (UPP) modular energy management system (EMS) and smart grid controls. DHYBRID focuses on reducing reliance on diesel generation in off-grid or remote areas and has delivered projects in Africa, the Caribbean, Asia and the Middle East. These utilise various configurations of power sources, including projects that pair PV with diesel, PV with grid and PV and diesel with battery energy storage.

■ Pakistan’s Sindh disqualifies all bids in healthcare solar tender

(May 29, 2018/pv-tech.org)

The Government of Sindh Province in Pakistan has rejected submissions from all four bidders in its tender for 352 solar PV systems to electrify primary health facilities.

The Directorate of Alternative Energy, in the Energy Department, noted that the Technical Evaluation Committee report observed that all four bids were not technically qualified and hence rejected. The Committee has also decided that given the disqualifications, the tender may be re-issued.

The method of procurement was a single stage two envelope procedure and the scope had included supply, installation and three years of O&M serivce provision.

The four bidding companies were:

- Kaim Khani & Brothers Engineering & Construction
- Al-Farooq Traders United Metamorphosis Technologies Engineering Management Services JV
- Madni Engineering Construction Compnay
- S.M. Engineers & Contractors

The government of Sindh recently prepared a framework to address the potential environmental, resettlement, and social impacts associated with its major solar initiative, for which it is seeking World Bank funding. The Sindh Solar Energy Program (SSEP), a pioneering scheme in Pakistan, aims to support solar deployment in the province across utility-scale, distributed generation and residential segments. This includes up to 400MW of solar park capacity (50-200MW per park).

■ Asia-Pacific partnership on utility-scale storage for Fluence, Lyon Group and Japan’s JERA

(May 29, 2018/pv-tech.org)

A prolific trio of major companies in natural gas, energy storage and renewable energy project development have united to take on Asia’s energy storage market, with Japan’s JERA, Australia’s Lyon Group and US-headquartered multinational Fluence announcing a partnership this morning.

Fluence, JERA and Lyon Group will look at building new battery storage facilities as well as assessing existing thermal and renewable energy generation plants for their suitability for hybridisation or co-location with batteries. The partners will be focusing on utility-scale energy storage projects in the Asia-Pacific region.

The three partners’ work will begin with three major projects in Australia, all of which are using ‘long duration’ lithium batteries to allow solar generation to feed the local grid, houses and businesses into the evening and its peaks.

■ Suntech to supply 304MW of solar modules to Voltalia

(May 29, 2018/pv-tech.org)

French renewable energy company Voltalia has entered into a non-exclusive framework agreement with Chinese PV manufacturer Suntech for the supply of 304MW of solar modules until June 2019.

In a release, Voltalia said it would take advantage of this agreement to buy the solar panels to equip its first solar projects in Africa: the 32MW Ra Solar project won in Egypt in 2017, and the 50MW Kopere project in Kenya for which it signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) last week.

“We are glad to benefit from high-quality products at a competitive price within this large-volume framework agreement. They will benefit to both Voltalia and its clients”, said Sébastien Clerc, CEO of Voltalia.

“Over the past few years, we have established a strong relationship with Voltalia, a fast-growing international player in renewable energy. With this agreement, we are looking forward to working with Voltalia on future solar projects”, said He Shuangquan, president of Suntech.

■ India announces RPO compliance unit

(May 25, 2018/pv-tech.org)

India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has created a Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) compliance unit to improve enforcement of this key policy for clean energy deployment.

Former MNRE joint secretary Tarun Kapoor once said in 2015 that RPO was the "single most important" government policy driver for renewables in India, but then as now, enforcement of the RPO had been either weak or non-existent.

The RPO Compliance Cell will coordinate with states, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) and SERCs on all things related to the RPO. It will oversee monthly reports on RPO compliance, coordinate periodic reporting, and act on non-compliance with the appropriate authorities.

Tarun Singh, a scientist at MNRE, has been designated as the nodal officer of the new unit.

An overwhelming majority of chief executives active in India’s solar market believe India will fall well short of its 100GW of solar by 2022 target, according to a recent CEO survey by Bridge to India. If the RPO compliance has a positive effect then hopes for reaching the target will grow, but historically, most enforcement efforts have been inconsequential.

Last October, power minister R.K. Singh said MNRE was planning to make RPOs statutory.

■ Risen Energy secures financing for 63MW PV project in Kazakhstan

(May 25, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Chinese PV panel manufacturer Risen Energy has signed a mandate letter with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for financing for a 63MW PV project in Kazakhstan.

Risen Energy and the EBRD signed off on the mandate letter during the 27th annual meeting of EBRD, held on 10 May 2018 in Jordan.

Construction on the 63MW project will start in September and is scheduled to be completed in June 2019. The average annual power capacity is projected to reach 8,719 MWh after starting operations.

Earlier this year, EBRD and Risen Energy signed another mandate letter for financing of Risen Energy's 40MW solar project, also in Kazakhstan. Risen Energy is the first Chinese PV firm to build solar power projects within the country.

Zhang Jieling, director of project finance and investment at Risen Energy, said: "The partnership with EBRD opens a new chapter for Risen Energy's international project financing plan as it represents both a qualitative leap for and a significant step in the company's international expansion strategy.

“Ties with international multilateral organizations such as EBRD provide the company with a valuable opportunity to enhance its competence in and strategy for the development, financing and technology services of international projects.”

■ LONGi set for agreement to develop major solar manufacturing hub in Saudi Arabia

(May 25, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Leading integrated high-efficiency monocrystalline module manufacturer and ‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member LONGi Green Energy Technology is believed to have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Saudi Arabia’s major commercial and industrial trading company, El Seif Group to establish a large-scale solar manufacturing infrastructure in the Kingdom.

PV Tech's understanding is that the companies are working on plans to promote and initiate a ‘Solar-for-Solar” strategy to establish PV manufacturing operations in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) to support the Kingdom’s plans to install 200GW of solar power plants in KSA.

