Star Performer

If you want it to run longer….. Many people are familiar with Schott as a result of their excellent glass products, however, what is less well known is that Schott Solar has the best in-house quality testing facility of any major manufacturer. Photon magazine tests have borne out time and time again the excellent performance provided by Schott solar’s quality European manufactured modules, and now Schott leads the field in the new, more comprehensive PV+ Test program of TÜV Rheinland & Solarpraxis. The SCHOTT Protect range...

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Conergy finishes UK’s biggest PV park

Conergy has completed a massive five megawatt (MW) PV Solar farm in Hawton, Nottinghamshire. The Hawton solar project is owned and has been developed by Lightsource Renewable Energy Ltd with funding from Octopus Investments. With planning approval received only on May 24, the project was installed in in a record time of just six weeks, owing to a feed-in tariff deadline. The park features Conergy’s flagship German manufactured PowerPlus modules, renowned for quality and performance as result of the highly automated manufacturing...

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BP Solar selected for world’s biggest solar power plant

BP Solar’s Moree Joint Venture wins first round of federal solar flagship program We are absolutely delighted to inform you that BP Solar, together with consortium partners FRV and Pacific Hydro, have been selected by the Federal Government as the winner of the solar PV Flagship Program.  The project submission was comprehensive, covering every aspect of installation safety and environmental management, running into the thousands in terms of manhours and pages of documentation. BP Solar’s legendary attention to detail is what...

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Planned changes to feedin tariff scrapped

Threat passes: Planned changes to the 60c feedin tariff enjoyed by older installations have been scrapped.  Householders that had borrowed money to install the systems welcomed the government decision to honour existing contracts.  The backdown is a positive step that recognises the basic principle of contracts, and the upper house independents, minor parties & back benchers are to be commended for their principled stand. Many of the older systems were installed at a time when the currency was lower and the price of panels higher –...

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NSW Solar Rally – Last Chance

The NSW government plans some nasty retrospective changes to the 60c tariff for existing completed projects. A rally is proposed that seeks to highlight the concerns of the 110,000 families affected. Show your support for Solar!NSW Solar Last Chance Rally11:30am Wednesday 18 May, 2011Barnet Long Room: Customs House31 Alfred StreetCircular Quay, Sydney

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NSW Govt makes further cuts to Solar Bonus Scheme

Note: This information does not affect new applicants, who are able to connect but are not participants of the solar bonus scheme Under the cover of a media-hogging Harbour Bridge protest, the O’Farrell government announced the retrospective roll-back of the 60c tariff to 40c for existing systems. Changing the rules after the fact is just not cricket – especially with so many sunk costs involved. It is like charging you $5 for a train ticket, and then suddenly charging another $5 when you get to the destination...

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No Feed in Tariff News causes angst for hardworking families

No news of the NSW government position on the feed in tariff causes many families to wonder what solar can do for them. Ready to make decisions, there is no guidance from the O’Farrell government as to when the feed in tariff (an amount paid for solar electricity sold to the grid) will be announced. Caught between two governments, NSW householders are at risk of missing out on financial incentives from Federal Renewable Energy Certificates before the scheme drastically reduces in June. Why? Sydney householders for the most part are...

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Federal Government announces further RECs change

Flash Traffic: Solar credits quantity reduced by larger margin than announced previously Solar Credits is the name given the the incentive available for capital investment in green energy production. For information on on the Feed in Tariff, see this news article and general feed in tariff information The Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, Greg Combet, today revealed that the Solar Credits multiplier will be reduced from 5 to 3 from 1 July 2011 to 30 June 2012, with the effect being to reduce the installation incentive by...

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Conergy cracks 3rd Thai MW class project

With the 12.4 megawatt solar park in Thailand’s Nakhon Pathom province, global solar provider Conergy is building its 3rd solar park in the SE Asian nation within one year. Together with its local partner Annex Power, the German PV specialist is constructing a park covering an area of 268,500 square meters – equivalent to the size of ‘Aussie Stadiums’. Conergy’s own inverters, and the German manufactured Conergy PowerPlus modules will be used in the project, showing that utilities in Asia have an appetite for reliable...

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BP Solar Park in Kothen, Germany, still going strong

One year one, the BP Solar supplied 45 megawatt Köthen Solar Park is still going strong. One of the top ten solar plants in the world, the Köthen Solar Park is one of the largest featuring string inverters (smaller inverters distributed throughout the plant, rather than a central inverter. More than 205,000 BP Solar modules happily power the local network of the...

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