Ford To Sell Solar Panel System Alongside With Electric Cars

- Ford To Sell Solar Panel System Alongside With Electric Cars



Aug 17, 2011

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) is joining forces with SunPower to offer a rooftop solar system option, which will be sold alongside the upcoming Ford Focus EV. The "Drive Green For Life" program, as its being called, includes mounting solar panels on a customer's home.

Pricing and an exact launch date for the new 2012 Ford Focus isn't available yet, but the car will go on sale first in California and New York in Q4 2011.

Ford also plans to launch 5 other electric or hybrid-electric models in 2012 in North America, and in Europe by 2013.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) has a potential upside of 81.1% based on a current price of $11.07 and an average consensus analyst price target of $20.05.

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Evergreen Solar Files For Chapter 11

- Evergreen Solar Files For Chapter 11



Aug 15, 2011

Evergreen Solar (NASDAQ:ESLR) announced that it voluntarily filed a petition for a relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The petition was filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

As part of the restructuring, an entity formed by the supporting noteholders, ES Purchaser, entered into an asset purchase agreement with the company.

If higher or better offers for assets are not obtained, it is expected that ES Purchaser will acquire most of the company's assets pursuant to the asset purchase agreement. As part of Evergreen Solar's reorganization activities, the company will reduce its U.S. and European workforce by about 65 people, including suspension of operations at its Midland, Michigan filament facility.

Evergreen Solar should find initial resistance at its 50-day moving average (MA) of $0.48 and further resistance at its 200-day MA of $2.14.

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First Solar Misses Q2 Estimates

- First Solar Misses Q2 Estimates



Aug 4, 2011

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) reported adjusted Q2 EPS of $0.70, missing analyst estimates of $0.92. Revenues for the quarter fell 9.4% to $533 million, less than consensus estimates of $583.42 million.

Rob Gillette, CEO of First Solar said, "First Solar continued to execute in the quarter despite a challenging European market, and our 2011 outlook remains solid due to our differentiated and resilient business model. We expect stronger performance in the second half of 2011 as we build projects from our systems pipeline, develop promising new markets, execute our cost reduction roadmaps and continue to improve module efficiencies."

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) has a potential upside of 42.2% based on a current price of $107.94 and an average consensus analyst price target of $153.5.

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Trina Solar Shares Slip

- Trina Solar Shares Slip



Aug 2, 2011

Shares of Trina Solar Ltd.(NYSE:TSL) fell over 6% Tuesday in premarket trading after the company lowered its expectation for shipments of solar modules and profit margins in the second quarter.

Trina, a Chinese solar module maker, reported that it expects to report module shipments in the range of 395 to 397 megawatts for the three month period ended June 30. The company formerly said it would ship between 430 and 450 megawatts. Overall profit margins also were lowered to between 17 and 17.5%, compared with earlier forecasts of margin percentages in the "low 20s."

Company officials said shipments and profit margins suffered as demand for solar modules slowed down, in part because Italy cut solar subsidies.

Chairman and CEO Jifan Gao said, "We expect a significant improvement in production costs and an increase in shipment volumes in the third quarter."

Trina retained its prediction for 2011 shipments between 1.75 and 1.8 gigawatts. That's a rise of 65.6 to 70.3% from last year. The company will report its second-quarter results on Aug. 23.

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Trina Solar Shares Fall After Audit Chairman Resigns

- Trina Solar Shares Fall After Audit Chairman Resigns



Jul 12, 2011

Trina Solar Limited (NYSE:TSL) shares dropped more than 15% so far today following the company's announcement that their independent director and chairman of the audit, Peter Mark resigned on July 10 to focus on additional personal and professional pursuits.

The company named Jerome Corcoran to replace Mark's role.

Trina Solar has a potential upside of 67% based on a current price of $17.23 and an average consensus analyst price target of $28.77.

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JA Solar Announced It Entered Into A Definitive Agreement To Acquire Silver Age Holdings Limited

- JA Solar Announced It Entered Into A Definitive Agreement To Acquire Silver Age Holdings Limited



Jul 1, 2011

JA Solar (NASDAQ:JASO) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% ownership interest in Silver Age Holdings Limited. At the time of closing JA Solar will issue 30.901 million ordinary shares as consideration at a price of $5.825 per share.

Dr. Fang Peng, CEO of JA Solar, commented, "This agreement represents another important step in JA Solar's strategy of optimizing our cost structure through selective vertical integration. In today's solar market, it is essential for producers to improve costs while maintaining a relentless focus on technology and product quality. By boosting JA Solar's internal wafer capacity through this acquisition, we expect to achieve greater economies of scale and improve the company's profitability. Furthermore, Solar Silicon Valley has key technologies which can be leveraged to provide superior quality wafer substrates for our high-efficiency solar cell products. As a low cost leader in the solar industry, we expect that this transaction will enhance JA Solar's leadership position and enable us to meet strong global demand for our high-quality, high-efficiency solar products."