Importantly, the ‘Solar-for-Solar” strategy incorporates building the manufacturing plants that would be powered entirely by solar energy to provide the lowest manufacturing carbon footprint.

This is not something new for LONGi as its manufacturing operations in Malaysia were already powered by hydro-electric power. The company also has renewable energy supplying its Yunnan province manufacturing operations.

The partnership could also lead to further manufacturing opportunities in the Middle East region, according to PV Tech's understanding.

Initially, the companies are understood to be undertaking various feasibility studies for collaboration in both the PV upstream and downstream sectors.

KSA has previously highlighted that its commitment to renewable energy, notably solar due to high-irradiance in the region included building a PV manufacturing ecosystem and complete supply chain to meet the specific environmental needs of the country and secure long-term jobs outside its traditional industries.

■ ADB finances Vena’s 42MW of large-scale solar projects in Indonesia

(May 24, 2018/pv-tech.org)

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is providing a roughly US$40 million project financing package for Vena Energy, formerly Equis Energy, to build four solar plants in eastern Indonesia, which are said to be the Southeast Asian country’s first utility-scale PV plants.

The loan package is part of a two-phased renewables portfolio financing. The second phase, which achieved first drawdown today, comprises a 21MW solar project in Likupang, North Sulawesi and three 7MW PV plants in Pringgabaya, Selong, and Sengkol in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara.

ADB’s financing package totalled US$40.2 million to four respective subsidiaries of Vena Energy. This included the administration of loans from two trust funds administered by ADB - the Leading Asia’s Private Infrastructure Fund (LEAP) and the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in Asia II (CFPS II).

The first phase, which was signed in December 2017, consisted of a 72MW wind power plant in Jeneponto, South Sulawesi. In this case, ADB’s financing package to PT Energi Bayu Jeneponto, another subsidiary of Vena Energy, totalled US$120.8 million, also including financing from LEAP and CFPS II.

The wind and solar power plants will supply energy to Indonesia's national utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN).

“By supporting a sector-changing financing for renewable energy, with an innovative portfolio approach, ADB and Vena Energy have been able to add over 114MW of clean energy to Indonesia’s electricity grid, while helping reduce the country’s dependence on fossil fuels and promoting renewable energy development,” said Infrastructure Finance Division director for Southeast Asia, East Asia, and the Pacific at ADB's Private Sector Operations Department Jackie B. Surtani.

Indonesia plans 23% renewables in its overall energy mix by 2025.

Vena Energy CEO Nitin Apte said: “Vena Energy is leveraging our regional project development track record, technical capabilities, and economies of scale to generate low-cost clean energy to support the government initiative, as well as create employment opportunities and drive economic growth in local communities.”

In November last year, PLN and the UAE's Masdar signed an agreement to develop the world’s largest floating solar project with a capacity of 200MW in Indonesia. Indonesia targets 5GW of solar by 2020 in its National Development Plan, but the utility PLN has come up with a 10-year plan, which more or less disregards solar.

■ Risen Energy starts construction on 121MW PV project in Australia

(May 24, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Chinese PV module producer Risen Energy has started construction on the 121MW Yarranlea solar farm project, located 50 kilometres southwest of Toowoomba, in Australia's Queensland state.

The project, located across 250 hectares of land, is expected to be completed by March 2019. Risen Energy will own and operate the completed facility, while also providing EPC services and the delivery of modules.

Once finished, the Yarranlea installation will be connected to the grid under the management of the National Electricity Market and offer clean energy to Toowoomba and Darling Downs. It will provide an average annual power capacity estimated at 264GWh.

Zhong said: "We highly value joint development of the Yarranlea project with the Australian government. We are also proud of the fact that the Yarranlea project is our first large-scale EPC project in the country. The project has also received regulatory approval for the development of integrated energy storage. We have set up specific zones for energy storage onsite.

"In addition to Queensland, we are targeting other states across Australia, most notably Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia. To facilitate development of the project, we have assigned experienced experts to analyse our ongoing projects, while preparing for development of additional power stations that we will own and operate ourselves. We plan to expand further in Australia over the next five years, with a capacity goal of 1GW."

■ Dynapower and Raychem RPG commission 1MW microgrid in Uttar Pradesh

(May 23, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Vermont-headquartered inverter supplier Dynapower and Mumbai-based technology firm Raychem RPG have commissioned what they claim to be India’s first 1MW microgrid using solar, diesel and energy storage at a Central Electronics Limited (CEL) facility in Sahibadad, Uttar Pradesh.

The project features Dynapower’s CPS-1000 inverter, following a partnership agreement that will see Dynapower’s energy storage inverter technology brought to India and its neighbouring countries.

The distributed generation microgrid at the facility of CEL, a firm that manufactures solar cells and modules, combines solar and diesel gensets alongside energy storage connected to the grid.

While grid-tied, the commercial and industrial (C&I) microgrid can perform frequency regulation, PV smoothing and peak shaving to curb CEL’s electric bills, but it is also able to offer an “islanded” grid forming mode in the case of a grid disturbance.

Ramani Kasi, president and CEO of Raychem RPG, said: “Dynapower’s differentiated technology such as its patented Dynamic Transfer as well as their agile business model, unique positioning in the C&I segment (offering both inverters and fully-integrated systems) as well as their focus on solutions and aggressive growth mindset aligns perfectly with the Raychem RPG business model.”

Peter Pollak, Dynapower CEO, added: “For over 50 years we have deployed our power electronics around the world and pioneered the development of energy storage inverters, including the first UL-1741 listed smart inverter. We are excited to bring our technology and know-how to India as well as the SAARC countries as part of the agreement.”

Raychem RPG is a joint venture between US-based firm TE Connectivity and India-based RPG Enterprises.

