Martifer Solar, JV partners to develop a 63 MW solar PV project in Mexico with Canadian Solar

Martifer Solar (Oliveira de Frades, Portugal), a subsidiary of Martifer SGPS, and its JV partners have signed a development agreement with Canadian Solar Inc. (Guelph, Ontario) for a 63 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) project in Aguascalientes, Mexico.

MIRE is a joint venture formed by Martifer Solar Sistemas Solares, S.A., Energía ECG, S.A.P.I de C.V. and Ithaca Environmental Ventures Limited to develop projects in Mexico.

MIRE began the development of this PV project in the end of 2015 and after a long process to obtain land control, the company managed to achieve an agreement with Canadian Solar prior to Mexico's first renewable energy auction.

15-year PPA with CFE

Canadian Solar won the 63 MWp PV project in Aguascalientes, Mexico, once connected to the grid the solar power will be sold to CFE (Comisión Federal de Electricidad), under a 15-year Power Purchase Agreement for energy and capacity and 20-year for Clean Energy Certificates.

The competitive tariff in the auction allows the electricity from the plant to be sold to CFE at USD 47.95/MWh. The PV plant will be built in Aguascalientes, which is a north-central state in Mexico, located approximately 500 km away from Mexico City. The project is expected to be operational by Q3, 2018.

“It is an honor work together with Canadian Solar on the development of this project and we are very pleased with this milestone achievement for our team in Mexico,” said Jesus Pacheco, Director of Development for Latin America from Martifer Solar.

Recent auction ended with an average price of USD 40.50/MWh for solar power

In a recent presentation published by CENACE (Centro Nacional de Control de Energía), it shows how competitive the auction was with 468 total offers presented and only 18 winning offers selected, of which 2,191 MW was solar PV and 394 MW was wind.

The PV projects selected in the auction will range in size from 18 MW to 500 MW and are spread out over six states: Guanajuato, Coahuila, Yucatan, Jalisco, Aguascalientes and Baja California Sur. The auction ended with an average price of USD 40.50/MWh for solar PV and USD 43.90/MWh for wind.

source:http://www.solarserver.com

SolarEdge announces fiscal Q3 results, record revenue

SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. (Herzelya Pituach, Israel) on May 9^th, 2016 announced its financial results for the fiscal third quarter ended March 31^st, 2016 including a record revenue of USD 125.2 million, up 0.3% from last quarter and 44.9% year-over-year.

The company shipped 416 megawatts (AC) of solar PV inverters in fiscal Q3.

“We are pleased with another strong quarter despite challenging market conditions,” comments Guy Sella, Founder, Chairman and CEO of SolarEdge.

“Our growing customer base, continued diligent execution, strong balance sheet and increased cash flow from operations, coupled with our advanced technology, position us well moving forward.”

GAAP gross margin was 32.5%, up from 30.9% in the prior quarter and up from 27.4% in the fiscal third quarter of 2015.

GAAP net income was USD 20.8 million, down from USD 24.1 million in the prior quarter (including a one-time USD 6.6 million tax asset) and up from USD 6.0 million in the fiscal third quarter of 2015.

GAAP net diluted earnings per share (EPS) was USD 0.47, down from USD 0.55 in the prior quarter (including the one-time USD 6.6 million tax asset) and up from USD 0.01 in the fiscal third quarter of 2015.

The Company expects revenues to be within the range of USD 125 million to USD 134 million for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2016 as follows. Q4, gross margin guidance is in the range of 29.0 % to 31.0%.

source:http://www.solarserver.com

Total files friendly tender offer valuing Saft’s equity at EUR 950 million

Total (Paris, France) and Saft (Paris, France) on May 9^th, 2016 announced that, following the signature of an agreement between the companies, Total filed a friendly tender offer on all of the issued and outstanding shares in the capital of Saft, a designer and manufacturer of advanced technology batteries and energy storage systems, with the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF).

The proposed offer will target all of Saft’s issued and outstanding shares at a price of EUR 36.50 per share, ex-dividend of EUR 0.85 per share, valuing Saft’s equity at EUR 950 million.

The offer price represents a 38.3% premium above Saft’s closing share price of EUR 26.40 on May 6^th, 2016, a premium of 41.9% above the volume weighted average share price over the past six months and a premium of 24.2% above the volume weighted average share price over the past year.

The offer values Saft at nine times its 2015 reported EBITDA, which represents a significant control premium compared to recent valuation multiples in the battery industry.

