Tag Archives: cdte
CdTe PV Efficiency Record Goes Back to First Solar
Last month we reported on how General Electric quietly stole the cadmium telluride (CdTe) solar cell effficiency crown from First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) — with a solar cell clocking in at 18.3 percent. When I asked First Solar CTO Raffi Garabedian for a comment at the time, he was respectful, but said that it didn’t [...]
First Solar Teams Up with Intermolecular on CdTe PV Efficiency
In order to stay competitive with crystalline silicon (c-Si), thin-film solar manufacturers such as the leader in that technology, First Solar (Nasdaq: FSLR) have to continue to keep their eye on costs but must also raise efficiency. First Solar has had a modest but consistent ramp in conversion efficiency of roughly 0.1 percentage point per [...]
The Safety of First Solar’s CdTe Thin Film
Those who live near the 230-megawatt Antelope Valley Solar Ranch One want to know whether the 3.7-million cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin film solar panels First Solar will install in their desert terrain are a threat to them. “I feel somehow that we’re the experimental rat,” one resident said in an email to GTM. “Cadmium? Hmmmmmmm.” [...]
Update: Abound Solar
Last month, Abound Solar, a solar panel manufacturer working in the cadmium telluride (CdTe) materials system, made some troubling announcements. Abound is halting production of its first-generation, 10.5-percent-efficiency CdTe PV module in order to transition to building its next-generation, higher-efficiency module. That transition will result “in the temporary reduction of approximately 180 permanent jobs” from [...]
The Curse of the DOE Loan Guarantee?
A few months ago, we published an article that asked, “What is Really Happening at Abound Solar?” We’ve just learned the bad news — and maybe some good news. Abound is halting production of its first-generation, 10.5-percent-efficiency cadmium telluride (CdTe) PV module in order to transition to building its next-generation, higher-efficiency module. That’s the good [...]
First Solar Sets CdTe Solar PV Efficiency Record
First Solar Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR), the Arizona company which has been garnering awards almost since its inception (in 1999), announced another milestone on January 16th. The company’s cadmium telluride (CdTe) photovoltaic (PV) module achieved a record 14.4 percent efficiency, or one percentage point greater than the record mark it set in August of 2011. This [...]
The Future of CdTe
Considering First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) accounts for about 70% of 5NPlus’ revenue, it shouldn’t be a surprise that this deal is in theworks… With the solar power market pushing for cheaper ways to utilize the sun’s energy, thin film panels are making their way into the spotlight and First Solar is currently the king of this [...]
Solexant Ramps CdTe to 100MW
If you’re a photovoltaic module startup that hasreceived venture capital funding in the last few years — it’s time tostart showing results. The solar market is no longer the domain of scientists and hobbyists — the industry will ship more than ten gigawatts this year. It’s about scaling big, scaling fast and driving down costs. [...]
Abound Solar Gets $400M from Feds for CdTe PV
Abound Solar’s CEO Tom Tiller told me: "This company has the potential to be the next great solar company." Helping in that quest is a recently announced $400 million loanguarantee from the U.S. DOE. That money is going to help get Aboundfrom its current 65 megawatt capacity "up to about a gigawatt,"according to the CEO. [...]