Technology provider ABB recently inaugurated a microgrid solution at its Vadodora manufacturing facility in Gujarat - said to be the first of its kind in India.

■ Tongwei signs major 55,000MT polysilicon supply deal with LONGi

(May 23, 2018/pv-tech.org)

China-based integrated polysilicon and merchant PV manufacturer Tongwei Group has signed a major 55,000MT polysilicon supply deal with leading integrated high-efficiency monocrystalline module manufacturer and ‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member LONGi Green Energy Technology.

Tongwei said that the supply deal was for 2 years and six months, beginning in May 2018, through to December 2020 with the supply of 4,000MT in 2018, followed by 21,000MT in 2019 and 30,000MT in 2020.

Tongwei had expanded its high-purity polysilicon production by 5,000MT in 2017, bringing nameplate capacity to 20,000MT. However, the company is currently expanding polysilicon production with the building of two 50,000MT polysilicon plants in Leshan and Baotou, in China.

As the new facilities are built and ramped, Tongwei is expected to have a polysilicon nameplate capacity of 120,000MT from some of the most advanced facilities producing the lowest cost, highest purity polysilicon to meet customer demand for P-type monocrystalline wafers.

A key driver of that demand is LONGi, which previously announced in early 2018 that it planned to increase mono ingot and wafer production to 45GW in 2020.

LONGi had achieved 15GW of monocrystalline wafer nameplate capacity at the end of 2017, up 2GW from previous plans, due to an accelerated production ramp to meet demand.

The company is expected to take nameplate ingot and wafer capacity to 28GW by the end of 2018 and 36GW by the end of 2019, reaching its stated goal of 45GW by the end of 2020.

LONGi has already secured a number of high-purity polysilicon supply deals in 2018. The company signed a 39,600MT deal with China-based polysilicon producer Daqo New Energy Corp that stretched from April 2018 to December 2020.

PV Tech had previously highlighted in February, 2018 that Daqo planned expanding polysilicon production by at least 12,000MT in less than 18-months, which would be dedicated to supplying high-efficiency monocrystalline wafers producers, due to continued strong demand.

The expansion would lead to a total annual nameplate capacity of over 30,000 MT by the end of the second quarter of 2019. However, Daqo also said that it was kick-starting its Phase 4A polysilicon expansion, which was intended to increase annual polysilicon capacity by 35,000MT. Therefore, total annual capacity of 65,000MT was expected to be achieved by the first quarter of 2020.

Earlier in the year, LONGi signed a 64,638MT deal with Korean-headquartered polysilicon producer OCI Co that was said to be worth around US$1.02 billion. The supply contract would last three years.

PV Tech had reported earlier in the year that OCI was expanding its production of high-purity polysilicon to meet greater demand for P-type monocrystalline wafers from around 42% of capacity - to around 60% of total capacity in 2018.

■ SB Energy wins 200MW of solar in Karnataka

(May 21, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Softbank's JV, SB Energy has won all 200MW available in the latest solar auction in the Indian state of Karnataka with a tariff of INR 2.82/kWh (US$0.041), a rise from the most recent Indian auctions

The only other competitor in the auction for the tender issued by Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) was Tata Power Renewable Energy (TPREL), which put in a bid of INR 2.83/kWh.

Mudit Jain, consultant at Bridge to India, said that tariffs between INR 2.65-3/kWh will persist until either a duty is imposed or module prices decrease.

Maharashtra’s latest 1GW auction attracted lower winning bids of between INR 2.71-2.72/kWh (US$.0.04), staying almost flat with the previous PV auction in Andhra Pradesh, which saw winning bids between INR2.72-2.73/kWh.

Bidding in the overall Indian solar industry has been deemed irrationally aggressive by 70% of CEOs responding to a recent survey from consultancy firm Bridge to India, however, sentiment remains upbeat about growth prospects and the overall industry.

■ Taiwan’s URE still considering possible US solar manufacturing plant

(May 17, 2018/pv-tech.org)

United Renewable Energy Co., Ltd. (URE), the planned name for three of Taiwan’s merchant solar cell and module producers, Gintech Energy Corp, Neo Solar Power (NSP) and Solartech Energy are still evaluating the commercial rationale of establishing a US-based PV manufacturing plant, post the merger, which is being targeted for October 1, 2018.

Speaking to PV Tech at Neo Solar Power’s (NSP) headquarters in Hsin Chu, Taiwan, Andy Shen, NSP’s president confirmed that the establishment of a US manufacturing plant remained a possibility, but noted that it would considered in-line with downstream partnerships in the US, similar to the approach of leading ‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member, JinkoSolar.

“At the moment, this is still our plan. We would expect to work with some local partners and customers.” With all the recent fanfare, only one downstream [US] player and one Chinese manufacturer plan to setup a smaller than originally planned production plant. “Now that kind of plan is what we should be looking into, compared to blindly go there, pick the ground and then starting to look for customers. So we want something with a similar structure on a similar scale in partnership because it is more about what happens after the establishment of a plant,” noted Shen.

Shen also highlighted that NSP already had downstream project development partnerships in the US, such as with Green Sky, primarily in the commercial and industrial (C&I) market for customers such as Walmart, Target and Amazon.

Shen also highlighted that post the URE merger the company would have an in-house solar cell capacity of around 5GW as well as approximately 3GW of module assembly capacity. Not all of the capacity is based in Taiwan. NSP themselves have around 700MW of production in Taiwan.

In the downstream sector URE would have around 1GW of capable systems business, which would be a key part of supporting the Taiwanese government’s plans to install 20GW of PV in the country by 2025, as nuclear power is closed down.

■ Hoymiles supplies largest microinverter project in South Africa

(May 17, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Chinese manufacturer Hoymiles has supplied the largest project in South Africa to depend on microinverters.

The 158kW rooftop system, on a commercial building in Johannesburg, uses the company’s MI-600 inverters with module level maximum power point tracking and monitoring.

