Sonora Energy Group

Despite its role in supplying the world with oil, Saudi Arabia is jumping headlong into renewable energy, with plans to install more solar and wind power in the next 20 years than the rest of the world has installed to date. The oil-rich Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is working with the US Department of Energy’s… [Continue Reading]

All German Chancellor Angela Merkel had to do was pick up the phone and dial her people in Brussels. Had she done so before the European Parliament’s (EP) key vote last month on April 19, her party’s representatives could easily have saved the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), Europe’s flagship mechanism for reducing carbon emissions.… [Continue Reading]

Chinese photovoltaic panel manufacturers face import tariffs of up to 67.9 percent in Europe. China is firmly opposed to any punitive duties set by the European Union targeting Chinese solar companies, and the government will defend the rights of domestic companies, a senior Chinese official said on Thursday. “China expects the EU to be cautious… [Continue Reading]

On March 15, 2013, Mexico’s senate approved a national energy strategy for 2013-2027 delivered by energy ministry Sener last month. With 83 votes in favor and 17 against, the plan easily passed through the senate and has now been sent to the chamber of deputies, according to a congressional press release. Lawmakers from the left… [Continue Reading]

Solar panel pioneer Suntech (NYSE: STP), the self professed largest manufacturer of solar panels in the world, on the hook to repay $540 million in bonds that have just come due and without any cash to meet its obligation, seems to be preparing itself for bankruptcy. “It is not surprising,” said Donald Walter, CEO of… [Continue Reading]

At recent meetings in Mexico City, Sonora Energy Group, the parent company of a group of affiliated companies operating under the same name, announced that HRH Prince Zinhle Dlamini has joined its Board of Directors effective 1 February 2013. Prince Dlamini of Swaziland, a medical doctor and grandson of Nelson Mandela, former President of South… [Continue Reading]

After multiple delays, BrightSource confirmed that the power purchase agreements (PPA) with Southern California Edison (SCE) for both Rio Mesa 1 and Rio Mesa 2 have been cancelled and the permitting process for their 500 mW Rio Mesa solar thermal projects has been suspended. The proposed Rio Mesa project consists of two 250-megawatt (MW) (nominal)… [Continue Reading]

Power demand in Mexico increased 3% year-on-year to 16.7TWh in November from 16.2TWh but decreased from 18.1TWh in October, according to the latest figures from national utility CFE. Industries continue to account for the largest share of demand with 9.76TWh in November compared to 9.44TWh in the year-ago month and 10.4TWh in October. Small and… [Continue Reading]

Just a few days ago, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 by vote of 257-167. The measure had passed the US Senate by a vote of 89-8 on December 31st. This deal reinforced the Bush-era tax cuts for individuals making under $400,000 and families making under $450,000, while… [Continue Reading]

According to several sources, MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company (famously backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc.) is buying two co-located solar projects in California from SunPower, billed as the world’s largest permitted solar PV power development. The deal for Antelope Valley Solar Projects (AVSP), totaling approximately 579 megawatts (AC) combined generation capacity, is for an… [Continue Reading]

2012 was certainly an odd year for the Industrial Manufacturing industry in the United States. The year began strong thanks to a mild winter, with companies beginning their 2012 spending earlier than expected, which led to some big months in terms of construction starts for the industry. However, later in the year, things slowed down… [Continue Reading]

In a follow up to news reported in October, the World Trade Organization backed complaints by the European Union and Japan against Canada over subsidies the province of Ontario gives to renewable-energy producers that use domestic technology, according to the Sierra Club and Public Citizen. Under Ontario’s feed-in tariff program, created by the province’s Green… [Continue Reading]

When the International Trade Commission voted unanimously that imports of Chinese solar cells have harmed U.S. solar manufacturers, which will result in tariffs added to solar modules manufactured in China, a new era in the solar industry began. Sadly, this era is seemingly based on American whining and foot stomping instead of focusing on innovation… [Continue Reading]

