The world’s prettiest solar car – the one CleanTechnica readers may remember as coming from Bochum – kicked off its U.S. leg of its journey around the world this week. The SolarWorldGT is in California today, after successfully […]
Kyocera announced this week that it was launching its “highest-output” solar panel (aka solar module) in the U.S., the 80-cell KD 315 (yes, the beauty above). Kyocera notes that “the new module is ideal for large-scale installations like solar-covered parking.” When reporting on the matter last year, Kyocera was the … [continued]
Yep, it’s that time again—a new solar module efficiency record has been set and independently verified. The solar module company is Semprius. The new efficiency record is 33.9%. And the modules are actually set to come to market this year.
Can you guess which company’s solar modules were determined to be the best-performing solar modules of 2011? […]
What if electricity cost more when the sun was shining?
Many utilities are using new electronic “smart meters” to adjust the price of electricity as often as every hour, to reflect supply and demand. And charging more when electricity is in short supply can be good news, increasing the value of solar by 33% or more.
I think we’ve covered all of the technologies and stories mentioned in this guest post below, but it is a nice summary of some recent clean energy news and a nice “step back and take a broader look at things” kind of piece that I think is worth sharing, so here it is!
Some recent solar energy news we haven’t hit yet: 1. Agendas for the 7th Annual Photovoltaics Summit and 4th Annual Concentrating Solar Thermal Power, scheduled for April 17-19 in San Diego, have been announced. 2. Kyocera has now launched “its highest-output solar module, the 80-cell KD 315,” the company notes. “The new module is ideal for large-scale … [continued]
A new study has found that being able to purchase a rooftop solar panel system is often a privilege of the affluent, but that leasing rooftop solar panel systems is an increasingly popular option for those who simply don’t have the money to pay up front. Asked time and time … [continued]
Clean energy is definitely a great thing for the average consumer – but it’s a little hard to get and it’s not easy to ensure a steady and sufficient supply from 100% green sources. Cue the formation of several coalitions testing the idea of a green neighborhood to see just how clean, energy efficient, and […]
In January 2011, I plotted the size of state solar markets against their average installed cost and found surprisingly little correlation. When Lawrence Berkeley Labs put out its 2011 version of Tracking the Sun (IV), it was possible to update the chart, which I did in two stages.
The first chart simply overlays the 2010 average installed cost on the original chart, with arrows indicating the movement of the prices in most states (I ran out of room in the small market states). It’s almost like a rainbow rain of falling solar prices. […]