"I was delighted to be able to work with Hoymiles on the Johannesburg project, which is the largest of its kind in South Africa so far,” said Ari Salkow, group head of PV solar at Ellies, Hoymiles’ local distributor. “In the future, we will continue our close cooperation with Hoymiles to develop ways to help users safely build and operate higher-yielding PV power stations. What we and Hoymiles have achieved here represents an excellent start in the South African market," added Salkow.

Ellies also assisted with the system design. Hoymiles said the project could now be expanded to 200kW.

According to the manufacturer, microinverters are gaining traction in South Africa because of a focus on the levelized cost of electricity for any given install rather than a capex-dominated procurement process.

The project is dwarfed by the 3.6MW installation that Hoymiles supplied in China, which it claimed to be the largest in the country.

■ SECI issues EPC tender for 10MW Karnataka project

(May 16, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has issued a tender for a 10MW(AC) solar project at the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) premises, in Kolar, Karnataka.

The tender is for design, engineering, supply, construction, erection, testing and commissioning of the plant.

It also includes provision of O&M services for a period of 10 years.

Canadian Solar this week also commissioned a 35MW commercial and industrial (C&I), open access solar project in Karnataka.

■ Indian solar bidding ‘irrationally aggressive’ say majority of CEOs

(May 16, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Bidding in the Indian solar industry has been deemed irrationally aggressive by 70% of CEOs responding to a survey from consultancy firm Bridge to India, however, sentiment remains upbeat about growth prospects and the overall industry.

The ‘India RE CEO Survey 2018’ tapped opinions from 44 domestic and international companies. On average, these company heads expect India to reach 66GW of installed solar capacity by March 2022, well short of the original 100GW target set under the National Solar Mission (NSM). Just 7% of respondents believe the 100GW target will be surpassed on time.

They also forecast rooftop PV to reach only 10GW by 2022 (the original 40GW target has been reduced), and for wind capacity to reach 52GW, just short of the 60GW target.

As expected the key concerns included the looming threat of safeguard duty imposition, for which a 70% duty has been recommended and a final decision is pending. This nuisance for the downstream PV sector is compounded by the fact that 77% of CEOs are also unenthusiastic about the progress of domestic manufacturing – which the Safeguard Duty aims to protect – believing that total manufacturing capacity will be less than 3GW by 2022.

Other major anxieties related to uncertainty at the policy level and the ailing finances of the distribution companies (Discoms).

Bridge to India has made known its belief that bidding levels have been too aggressive for some time. It said that tariffs ought to be raised given the increasing number of tender issuances, but it remains to be seen if Discoms will be willing to accept higher prices. Just 3% of the CEOs surveyed said the bidding levels have been balanced.

The latest auctions saw L1 tariffs in the range of INR2.71-2.73 (US$0.04) in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Most respondents felt that India will add about 6-10 GW of open access power by March 2022.

Vinay Rustagi, managing director, Bridge to India, said: “The Indian RE market, currently about 10GW per annum, is rapidly acquiring scale and maturity. The latest edition of [the] ‘India RE CEO Survey’ highlights that notwithstanding some major policy issues including safeguard duties and [the] poor financial condition of Discoms, the industry remains optimistic about future growth prospects. An aggressive bidding environment and [the] possible imposition of safeguard duty are major worries for the sector.”

Energy storage has yet to “find acceptance” in India, said the consultancy, with lack of techno-commercial understanding, lack of enabling policy environment and high cost all being cited as key challenges.

■ Azure Power hits 1GW solar milestone with 50MW Andhra Pradesh project

(May 15, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Indian solar developer Azure Power has surpassed 1GW of operating solar capacity, with the completion of a 50MW project in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

The latest project was setup in Ananthapuramu Solar Park across around 101 hectares. Azure Power will supply power for 25 years to Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), with a tariif of INR4.79/kWh (~US$0.075), which includes Viability Gap Funding (VGF).

The company has a footprint across 23 states in India, having installed India’s first private utility-scale solar project in Punjab, and implemented India’s first megawatt scale solar rooftop project in Gujarat. The company also claims to have been the first solar power producer to set up a private utility-scale solar plant in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

Under Azure Roof Power the company’s rooftop PV portfolio has grown to over 190MW across 23 states.

Last year, Azure M-Power, which focuses on mini and micro grids, also electrified 320 households across 11 villages in the eastern state of Jharkhand.

Inderpreet Wadhwa, founder, chairman and chief executive, Azure Power, said: “We started with the vision of providing affordable solar power for generations and the mission to be the lowest cost power producer in the world. Through our collective efforts and support from our stakeholders, we have achieved this important milestone of 1,000MW operating through large-scale, mini/micro grid and rooftop solutions across the entire country.”

Azure won 150MW of capacity in Maharashtra's 1GW solar auction earlier this week.

■ Canadian Solar commissions 35MW open access solar project in India

(May 15, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Canadian Solar has commissioned a 35MW commercial and industrial (C&I), open access solar project in the Indian state of Karnataka.

The PV capacity is located in Bagalkot District and is expected to generate approximately 54,000MWh of electricity every year, providing power to off-takers from the education, healthcare, cement, and auto parts industries through 25-year power purchase agreements (PPAs).

Canadian Solar has also completed its financing of INR1 billion (US$16 million) for the C&I portfolio with Tata Cleantech Capital Limited.

Dr. Shawn Qu, chairman and chief executive of Canadian Solar, said: "We are delighted to launch our first C&I solar portfolio in India which creates sustainable value for our customers. Local businesses can benefit from clean solar energy while mitigating rising electricity costs. Canadian Solar provides strong development, technical, and financing solutions that assist businesses in their switch to clean renewable energy."

■ Amtech looking to outsource solar equipment production in China to remain competitive

(May 15, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Specialist PV manufacturing equipment supplier Amtech Systems is looking to expand its component outsourcing to include solar equipment production in China to remain competitive.