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UBS Up Target Price For First Solar to $170, Reiterates Buy

- UBS Up Target Price For First Solar to $170, Reiterates Buy



Jul 1, 2011

UBS increased its price target for First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) to $170 from $165 today and reiterated its buy rating on the stock.

The move comes after First Solar received conditional loan guarantees yesterday worth $4.5 billion from the Department of Energy to support three large solar panel projects in California.

Shares of First Solar are trading up 0.31% at $132.68.

First Solar has a potential upside of 14.3% based on a current price of $132.68 and an average consensus analyst price target of $151.63.

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First Solar Wins $4.5 Billion in Conditional Loan Guarantees from the DoE

- First Solar Wins $4.5 Billion in Conditional Loan Guarantees from the DoE



Jun 30, 2011

First Solar Inc (NASDAQ:FSLR) is trading up big today after it was reported that the world's largest manufacturer of thin-film solar modules had won $4.5 billion in conditional loan guarantees from the Department of Energy for three California projects.

The company's Topaz and Desert Sunlight projects, which will have 550 megawatts of capacity each, and its 230-megawatt Solar Ranch project, were each offered low-cost financing needed for construction to commence, the agency said today in an e-mailed statement.

The agency must distribute all of the funds authorized for the loan guarantee program before it expires at the end of September. The agency has offered conditional loans or loan guarantees for 40 clean energy products totaling $38 billion, including $16 billion for solar energy.

First Solar said the construction projects approved today will add 1,400 jobs and that all of the 20 million plus cadmium telluride glass panels used in the projects will be manufactured at its plants in Ohio and in Arizona.

Shares of First Solar are trading up 6.3% at $137.57.

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LDK Solar Announces $110 Million Share Repurchase Program

- LDK Solar Announces $110 Million Share Repurchase Program



Jun 27, 2011

LDK Solar Co (NYSE:LDK) announced today that its board of directors has approved a $110 million share buyback program.

The program authorizes the company to purchase up to $110 million of its American Depositary Shares in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions.

Mr. Xiaofeng Peng, Chairman and CEO of LDK Solar, commented, "We remain confident in our current outlook as well as the long-term prospects for our business. However, we believe our ADSs are currently grossly undervalued. We believe our share buyback program not only represents a good investment for our company, but also demonstrates our commitment to enhance shareholder value."

LDK Solar has a potential upside of 80.6% based on a current price of $6.81 and an average consensus analyst price target of $12.3.

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Cowen Cuts Estimates on Solar Companies

- Cowen Cuts Estimates on Solar Companies



Jun 17, 2011

Cowen Lowered its estimates on First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR), Suntech (NYSE:STP) and Trina Solar (NYSE:TSL) after revising its model to account for price erosion in the solar industry. The firm believes First Solar will emerge as a long-term winner citing its low cost, strong margins and balance sheet. Cowen believes Suntech is also well positioned due to its product quality and brand name. The firm believes Trina Solar will emerge a winner in a consolidating market citing its capital position and low cost structure. Shares of all three names remain Outperform rated.

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Petra Solar Turns Jersey City Into Solar Farm

- Petra Solar Turns Jersey City Into Solar Farm



Jun 16, 2011

Jersey City, New Jersey is now the home to Petra Solar's newest utility-scale solar farm. Petra Solar is using utility poles all across Jersey City and other urban and suburban areas of New Jersey. Five-foot by two-and-a-half foot solar panels are attached to the utility poles about 15 feet above the ground, tilted south towards the sun.

Each panel generates about 225 watts of power, adding to generation capacity and helping utilities meet renewable-power requirements. Petra Solar is a privately held clean-energy technology firm based in South Plainfield, N.J.

Petra Solar Chief executive Shihab Kuran stated, "It allows you to deploy quickly and cost effectively because you don't have to invest in land, you're not building substations or transformers."

Petra Solar is under contract with Public Service Enterprise Group Inc. (NYSE:PEG), and is about halfway through their $200 million commitment of providing 40 megawatts of solar power in six cities, spanning 300 rural and suburban communities. Petra has put up 95,000 panels, producing 20 megawatts, enough power for 3,250 homes.

The energy company says it takes roughly 30 minutes to install one panel on the utility pole. The panels feed electricity directly into the power lines.

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Google Signs Deal With SolarCity

- Google Signs Deal With SolarCity



Jun 14, 2011

Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) said on Tuesday that it has made a deal with SolarCity, and it is the biggest deal it has ever made. SolarCity will use the Google fund to help finance rooftop installations. Google Inc. is creating a $280-million fund to help finance the rooftop installations.

Lyndon Rive, chief executive of SolarCity said "Google's leading the way and other companies could follow suit...It's not just about a dramatic environmental impact, it's also a good return." SolarCity is known for its lease programs and power purchase agreements, which allow customers to avoid the thousands of dollars of upfront expenses.

SolarCity is Google's first dip into the solar market, but the company has put nearly $700 million into wind farms, solar power systems, and electric vehicle programs. The buses at Google's Mountain View, California headquarters are equipped with solar panels.

