Xcel Energy, along with the Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence, are providing funding for a study to determine the viability of using sustainably managed waste wood as a biomass fuel. The wood, which would consist of brush or of fast-growing trees that don’t provide high-quality wood, could be grown by agricultural coops, harvested sustainably, and used to power Xcel’s French Island plant.
In an article posted on TradingMarkets.com, David Donovan, Xcel’s manager of regulatory policy … Read the rest
Morgan Joseph has initiated coverage on Cree Inc (CREE) this morning with Hold saying the stock is fairly valued at current levels. The firm believes Cree is the best play on LED’s and is gaining market share of 1-2% per year while its largest competitor, Nichia, continues to lose share. They don’t believe LED’s are a fad, but rather a long term growth story. The other publicly traded LED play to keep an eye on … Read the rest
Quantum Fuel Systems just announced that it has obtained $3 million worth of new debt financing. The financing comes from WB QT, LLC, and also allowed Quantum to restructure its existing loan with that company. Here’s the lowdown on the agreement, from a company press release:
Quantum gets an additional $3 million in new debt financing in the form of a 11.5% convertible note with a conversion price of $0.71. The maturity date is August … Read the rest
Solar shares will have a tough time getting going today after the world’s largest solar cell manufacturer issued a profit warning. It appears Germany’s Q-Cells has changed its mind. Less than two weeks ago, a spokesman for the company said they had no plans to issue a profit warning, saying, “If Q-Cell were planning to send out a profit warning, I would have heard about it.” What a difference 10 days makes.
Renesola (SOL) has announced that the first trial run has been completed at its shiny new plant in China’s Sichuan province. This is the first phase of a two phase, 3000 MT annualized capacity plant which uses the Siemens process and a closed loop to produce the polysilicon. Phase 2 is expected to reach mechanical completion in September.
“The launch of our in-house polysilicon manufacturing facility represents another exciting strategic milestone for ReneSola,” commented … Read the rest
“We are very excited to acquire a controlling interest of Solar Green Technology,” stated Xiaofeng Peng, Chairman and CEO of LDK Solar. “SGT’s management and workforce have demonstrated strong competence and boasts solid experience in the PV … Read the rest
Hat tip to StreetInsider.com for the following upgrade/downgrade notes:
Hapoalim downgrades Suntech Power (STP) to Sell with a $9 price target, citing escalating solar module price war. The firm said, “Evidenced by Ersol’s recent decision to adjust the mid-point of its CY09 EBIT guidance to “negative” vs. +12% before (due to a “sig. drop in prices of solar modules”), we believe “Tier 1” module vendors are beginning to react to price aggression by Chinese solar … Read the rest
Volvo has chosen Ener1’s lithium-ion batteries for its plug-in hybrid V70 demonstration cars. These cars are being tested in Europe as part of a program to deliver a commercial plug-in hybrid by 2012. The demonstration cars can go for 31 miles on a single charge, and can draw power from a normal household outlet. For long distance trips, the car uses an integrated diesel engine.
Enerdel, Ener1’s manufacturing arm, created the batteries especially for the … Read the rest
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