Amtech reported fiscal second quarter 2018, Solar segment revenue of US$12.6 million, down from US$49.2 million in the previous quarter as the company recognised revenue on a major turnkey phased project (Phase II) with a customer in China.

However, new solar order intake has remained below US$10 million per quarter for the last three quarters in a row, while capacity expansion announcements have remained strong, according to PV Tech’s ongoing analysis.

Fokko Pentinga, Chief Executive Officer of Amtech Systems noted, “We are doing more strategic sourcing of components and evaluating the outsourcing of manufacturing of solar equipment to lower cost locations in China. We see this as a high priority, given the changes in the marketplace and the ongoing pricing pressure.”

Although pricing pressure is a key business factor, technology selections in PV manufacturing have become splintered and the pace of migration increased in the last two years, notably with P-Type multi and P-Type mono PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Cell) technologies with high-end PERC cell technology adopting ALD batch tools over PECVD.
PV manufacturers are also selecting heterojunction (HJ) technology, adding to the increased diversity of next-generation technology selection.

Pentinga noted in the earnings call that new order intake could rebound in the next quarter as the company could receive the Phase III turnkey order for N-Type mono (nPERT/TopCon) technology, which can produce N-Type bifacial cells with over 22% efficiency.

“We are engaged with our large turnkey customer, to assist in their next phase plans. We continue to look forward to a Phase-III order in the coming months,” noted Pentinga.

This is due to the company having achieved installation and start-up of Phase I of its 1GW turnkey order.

With PV product development a high-priority to retain competiveness, Amtech reported research, development and engineering (RD&E) expense in the fiscal second quarter of US$2.2 million, compared to US$2.0 million in the preceding quarter and US$1.5 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2017.

Amtech guided fiscal third quarter total revenue to be in the range of US$34 to US$37 million.

■ India finalises wind-solar hybrid policy

(May 14, 2018/pv-tech.org)

India’s Ministry of New & Renewable Energy has released its ‘National Wind-Solar Hybrid Policy’ seeking to encourage hybridisation of projects due to the benefits they offer for grid integration.

A draft policy was first issued in June 2016 and has now been finalised after consultation with stakeholders. Studies have shown that combining wind and solar helps to minimise the variability of power output from such technologies and thereby reduce the threats posed to grid security and stability. Moreover, wind and solar resource maps have discovered significant areas in India where both solar and wind have a high to moderate potential.

Hybrid systems involve solar PV systems and wind turbine generators being configured at the same point of connection. In order to be classed as 'hybrid', the rated power capacity of one source of energy must be at least 25% of the rated power capacity of the other resource.

Reactions to the policy have varied:

Anmol Singh Jaggi, co-founder, solar O&M and advisory firm Gensol Group, said: "The policy is just in time and would pave the way to a even more low cost green energy due to efficiencies of coupling wind & solar infrastructure and hopefully by including some portion of energy storage we can get round-the-clock green energy."

Vinay Rustagi, managing director of consultancy firm Bridge to India, said: "We think that this policy will do little to advance hybrid systems in India. It is completely silent on providing a framework for converting existing wind or solar plants into hybrid plants. On this basis, it seems that the only real opportunity lies in new specific procurements by government agencies."
India’s Ministry of New & Renewable Energy has released its ‘National Wind-Solar Hybrid Policy’ seeking to encourage hybridisation of projects due to the benefits they offer for grid integration.

A draft policy was first issued in June 2016 and has now been finalised after consultation with stakeholders. Studies have shown that combining wind and solar helps to minimise the variability of power output from such technologies and thereby reduce the threats posed to grid security and stability. Moreover, wind and solar resource maps have discovered significant areas in India where both solar and wind have a high to moderate potential.

Hybrid systems involve solar PV systems and wind turbine generators being configured at the same point of connection. In order to be classed as 'hybrid', the rated power capacity of one source of energy must be at least 25% of the rated power capacity of the other resource.

MNRE said that in areas of good wind power density, the size of solar PV added can be relatively smaller. Whereas, the amount of solar should be relatively higher if the wind power density is moderate or lower.

Adding battery storage to such projects has also been deemed an appropriate method of further smoothening the power output.

The new policy aims to provide a framework for large-scale hybrids, while also encouraging new technologies and methods to carry out hybridisation. It is also encouraging the procurement of hybrid power through transparent bidding processes, which could take into account capacity delivered at grid interface point, effective capacity utilisation factor (CUF), and the unit price of electricity.

Integrating solar and wind can be approached in different ways.

The policy stated: “In case of fixed speed wind turbines connected to the grid using an induction generator, the integration can be on the HT side at the AC output bus. However, in case of variable speed wind turbines deploying inverters for connecting the generator to the grid, the wind and the solar PV system can be connected to the intermediate DC bus of the AC-DC-AC converter.”

Existing projects wishing to go hybrid may do so under various conditions. These mainly relate to transmission charges and transmission capacity as well as separate rules for AC and DC integration of such projects.

Power generated from hybrids may be used for:

Captive purpose
Sale to third-party through open access
Sale to Discoms either at tariff determined by the respective State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERC) or at tariff discovered through a transparent bidding process
Sale to Discoms at average power purchase cost (APPC) under Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) mechanism and avail RECs
State or Central entities can also bid out projects for the hybridisation of existing projects connected to the Interstate Transmission System (ISTS).

In the case of adding battery storage to these projects, bidding factors may include minimum firm power output throughout the day or for defined hours during the day, the extent of variability allowed in output power, and unit price of electricity.

The Central Electricity Authority and CERC shall deliver standards and regulations for hybrids. All fiscal and financial incentives available to wind and solar power projects will also be made available to hybrid projects.

The policy will remain in place unless withdrawn by the government and will be reviewed as and when required. The original draft policy had targeted 10GW of hybrids by 2022, but no target has been set in the final policy.