Saft Supervisory Board approves the friendly takeover

The Supervisory Board of Saft has unanimously approved the friendly takeover by Total and considers the proposed transaction to be in line with the interests of the company, its shareholders and its employees.

As part of the reasoned opinion that it must issue in accordance with market regulations, the Supervisory Board has also announced its intention to recommend that its shareholders tender their shares.

The proposed offer is subject to review by the AMF, which will evaluate its compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

Total Chairman and CEO Pouyanné: “Saft to become the Group’s spearhead in electricity storage”

“The combination of Saft and Total will enable Saft to become the Group’s spearhead in electricity storage,” said Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of Total.

“The acquisition of Saft is part of Total’s ambition to accelerate its development in the fields of renewable energy and electricity, initiated in 2011 with the acquisition of SunPower.”

Ghislain Lescuyer, Saft’s CEO, added: “I am convinced that Total will provide Saft with the required expertise and resources needed for its future development, particularly in terms of technological and commercial capabilities.”

source:http://www.solarserver.com

CellCube storage system could be the basis for a fueling station

In Martigny (Switzerland) a CellCube vanadium redox flow storing system is installed since the end of 2015 as a basis for the fueling station of the future.

The project is led by the Laboratory for Physical and Analytical Electrochemistry (LEPA) of the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) aiming to delevop a fueling station of the future for vehicles powered by carbon-free energy.

This fueling station is capable of providing energy to battery-electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles alike. Herewith the type of infrastructure needed to transition to alternatively fueled vehicles can be explored.

Storing green energy with the CellCube FB 200-400

The core of the system is a CellCube FB 200-400 vanadium redox flow storing system with a power output of 200 kW and a storage capacity of 400 kWh. As a control center the CellCube is used for charging electric vehicles as well as for the production of hydrogen.

The CellCube will be critical for isolating the fueling station from disturbances in the power grid, as well as dampening the demand for energy from the grid. However, the vanadium redox flow storage system takes on the additional role of managing the various loads at the fueling station. As the ‘brain’ of the system, the CellCube will determine when to charge, when to discharge back into the electrical grid and produce hydrogen, all while maintaining enough contingency power to supply the site through a blackout.

During the course of the project, this control scheme will be optimized with the goal of being able to power such a fueling station entirely by renewable energy sources. “The project provides a glimpse of the future of mobility, based on clean, sustainable energy,” reads the press release.

 source:http://www.solarserver.com

TEP receives approval to develop two innovative 10 MW energy storage facilities

Tucson Electric Power (TEP, Arizona, U.S.) will enter into long-term agreements with E.ON Climate & Renewables and NextEra Energy Resources for the construction of two large, innovative energy storage systems.

The energy storage projects, approved on May 3^rd, 2016 by the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC), will be used to improve service reliability and study how such systems can support the expansion of solar power resources and other renewable energy technologies.

“We hope that innovative systems like these will help us achieve our long-term renewable energy goals without compromising the reliability or affordability of our service,” said David G. Hutchens, TEP’s President and Chief Executive Officer.

TEP is working to deliver at least 30 percent of its power from renewable resources by 2030, doubling the state’s 2025 goal.

In June 2015, TEP issued a request for proposals to lease a large, 10 megawatt (MW) energy storage system. With bids submitted by more than 20 qualified vendors, TEP was able to select two competitively-priced proposals.

“Because our project partners were motivated to demonstrate the capabilities of their respective technologies, they submitted favorable bids that will allow us to build both projects for less than our original estimated cost to build a single 10 MW system,” said Carmine Tilghman, a TEP Senior Director who oversees the company’s renewable energy programs.

“These systems will help us build a more resilient grid at a reduced cost to consumers.”

Both projects will be developed under 10-year contracts with performance agreements to protect customers and the company from financial risks associated with investing in new technologies.

The projects include:

• A 10 MW lithium nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) facility at a TEP substation near Interstate 10 and West Grant Road. The system will be built by NextEra Energy Resources, based in Juno Beach, Florida, and is expected to be in operation late this year.
  
• A 10 MW lithium titanate oxide (LTO) storage facility and accompanying 2 MW solar array located at the University of Arizona Science and Technology Park southeast of Tucson. The facility will be built by Chicago-based E.ON Climate & Renewables and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2017.

The systems will be used primarily to help maintain the required balance between energy demand and supply.

