Posted
by Big Gav
in
australia,
energy storage,
flywheel,
solar power,
solar pv,
sunpower,
western australia
SunPower has announced it has completed a 505-kilowatt solar power installation for Horizon Power at two sites (Marble Bar and Nullagine) in the east Pilbara region of Western Australia. The system is the largest solar tracking system in Australia and powers the world's first hybrid solar-diesel power stations. The plant will generate around 1,048 megawatt hours of solar energy per year.
The T20 Tracker system used follows the sun's movement during the day, increasing sunlight capture by up to 30 percent over conventional systems and significantly reducing land use requirements.
According to The Climate Spectator, the plant employs flywheel technology developed by PowerCorp that is used to smooth the energy from the solar panels and stabilise power quality between the diesel power station and the solar farm.
Posted
by Big Gav
in
hemlock semiconductor,
polysilicon,
pv,
silicon,
solar power,
sunpower
Cleantech.com has a report on a massive expansion of silicon production by Hemlock Semiconductor.
In a $1.5 billion expansion, Hemlock says it will produce 46,000 metric tons by 2012. Hemlock, Mich.-based Hemlock Semiconductor today began production at its new polysilicon facility. The polycrystalline silicon producer says it expects to nearly double its output for both semiconductor and solar energy industries this year.
A joint venture of Dow Corning, Shin-Etsu Handotai Co. and Mitsubishi Materials Corporation, Hemlock already has claim as the world’s leading maker of silicon—the raw material of solar cells. By year end, the company says the site is expected to produce 9,000 metric tons of silicon, bringing the company’s annual capacity to approximately 19,000 metric tons, making the production facility the “largest single polysilicon facility in the world.”
An additional expansion with operations and supply will begin in 2010 and by the end of 2011, the Michigan-based company anticipates the facility will produce 36,000 tons annually.
In 2005, global silicon production was 26,000 metric tons and came from a small number of producers including Hemlock and MEMC of the U.S., REC and Elkem of Norway, Wacker of Germany and Tokuyama of Japan. ...
Last year Hemlock entered a 10-year silicon supply agreement with San Jose, Calif.-based SunPower, with deliveries from this deal slated to begin in 2010. According to last year’s deal, the silicon is expected support more than two gigawatts of solar cell production by SunPower.
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