PV Tech recently reported from Hero Future Energies' inauguration of India’s first large-scale solar and wind energy hybrid project in the state of Karnataka.

■ Hanwha Q CELLS lowers full-year shipment guidance but returns to profitability

(May 14, 2018/pv-tech.org)

‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member Hanwha Q CELLS has lowered full-year shipment guidance to 5,600MW to 5,800MW, compared to its initial guidance of 6,000MW to 6,200MW, which could be attributed to the impact of the US Section 201 trade case duties and the company’s refocus on the European market.

Hanwha Q CELLS reported first quarter 2018 revenue of US$443.0 million, in-line with guidance but lower than the US$636.2 million reported in the fourth quarter of 2017.

The company returned to a quarterly profit, after stopping its wafer manufacturing operations. Hanwha Q CELLS reported an operating income of US$33.1 million, compared with operating loss of US$33.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and operating income of US$28.3 million in the first quarter of 2017.

The company reported a gross profit in the first quarter of 2018 of US$78.9 million, up 44.5% from US$54.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and up 31.9% from US$59.8 million in the first quarter of 2017.

Gross margin was 17.8%, compared with 8.6% in the fourth quarter of 2017 and 13.8% in the first quarter of 2017.

Seong Woo Nam, CEO of Hanwha Q CELLS noted, "Timely shift in the geographical mix of shipments, favorable raw material price movements" and the "shutting down unprofitable operations," were behind the return to profitability.

Joo Yoon, Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing added that Europe had effectively replaced the US as its number one market following the trade barriers placed in the US, although sales in you Europe would improve based on its roll-out of its half-cell mono PERC modules in the region.

Guidance

Hanwha Q CELLS said that it expected revenue in the second quarter of 2018 to be in the range of US$490 to US$510 million.

The company may not be expanding in-house manufacturing capacity in 2018, yet its capital expenditures were guided to in around US$145 million through the year, due to technology upgrades and certain unspecified R&D related expenditures.

Hanwha Q CELLS significantly lowered R&D spending in 2017, according to PV Tech’s annual R&D spending report. The company spent US$24 million on R&D in 2017, compared to US$49.2 million in 2016.

■ India sets oral hearing date for Malaysian solar glass anti-dumping investigation

(May 14, 2018/pv-tech.org)

India’s Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) will hold an oral hearing for its anti-dumping investigation into imports of textured, tempered glass from Malaysia, on 11 June in New Delhi.

DGAD launched the investigation at the start of February.

The sole petitioner was India’s largest solar glass firm Gujarat Borosil, who was also the lone petitioner for a similar successful case against imports of tempered glass from China last year. Borosil is the only Indian supplier that produces its own annealed (raw) glass instead of relying on imports.

The oral hearing notice can be found here.

In April, India launched an anti-dumping investigation into imports of EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) encapsulant material for solar modules from China, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand and Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, in March, DGAD terminated its anti-dumping investigation regarding imports of solar cells from China, Malaysia and Taiwan, but a fresh filing from the petitioners covering a new period of injury is still expected.

■ India’s ReNew Power files for IPO

(May 9, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Indian solar and wind developer ReNew Power Ltd has filed for an initial public offering (IPO), according to Reuters.

Global Environment Fund, Green Rock and an arm of Goldman Sachs are selling around 94.4 million shares in the IPO, which a source told Reuters could raise more than US$1 billion.

ReNew, which has nearly 4GW of operational solar and wind capacity and nearly 1.7GW under development, is backed by Goldman Sachs, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and JERA Co. Inc, which is a consortium of two major Japanese utilities.

Last month, ReNew Power bought Ostro Energy Private Ltd for an undisclosed sum in what was one of India’s largest ever renewable energy deals.

PV Tech recently analysed how hardening interest rates are affecting Indian solar, particularly in the secondary market.

■ Daqo breaks quarterly polysilicon shipment record but wafer sales slump in Q1

(May 8, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Daqo said that it produced a record high 5,657MT of polysilicon in the first quarter of 2018, as well as breaking its previous record of external sales volume, which reached 5,411MT.

However, multicrystalline wafer sales volume plummeted to only 13.3 million pieces, compared to 22.3 million pieces in the fourth quarter of 2017 and 22.4 million pieces in the first quarter of 2017.

PV Tech recently highlighted that the largest multicrystalline wafer producer, GCL-Poly Suzhou reported revenue in the first quarter of 2018 of around US$675.3 million, up from around US$562 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and up from US$634 million in the prior year period.

However, GCL-Poly Suzhou has also increased nameplate wafer capacity (inc mono c-Si) in 2017, going from 18.5GW in 2016 to 30GW at the end of 2017, a 62.2% rise, indicating a major softness in multi c-Si wafer demand in the first quarter of 2018.

Financial results

Daqo reported first quarter 2018 revenue of US$103.3 million, compared to US$103.7 in the fourth quarter of 2017 and $83.8 million in the first quarter of 2017.

Revenues from polysilicon sales to external customers were US$95.6 million, compared to US$89.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and $70.4 million in the first quarter of 2017.

Daqo noted that the sequential increase in revenues from polysilicon was primarily due to higher polysilicon sales volumes which were partially offset by lower ASPs.

Revenues from wafer sales were only US$7.6 million, compared to US$13.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and US$13.4 million in the first quarter of 2017.

aqo said that the sequential decrease in revenues from wafer sales was primarily due to lower sales volumes and a decrease in ASPs.

Gross profit in the first quarter of 2018 was approximately US$46.2 million, compared to US$46.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and US$35.9 million in the first quarter of 2017.

Gross margin was 44.8%, compared to 45.2% in the fourth quarter of 2017. The decrease in ASPs which were partially offset by a decrease in average polysilicon production cost, according to the company.