Google has a potential upside of 40.1% based on a current price of $508.15 and an average consensus analyst price target of $711.8.

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GT Solar International Announced It Received An Order Worth $460.4 Million

- GT Solar International Announced It Received An Order Worth $460.4 Million



Jun 3, 2011

GT Solar International (NASDAQ:SOLR) announced it received an order for its advanced sapphire crystallization furnaces totaling $460.4 million from a new market entrant.

Tom Gutierrez, GT Solar's president and CEO said, "Our customer is a well established, diversified manufacturing company located in China who is new to the LED industry. We are pleased that they have selected our advanced sapphire growth technology for their new sapphire production facility. The market acceptance of our sapphire growth technology has been remarkable and it speaks to the confidence our customers have shown in our ability to help them build successful businesses that leverage our crystalline growth expertise and our global equipment installation and support resources."

GT Solar International has a potential upside of 22.5% based on a current price of $12.02 and an average consensus analyst price target of $14.72.

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Tendeka Installs DTS at ADCO's HZ Well

Tendeka Installs DTS at ADCO's HZ Well

Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Tendeka

Tendeka has successfully installed its innovative harsh environment Oryx-XR distributed temperature sensing (DTS) monitoring system on a horizontal power water injection well in the United Arab Emirates for ADCO (Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Oil Operations).

The project is the first high profile extreme reach horizontal injector DTS installation by Tendeka in the Middle East. The horizontal open section of the well was 10,000ft long.

Designed to overcome the toughest monitoring challenges, the Oryx-XR has a sensing range to 12km, and can provide a temperature resolution as fine as 0.010C.

The autonomous, low powered device provides temperature samples every meter along a fiber, with a wide operating temperature window of between -50C to 650C, and can operate by solar or wind power. The permanent, standalone unit contains the sensing optoelectronics and operates remotely with an intuitive, user-friendly software interface, making it a simple-to-use and easily transportable system.

The Oryx-XR features an inbuilt multiplexing module with either two or four channels, enabling up to four single ended measurements or two double-ended measurements.

Completion tubing of 3 ½" and 4 ½" with a DTS cable was successfully run to total depth in the 10,000ft 6 1/8" horizontal hole, the hanger was landed and the packer installed. The project was completed successfully.

The system, will provide ADCO with dynamic injection profile data to effectively monitor the injectivity performance of the well and enable optimization of the injection process

Tendeka Vice President-MENA Region Mark Watson said, "What could have been a challenging project actually turned out to be a very straight forward one, thanks to the skill and experience of those people involved.

"The completion tubing with the DTS cable attached ran smoothly with very low friction and the installed hanger and packer tested with no problems. The Oryx-XR was designed to deal with some of the toughest monitoring situations, such as horizontal well activity and increasingly complex wells, and it has proven its ability to meet those challenges."

Contsellation To Build Solar Plant In Holyoke, Mass.

Contsellation To Build Solar Plant In Holyoke, Mass.



Apr 13, 2011

Constellation Energy (NYSE:CEG) and the Holyoke Gas & Electric Department announced today the development of a new 4.5-megawatt solar installation that will generate electricity for 18,000 customers in Holyoke, Massachusetts.

The system is scheduled for completion this summer, and will be among the largest solar installations in New England.

Constellation will build, own, and maintain the system while HG&E will purchase all of the electricity generated from the plant under a 20-year power purchase agreement at a fixed cost that is less than projected market electricity rates.

Michael D. Smith, senior vice president of green initiatives for Constellation Energy's retail business said, "Large-scale solar generation is an attractive option for municipal utilities to manage volatile energy costs for their customers and meet renewable energy goals. In states like Massachusetts with strong market-based incentive programs, Constellation can provide solar power to municipal utilities at a rate that is significantly less than electricity from other generation sources, which benefits both the environment and power customers' bottom lines."

Constellation Energy has a potential upside of 5.1% based on a current price of $33.18 and an average consensus analyst price target of $34.86.

Google Shares Down 0.4%; Firm Agrees to Take Stake in German Solar Project

Google Shares Down 0.4%; Firm Agrees to Take Stake in German Solar Project




Shares of Google (GOOG) are down in mid-day trading as the company will pay $5.1 million to buy nearly half of a 18.7 megawatt solar project near Berlin, Bloomberg reports.

A German private-equity company agreed to sell the Internet search giant a 49% stake in the project.

Google shares are down 0.39%, or $2.25, to $575.91.

Google to invest in German solar power plant

Google to invest in German solar power plant



Google (GOOG) announced today that it has agreed to make its first clean energy project investment in Europe - a EUR3.5M investment in a solar photovoltaic power plant in Germany. The transaction still requires the formal approval of the German competition authorities and is subject to other customary closing conditions. The recently completed facility is located near Berlin.

The power plant has a peak capacity of 18.65MW, which puts it among the largest in Germany. Google agreed to jointly invest in this project with the German private equity company Capital Stage.