Mexican President Felipe Calderon recently inaugurated a small-scale solar power plant that he touted as the region’s first, a pilot facility in the northwestern state of Baja California that features only 4,000 photovoltaic panels and 1 MW in generating capacity. The plant is “the first in Mexico, the first in all of Latin America,” the… [Continue Reading]

As reported in Renewable Energy World, one of the leading concentrating photovoltaic companies in the world, SolFocus, has just announced that it is restructuring the business in hopes of finding a buyer. As part of the restructuring, the company let go 35 people last Friday and “the focus of our effort [now] is really around… [Continue Reading]

As reported by Bloomberg, Chinese wind-turbine makers have broken into the South American market, the world’s fastest-growing, by offering government-backed loans at interest rates as much as 50 percent lower than local offerings. The package deals can get buyers to choose Chinese machines over those of Western manufacturers such as Vestas Wind Systems A/S of… [Continue Reading]

Enrique Peña Nieto erased any doubt that he wants to open the energy sector at a meeting with German business leaders. “We have to change the way we do things and take advantage of the potential of other mechanisms that allow the participation of the private sector,” Peña Nieto said of Mexico’s current energy policy… [Continue Reading]

SolarWorld will lay off as many as 37 workers from its Hillsboro plant, company officials confirmed. The factory, which makes solar cells and panels, is suffering from a market downturn that SolarWorld blames primarily on unfair competition from China. A coalition led by the company persuaded the U.S. government to levy tariffs on Chinese imports,… [Continue Reading]

Newly installed photovoltaics in Germany amounted to nearly one GW in September, and 1.85 GW between July and September. As a consequence, the feed-in tariffs (FITs) will be reduced by 2.5% a month for the next three months. Germany’s Federal Network Agency recently released its photovoltaic installation figures for September. On the back of high… [Continue Reading]

In a move that will likely set a worldwide precedent barring governments from imposing local content requirements to their feed-in tariff programs, a forthcoming World Trade Organization report indicates that it will side with the European Union and Japan against the Canadian province of Ontario. Although the official report is not expected to be released… [Continue Reading]

As reported in Renewable Energy World, the China Development Bank (CDB), largely considered to be the main engine behind the Chinese government’s economic development policies, has issued solar project developer Sky Solar Holdings a loan for 10 billion RMB (US$1.6 billion). The agreement, which runs until 2016, is being seen as a way for China… [Continue Reading]

Bloomberg recently reported that the European Union threatened to impose tariffs on solar panels from China in the biggest EU trade dispute of its kind, saying producers in Europe may be victims of unfair price undercutting. The EU opened a probe into whether Chinese manufacturers of solar panels sell them in the 27-nation bloc below… [Continue Reading]

Standard & Poors, recently reported that the European Economic and Monetary Union (eurozone) crisis and the slowing growth in emerging economies such as China and India continue to pressures global growth. Meanwhile, governments around the world are incorporating policy responses to avoid a repeat of the 2008 recession. Nevertheless, defaults have been increasing, and the… [Continue Reading]

In his nomination acceptance speech in Charlotte, North Carolina, Obama emphasized some of the positive energy gains that have been made in the past four years. “We raised fuel standards so that by the middle of the next decade, cars and trucks will go twice as far on a gallon of gas. We’ve doubled our… [Continue Reading]

Chinese battery and electric vehicle maker BYD has denied rumors that have caused its share price to fall sharply and damaged its image. BYD and Daimler Northeast Asia issued a joint statement to refute rumors that the firms are abandoning their partnership, while media reports suggesting billionaire investor Warren Buffett may reduce his stake in… [Continue Reading]

The financial struggles of Suntech Power Holdings, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of solar panels, deepened after the company disclosed a potential fraud that could cost the company more than $680 million, according to a Suntech press release.   Suntech provided loan guarantees for the Global Solar Fund, a solar development company.  In return, $686… [Continue Reading]