Growth, Market Share and Dynamic Change in The PV Inverter Industry

The PV inverter market, once short of innovation, has seen a surge of investment in the last few years. Spurred by startup advances, established firms like SMA, Satcon, and National Semiconductor are developing new distributed PV electronics technologies in-house or through acquisition. This Special Report from Greentech Media, sponsored by Enphase Energy, takes a look at the state of innovation in the inverter market, VC investment activity, and the emerging leaders in the $2.4 billion PV inverter market.

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As the price of PV falls, the technology will become more competitively priced in Europe and the U.S. before its prices are competitive in China.

CPV: New Applications and Emerging Markets
November 16, 2009

Hot Startup »

Solar Startup Solasta Seeks Next Round

The solar firm was founded in 2006 with A round funding from Kleiner Perkins and claims its process could increase the efficiency of conventional amorphous silicon PV by up to 150 percent.

Solar

MIT, Storage, ‘Direct Solar’ Among DOE Research Grant Winners

MIT and startups from the university were some of the recipients of a $151 million round of DOE grants.

Solar
Michael Kanellos October 26, 2009
72 Different Kinds of Solar Cells?

Efficiency is moving back to center stage, while Intermolecular says that the big guys are going to need the brains of the startups.

Startups
Michael Kanellos October 23, 2009
Chinese Company to Build Solar Power Plants in U.S. With Duke

China’s ENN gets its factories from Applied Materials in the U.S. and will work with Duke to build power plants here.

Projects
Michael Kanellos October 23, 2009
National Semi Buys Energy Recommerce

National Semi, which launched devices for boosting solar panel performance earlier this year, now adds power monitoring software and service to its offerings.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 22, 2009
SunPower Gives Optimistic Outlook for 2010, Plans to Launch Gen 3 Cell

The company’s third-quarter earnings beat expectations, and it’s boosting production to meet demand. But it also cut its 2009 earnings outlook.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 22, 2009
First Solar IPO in Over a Year Is Coming

STR, an encapsulant maker in Connecticut that counts First Solar and SunPower among its customers, could raise $212.2 million

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 22, 2009
Solar Winners: Auto Parts Makers

Skyline Solar, which is raising another round of funding, lines up a car parts maker to produce its concentrating solar systems.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 22, 2009
DayStar Technologies Loses CEO, Again

The struggling CIGS thin-film company, which also canceled a merger plan with EPOD Solar, is now on its fourth chief executive this year.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 21, 2009
Suntech Forms Alliances to Launch ‘Reliathon’ for Utility Market

The solar panel maker is packaging a new line of panels with trackers and inverters from other makers to entice project developers.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 21, 2009
Solar Declines in Price by More than 30%, But Don’t Credit the Panel

Being cheap to employees and cutting overhead has helped drive the solar market.

Policy
Michael Kanellos October 20, 2009
Rooftop Solar, Batteries Included

Silent Power wants to be the battery-solar panel system in GE’s future net-zero energy homes, which will likely require utility rebates.

Grid Storage
Jeff St. John October 20, 2009
Energy and Health: The $120B Hidden Cost

A National Research Council report quantifies how energy production and use poses a significant and expensive risk to humans.

Policy
Ucilia Wang October 19, 2009
Power Consumption Down for a Year in U.S., Solar Dips Too

Blame it on the recession. Power consumption has declined for 12 months, says the EIA. And there’s been a slight dip in solar.

Policy
Michael Kanellos October 16, 2009
First Solar Joins S&P 500

With the company joining the S&P 500 list, it’s hard not to notice that solar is getting downright mainstream.

Manufacturing
Michael Kanellos October 16, 2009
Siemens Buys Solel for $418M

The German version of General Electric makes a big play in solar thermal. Expect acquisitions to continue.

Manufacturing
Michael Kanellos October 15, 2009
SolarEdge Lines Up GE as Investor

The Israeli outfit wants to take on National Semi and others in improving solar panels with electronics. In solar, it’s the big growth field.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 14, 2009
Job Seekers: TSMC Pushing Hard to Fill Spots for Solar, Lights

Get those resumes moving. TSMC is looking for execs to head up its push for solar. Other conglomerates may follow.

People
Michael Kanellos October 13, 2009
Morgan Solar Raises $4.7M, Opens Pilot Line for CPV

The Toronto startup lines up Iberdrola as an investor and hopes to start shipping commercial solar concentrating systems in 2010.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 9, 2009
Solarion Plans for 10MW-Plus Commercial Line in 2010

The company has been producing CIGS thin films with plastic substrate at its 200-kilowatt pilot line, and is now set for commercial product launch next year.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 8, 2009
Feds Budget $750M for ‘Conventional’ Renewable Energy Generation

The new loan guarantee program will support as much as $8 billion in loans for power plants using more mature solar, wind and other technologies.

Solar
Ucilia Wang October 7, 2009