"I am pleased to announce another excellent quarter of operational and financial results in which we produced a record high 5,657 MT in polysilicon," commented Mr. Longgen Zhang, CEO of Daqo New Energy. "We also broke our record for external sales volume during the quarter by shipping 5,411 MT. This strong growth in production and external sales volumes is being driven by our continuing focus on improving manufacturing efficiency and maximizing overall output. Demand for our high-quality polysilicon products remained strong and allowed us to generate $103.3 million in revenue, a gross margin of 44.8%, $31.6 million in net income attributable to Daqo New Energy shareholders, $51.7 million in EBITDA, and an EBITDA margin of 50.0%."

Guidance

The company guided 5,600MT to 5,800MT of polysilicon production in the second quarter of 2018 with sales of approximately 5,300MT to 5,500MT.

Wafer sales volume is expected to be approximately 15.0 million to 20.0 million pieces for the second quarter of 2018.
For the full year 2018, the company expects to produce approximately 22,000 to 23,000 MT of polysilicon, inclusive of the impact of our annual facility maintenance.

The company is also expanding polysilicon production to meet demand for high-purity monocrystalline wafer demand from customers such as LONGi Group.

■ Daqo further expanding ultra-high purity mono-crystalline-grade polysilicon production

(May 8, 2018/pv-tech.org)

China-based polysilicon producer Daqo New Energy is accelerating the pace of its Phase 3B capacity expansion project as well as starting Phase 4A that will increase annual polysilicon capacity by 35,000MT.

PV Tech had previously highlighted in February, 2018 that Daqo planned expanding polysilicon production by at least 12,000MT in less than 18-months, which would be dedicated to supplying high-efficiency monocrystalline wafers producers, due to continued strong demand.

Daqo had then said that its Phase 3B expansion at its Xinjiang, China facility had completed ground foundation and initial ground preparation work in the fourth quarter of 2017 and was expected to start pilot production in the first half of 2019.

The expansion would lead to a total annual nameplate capacity of over 30,000 MT by the end of the second quarter of 2019.

The company has quickly revised those plans by accelerating the pace of expansion to include the complete construction and installation of equipment, as well as pilot production starting by the end of 2018. The ramp to full production capacity of 30,000MT is therefore expected to occur during the first quarter of 2019, according to the company.

Phase 4A polysilicon expansion

Daqo also said that it was kick-starting its Phase 4A polysilicon expansion, which was intended to increase annual polysilicon capacity by 35,000MT.

Daqo noted that the design and construction of the new production facility would begin in May, 2018 with pilot production expected to begin during the fourth quarter of 2019.

Therefore, total annual capacity of 65,000MT was expected to be achieved by the first quarter of 2020.

The new facility is to feature state-of-the-art equipment and technology and produce ultra-high purity mono-crystalline-grade polysilicon. The additional capacity is expected to further improve manufacturing efficiency and is expected to further reduce production costs by approximately US$1.70/kg from current levels of US$9.19/kg in Q1 2018.

Capital expenditures for this facility were said to be around US$14.0-15.0 per kilogram, or approximately RMB 3.2 billion (US$502 million).

The total Phase 4 expansion plan (Phase 4A and 4B) is expected to expand manufacturing capacity by a total of 70,000MT over the two phases, Phase 4A and 4B, which will each consist of 35,000MT of expanded manufacturing capacity, according to the company.

Longgen Zhang, Chief Executive Officer of Daqo New Energy, commented, "The entirety of our Phase 4 expansion plan will expand its manufacturing capacity by a total of 70,000 MT over two phases, Phase 4A and 4B, which will each consist of 35,000 MT of expanded manufacturing capacity. Phase 4A is an important milestone in our long-term expansion plan to meet customer's surging demand and urgent needs for ultra-high purity polysilicon. We will continue to focus on serving our customers with high quality products, improving polysilicon purity and further reduce costs to strengthen our manufacturing leadership in the industry."

PV Tech recently reported that Leading fully-integrated high-efficiency monocrystalline module manufacturer and ‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member LONGi Green Energy Technology had secured an ultra-high-quality polysilicon supply agreement with Daqo that amounted to 39,600MT over a 32-month period.

■ Risen Energy targeting over 800MW of overseas module shipments in 2018

(May 4, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Major China-based PV module manufacturer Risen Energy, which entered PV Tech’s Top 10 module manufacturer’s rankings for the first time in 2017, has said that it expects to ship at least 800MW of PV modules outside China in 2017.

Risen shipped around 2.5GW to 3GW of PV modules in 2017 and had total product revenue of approximately US$1.8 billion, up from approximately US$1.1 billion in 2016, a 63% increase, year-on-year.

Risen noted that it had around 1,000 projects either under development or being delivered across the globe so far this year.

The company is following the Chinese government's One Belt, One Road initiative by exporting products, brands and technologies abroad and has announced it is undertaking EPC work on a 25MW PV power plant in Nuwakot, Nepal, which is using Risen’s 275W modules.

The PV power plant project was said to be scheduled for completion and grid connection by the end of 2018, which is claimed will be the first large-scale ground-mounted PV station in Nepal, which has relied heavily on hydro-electric power.

Hong Wang, president of Risen Energy said, "In line with the One Belt, One Road initiative, we have made significant progress in the global market, thanks to our advanced PV manufacturing technologies and rich experience in overseas projects. As one of the key parts of the initiative, Nepal is an attractive market for us. Over the next seven years, Nepal, a country boasting abundant water resources, aims to achieve the goal of 17,000 megawatts of electricity generation, which is unlikely to be met via hydropower alone. Renewable energy methods including PV have become important supplements and Nepal is on the right track. Looking forward, we plan to invest in and develop more EPC projects in Nepal and across South Asia in a move to contribute to solving the local energy crisis and boosting China-Nepal cooperation in connection with new energy."

Risen also noted that it had expanded into countries along the One Belt, One Road route including Bangladesh, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and the ASEAN countries.

