QUICK NEWS, July 18: WHO GOT SOLAR VC $$$ IN Q2; GREAT LAKES OFFSHORE WIND PICKS A TURBINE; NEW AND CLEARER NEW ENERGY COST DATA SOURCE

WHO GOT SOLAR VC $$$ IN Q2 Where The $376 Million In Solar Venture-Capital Funding Went In Q2

17 July 2012 (Solar Industry)

“Venture-capital (VC) funding in the solar sector continued to rise steadily in the second quarter, according to Mercom Capital Group's new report on funding and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity in the solar market…VC funding totaled $376 million in 32 deals in the second quarter, compared to $329 million in 34 deals in the first quarter…Downstream companies received the most funding, with $133 million in nine deals, followed by thin-film companies, with $121 million in four deals…

“… VC investment in BOS companies has totaled just $35 million this year…The top five VC funding deals made up approximately 71% of the total funding this quarter, led by a $70 million raise by copper indium gallium diselenide thin-film maker Nanosolar. Other top VC deals included $60 million by solar lease company SunRun and a $55 million raise by solar energy services provider SunEdison.”

click to enlarge

“Other top deals were $33 million raised by thin-film equipment and coating company Beneq and $25 million each raised by microinverter company SolarBridge and mono-crystalline silicon cell company Solexel…There were 60 different VC investors that participated in the 32 deals…The U.S. continued to be the dominant country for VC investments, accounting for approximately 87% of all VC funding in the second quarter…

“M&A activity in the solar sector totaled $325 million in 14 transactions in the second quarter. Only six of these transactions disclosed details…The top M&A transaction was the acquisition of Zhejiang Topoint Photovoltaic, a Chinese monocrystalline and polycrystalline maker, for $276 million by Guangxi Beisheng Pharmaceutical...The second quarter also saw 13 new cleantech and solar-focused investment funds announced, committing a total of $3.2 billion…”

Tweet

GREAT LAKES OFFSHORE WIND PICKS A TURBINE LEEDCo Targeting Siemens' 3 MW Turbine

16 July 2012 (North American Windpower)

“Lake Erie Energy Development Corp. (LEEDCo)…is now targeting Siemens' 3 MW direct-drive wind turbine for its Icebreaker offshore wind farm, a proposed five- to nine-turbine project seven miles off the coast of Cleveland in Lake Erie…

“…LEEDCo had selected GE Energy's 4.1 MW offshore wind turbines…[but] GE would not devote the resources necessary to make modifications in the turbine's rotor diameter, as LEEDCo had requested… LEEDCo expects the switch in turbine units will provide cost reductions…The technical details of the [Siemens] turbine are also significant…”

click to enlarge

“…[S]witching to a lower turbine nameplate would appear to produce less electricity…[the Siemens turbine’s] capacity factor and overall energy output [may] actually be greater, given the turbine is designed for Lake Erie’s Class II wind regime. Class I turbines are optimal for North Sea and Atlantic wind conditions…

“…[T]he Siemens turbine will be entirely manufactured in the U.S. - a plus for job creation and lower transportation costs.”

Tweet

NEW AND CLEARER NEW ENERGY COST DATA SOURCE New Database Makes Costs of Energy Technologies More Transparent

July 16, 2012 (EERE News via U.S. Department of Energy)

“As part of the Energy Department's Open Energy Information platform (Open EI) and its continued commitment to open and transparent energy data, the Department released… a new public database featuring cost and performance estimates for electric generation, advanced vehicle, and renewable fuel technologies…

“…TheTransparent Cost Database (TCDB) provides technology cost estimates for companies, utilities, policy makers, consumers, and academics, and can be used to benchmark company costs, model energy scenarios, and inform research and development decisions…[with] estimates for what energy technologies, such as a utility-scale wind farm, rooftop solar installation, biofuel production plant, or an electric vehicle, might cost today or in the future.”

click to enlarge

“By providing an initial estimate of current and projected costs and performance characteristics for vehicles, biofuels, and renewable electricity generation, the new database will help companies and investors make informed decisions supporting the commercialization and deployment…The TCDB provides access to published historical and projected cost targets and performance estimates developed by DOE, in a place that is easy to find and update. The cost data are sourced from published studies and DOE program-planning or budget documents that, while public, were previously difficult to find and collect.

“The database currently contains thousands of estimates from more than 100 reports. The estimates and targets in the TCDB are a result of DOE's detailed and ongoing road-mapping process for various technologies…to guide research and development investments and to define success metrics…The new database will soon allow experts outside of DOE to contribute reliable new data to continually expand and validate the cost information available…and downloadable from DOE's Open Energy Information platform…”

Tweet