Energy storage systems can boost power output levels more quickly than conventional generating resources. If the voltage frequency of the regional electric grid suddenly dropped, power producers like TEP would be required to quickly ramp up output to boost frequency and maintain reliability.

The systems also can help prevent power outages during periods of high energy demand by supporting stable voltage on TEP’s energy delivery system. In the event of an outage, the systems could provide about 5 MW of power for up to an hour.

TEP will continue investing in large solar arrays and other community scale renewable resources that add cost-effective capacity to its renewable energy portfolio. TEP anticipates an additional 800 megawatts (MW) of new renewable capacity by the end of 2030, boosting its total renewable energy portfolio to approximately 1,200 MW.

 source:http://www.solarserver.com

REFU Elektronik completes blanket purchase agreement for the delivery of solar PV string inverters with 92 MW to Turkey

REFU Elektronik (Pfullingen, Germany) on May 3^rd, 2016 announced the completion of a blanket purchase agreement with the Turkish investor A Enerji regarding the delivery of REFUsol string inverters for photovoltaic (PV) projects with a total of 92 megawatts (MW).

As a part of the Solarex trade show in Istanbul, REFU Elektronik GmbH and the Turkish investor A Enerji signed a blanket purchase agreement for 92 MW with a term set to last until the end of May 2017.

A Enerji, which has already implemented several systems using REFUsol devices, will build the PV systems with 2 x 40 MW and 12 MW in the Mediterranean region of Osmaniye.

The decentralised photovoltaic systems will be equipped with REFUsol 40K/46K inverters.

“One advantage of this 3-phase string inverter with 400 V AC or 460 V AC is the integrated convection cooling, which makes the devices nearly maintenance-free. Additionally, they offer a high return on investment with an efficiency rating of over 98% even at partial load,” explains Christian Buchholz, Head of Solar Project Management at REFU Elektronik.

Additionally, the systems are equipped with the REFUlog monitoring portal. The operating data are recorded using an integrated data logger and transmitted to a web-based database. The Internet-based REFUlog tool makes it possible to monitor and analyse this data and allows the system operator to maintain a continuous overview of the returns and profitability.

After REFU Elektronik GmbH in February announced that it will be embedding REFUsol into the brand portfolio of REFU Elektronik GmbH, successful collaboration in Turkey will be continued through the blanket purchase agreement with A Enerji.

source:http://www.solarserver.com

U.S. DOE announces USD 25 million to accelerate integration of solar energy into Nation’s electrical grid

As part of the U.S. Energy Department’s ongoing efforts to modernize the nation’s grid through the Grid Modernization Initiative, the Energy Department on May 2^nd, 2016 announced USD 25 million in available funding through an effort called “Enabling Extreme Real-Time Grid Integration of Solar Energy (ENERGISE)” to help software developers, solar companies, and utilities accelerate the integration of solar energy into the grid.

Since President Obama took office, the amount of solar power installed in the U.S. has increased 23-fold – from 1.2 gigawatts in 2008 to an estimated 27.4 gigawatts in 2015, with one million systems now in operation.

One of the key challenges to further solar deployment is the ability to integrate distributed generation sources like rooftop PV panels into the grid while balancing that generation with traditional utility generation to keep reliable and cost-effective power flowing to homes and businesses. The funding opportunity announcement will help support companies working to meet that challenge.

ENERGISE specifically seeks to develop software and hardware platforms for utility distribution system planning and operations that integrate sensing, communication, and data analytics.

These hardware and software solutions will help utilities manage solar and other distributed energy resources on the grid and will be data-driven, easily scaled-up from prototypes, and capable of real-time monitoring and control.

“Our ongoing grid modernization work will help accelerate the widespread adoption of the clean energy resources that will define our low-carbon future. This funding will help that mission by supporting industry partners working to integrate, store, and deploy solar energy throughout our electric grid,” said Lynn Orr, Energy Department Under Secretary for Science and Energy.

“In doing so, we hope to drive down costs and encourage even more American homeowners and businesses to install solar systems.”

Through industry and utility partnerships, the expected 10–15 solutions developed with this new funding will be field-tested by utilities to demonstrate their performance and value in real-world operating environments. These live demonstrations and research findings will provide valuable new tools for utilities and grid operators across the nation.

The full funding opportunity announcement, including application requirements, can be found on Energy.gov.

 source:http://www.solarserver.com