Solar Power World

Panel Manufacturer Provides Financing Options for Businesses

Solar module manufacturer Kyocera Solar, Inc. now provides loan and lease options to consumers seeking light commercial and mid-to-large commercial installations. In partnership with De Lage Landen Financial Services, Inc. (DLL), Kyocera Solar Finance will offer up to 100 percent financing for qualified borrowers. The company said the financing can cover up to the total solar project... Read More

Solar Speaks: Solar Leasing 101

Welcome to another edition of Solar Speaks, Solar Power World’s podcast series that gives you the opportunity to hear from the industry’s biggest newsmakers — in their own words. Today we are talking to Mike Thompson, senior manager of business development of Centrosolar America about the significant increase in the popularity of solar leasing: what it means and what it means... Read More

Insurance Bundle Helps Mitigate Risks and Support Financing

Specialty insurance provider Assurant, Inc. offers a comprehensive insurance solution for commercial solar project developments. The company says the new offering is designed specifically for the fast growing 100 kw to 3-MW solar market, and will allow developers of commercial and industrial scale projects to address problematic risks that have traditionally made financing difficult. Assurant... Read More

Solar Project Financing: Where We’ve Been And Where We’re Going

The financing of solar projects has gotten more complicated in the post-1603 Treasury Program and with the uncertainty surrounding the solar investment tax credit. Tuan Pham, Managing Director at PowerFin Partners, and Kristian Hanelt, Senior Vice President, Renewable Capital Markets, Clean Power Finance, offer participants insights into where project financing has been — and... Read More

Home Energy Loan Makes Energy Efficiency More Affordable

SolarCity will now offer a Home Energy Loan for energy efficiency upgrades that will make renewable energy additions more accessible to homeowners. The company says the typical U.S. family spends about $1,900 a year on home utility bills, a large portion of which is wasted. SolarCity estimates homeowners lose about $40 of every $100 spent on air heating and cooling to duct and air... Read More

Prudential Capital Group To Help Fund Arizona Solar Project

Prudential Capital Group provided financing in the form of $121 million of long-term senior notes to LS Power for a new solar power generating project in Maricopa County, Ariz. The financing is part of an innovative structure developed in partnership with Banco Santander S.A. that provided $466 million to support the development of the project. Prudential Capital Group is an investment... Read More

PowerGuard’s PowerClip Implemented by Talesun

PowerGuard Specialty Insurance Services announced that solar manufacturer Talesun has joined the growing number of global solar panel manufacturers to choose PowerGuard’s PowerClip extended warranty protection. Talesun Solar is an international manufacturer of high quality crystalline solar cells and modules.  Located in Changshu, just 50 miles from Shanghai, Talesun operates... Read More

Westinghouse Solar Receives Australian Investment

Westinghouse Solar, a designer and manufacturer of solar power systems, announced that it has received an equity investment from CBD Energy Limited, a diversified renewable energy company based in Sydney, Australia. In addition to the investment, the companies have agreed to explore a broader strategic relationship. Under the terms of the investment, Westinghouse Solar issued common... Read More

Show me the money

A variety of financing options give the solar industry a chance to shine. Solar projects are cropping up across the country. Whether you’re talking about residential, commercial and utility projects, the volume of deals being closed this year is impressive, and there are few signs the markets will slow down. To meet those growing needs, funding the projects becomes critical.... Read More

Utility-Scale PV Plant Optimization Summit Nov. 2011

As 2011 draws to a close the stabilization of module prices has led experts to predict that balance of systems will assume a majority share of a PV project’s total cost within a year. In 2010 BoS costs accounted for approximately 44.8% of utility scale crystalline silicon project, with that percentage forecast to increase to 50.6% in 2012. This shift is driving the industry’s... Read More

Department of Energy Offers Conditional Loan Guarantees to Support Nearly $4.5 Billion in Solar Loans

  U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced offers of conditional commitments for loan guarantees, of approximately $4.5 billion, to support three alternating current Cadmium Telluride (Cd-Te) thin film photovoltaic (PV) solar generation facilities.  The Department is offering a conditional commitment for a $680 million loan guarantee to support the Antelope Valley... Read More

Investment tax credit supports Las Vegas CPV facility

Secretary Chu; Vahan Garboushian, Amonix founder, Chief Technology Officer and board of directors chairman; and Eric Culberson, Amonix director of manufacturing operations. Renewable energy development is a cornerstone of President Barack Obama’s long-term economic strategy. The Department of Energy also recently announced the SunShot Initiative in an effort to cut the cost of... Read More

Largest project financing closes on CPV Sentinel plant

Complementing GE Energy Financial Services’ backing of the CPV Sentinel plant, GE Energy signed an agreement to supply eight gas-fired LMS100 turbine-generators capable of reaching full load in 10 minutes.Competitive Power Ventures, Inc. (CPV), GE Energy Financial Services and Diamond Generating Corporation (DGC), co-owners of the planned $900 million CPV Sentinel power... Read More

Google to invest $5m in German solar project

Google just announced on its European Public Policy Blog that it has agreed to make its first clean energy project investment in Europe – a €3.5 million (ca. $ 5 million) investment in a solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant in Germany. Benjamin Kott, Clean Energy Advocacy Manager at Google writes the transaction will still require the formal approval of the German competition... Read More

U.S. Government Pledges $2 Billion For Solar Energy Development

On July 3rd the U.S. President Obama announced that the U.S. Department of Energy will invest nearly 2 billion U.S. dollars to subsidize two companies to build solar power plants to support the development of the U.S. solar industry and increase employment. Obama said this fund will come from the total 8620 billion of economic stimulus package, Abengoa Solar will receive 1.45... Read More