■ ReneSola sells stake in China DG solar subsidiary

(May 3, 2018/pv-tech.org)

PV project developer ReneSola has agreed to an equity investment agreement that will see an investor set aside US$31.4 million in cash to acquire 40.13% of Zhejiang ReneSola Investment Limited.

The investment closed on 2 May 2018.

Currently, ReneSola has over 187MW of DG projects under operation, most of which are located in China’s eastern provinces — such as Zhejiang, Shanghai and Jiangsu. The company expects to own 350 to 400MW of DG projects in China by the end of 2018.

Xianshou Li, ReneSola's chief executive officer, said: “This strategic investment provides an important capital infusion enabling us to execute our downstream project development plan in China.

"We believe that bringing in a strategic investor not only validates the quality of our DG project pipelines but also creates significant synergies between both parties and enhances market confidence. We are confident that our DG project development in China will continue to drive our growth in 2018 and beyond."

■ GCL-Poly’s wafer subsidiary reports increased revenue in Q1 2018

(May 2, 2018/pv-tech.org)

GCL-Poly Suzhou reported revenue in the first quarter of 2018 of around US$675.3 million, up from around US$562 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 up from US$634 million in the prior year period.

PV Tech recently highlighted that China installed a total of 9.65GW of solar PV capacity in the first quarter of 2018, a 22% increase over the prior year period, according to China’s National Energy Administration (NEA).

GCL-Poly Suzhou had also increased nameplate wafer capacity in 2017, going from 18.5GW in 2016 to 30GW at the end of 2017, a 62.2% rise.

However, wafer ASP declines have continued to weigh on profitability.

GCL-Poly Suzhou reported a net profit of approximately US$14.46 million in the first quarter of 2018, compared to a net profit of around US$13.9 million in the prior year period, despite the capacity increases.

GCL-Poly recently announced that it was planning to build a 20GW monocrystalline silicon ingot manufacturing facility in Qujing, China. GCL-Poly said in a financial filing that GCL-Poly Suzhou had entered into an agreement with the Qujing Municipal Government with plans for a JV with unspecified strategic partners for the required facilities said to cost around RMB9 billion (US$1.4 billion).

■ Singapore issues tender for two floating PV projects

(May 1, 2018/pv-tech.org)

PUB, Singapore’s National Water Agency, has issued a tender to conduct engineering studies for the deployment of a pair of floating PV systems systems in Bedok Reservoir and Lower Seletar Reservoir.

PUB’s tender will look for detailed designs for a 1MW floating PV project at the Lower Seletar Reservoir and a 1.5MW PV system at Bedok Reservoir. The projects will occupy an area of 1 and 1.5 hectares, respectively, with each system set to take up less than 2% of the total surface area at the reservoirs.

The floating solar panels will be installed away from the current water activities zones at both reservoirs.

The Bedok Reservoir PV project will supply solar energy to the pump station, which pumps raw water from Bedok Reservoir to Bedok Waterworks for treatment, and to the waterworks to pump treated water into the water supply network for households.

The PV project at Lower Seletar Reservoir will provide energy to the Lower Seletar Pump Station adjacent to the reservoir to pump raw water to Lower Seletar Waterworks for treatment, and for the transfer of raw water between reservoirs for operational purposes.

Ng Joo Hee, chief executive at PUB, said: “PUB is committed to making our operations more and more environmentally sustainable. PUB’s many reservoirs possess good solar energy potential. These two floating solar PV systems at Bedok and Lower Seletar Reservoirs are small but significant forays into making the water treatment process greener and less dependent on fossil fuels.

The more renewables PUB can generate and use, the smaller our carbon footprint, and the greater our contribution to Singapore’s climate change mitigation effort.”

■ Intevac’s 12 ion implanters for Chinese solar customer still in order backlog

(May 1, 2018/pv-tech.org)

Specialist semiconductor and PV equipment supplier Intevac reiterated that its 12 unit ‘ENERGi’ solar ion implant tool order valued at around US$23 million that was booked in March, 2017 remained in its order backlog at the end of the first quarter of 2018.

Delays associated with the customer’s manufacturing plant construction of a 2GW-plus N-type monocrystalline IBC (Interdigitated Back Contact) solar cell plant were previously cited for tool shipment delays.

Intervac had shipped an initial three ion implanters the third quarter of 2017, with installation expected by the end of the first quarter of 2018, while revenue recognition was expected sometime late in the second quarter of 2018 or early in the third quarter. However, this remained dependent on the customer completing plant construction and initiating tool install.

In reporting first quarter 2018 financial results, Wendell Blonigan, president and chief executive officer of Intevac said in its latest earnings call that three initial ion implant tools were waiting installation, although other production tools were being installed ahead of the ion implanters.

“The tools that we have out there right now that are waiting for installation is an n-type ramp, so we're seeing that come back to life,” noted Blonigan in the call. “We're seeing some tools installed there and we anticipate getting the installed, the first tools in a reasonable period once they move in some other equipment. So we see that moving.”

However, Blonigan also noted that more recent installation delays had been primarily due to the customer shifting some of the new production lines installed at the new facility to n-PERT (Passivated Emitter Rear Totally-diffused cell) production.

“While the schedule and timing are not finalized, at this time we continue to expect three more tools will ship mid-year [2018] with six in revenue for 2018 and the other six in 2019,” added Blonigan.

Interest in next-generation solar cell technologies remain high in China as policies in place for ‘Top Runner’ and ‘Poverty Alleviation’ programs dictate the deployment of high-efficiency solar modules and provide multi-gigawatt markets annually.

US-headquartered IBC pioneer SunPower has under 1.2GW of IBC cell production capacity at facilities in Malaysia and the Philippines. However, Intervac’s Chinese client has yet to enter volume production of IBC solar cells and has yet to install enough lines to fully ramp to over 2GW. At that point SunPower will have a direct cell technology competitor in the market.