Evergreen Solar unveils its most powerful solar panel yet

May 6, 2010

Massachusetts solar manufacturer Evergreen Solar, Inc., has unveiled a new solar panel that is its most powerful yet.

The company said its ES-A series solar panel is a 215-watt system has a black frame that will improve the aesthetic appearance of solar arrays.

Evergreen, which already produces panels of 200, 205 and 210 watt solar panels, unveiled its new panel at the Solar Expo event in Italy this week.

String Ribbon

Evergreen Solar produces its solar cells with its “String Ribbon” wafer manufacturing process, which produces silicon cells from molten silicon, rather than by cutting solar crystals.

The process means using less silicon per solar cell than conventional technology, allowing a lower cost solar panel, according to Evergreen.

The firm says that with no wasted silicon, the carbon footprint of its panels is up to 30% smaller than that of its competitors, while payback can be as little as 12 months for installed systems.

Scott Gish, Evergreen Solar’s Vice President, Sales and Marketing, said the new ES-A 215 solar panel would provide optimal performance “right out of the box”.

He said: “We are proud to lead the industry in environmental credentials with the smallest carbon footprint and the quickest energy payback of any silicon-based solar panel available today.”

Financial results

Evergreen Solar, which is listed on the NASDAQ Exchange, posted its latest financial results this week, for the first quarter of 2010, up to April 3.

The company shipped out 35.4MW of solar capacity in the quarter, up from 31.9MW in the last three months of 2009.

Revenues were up 5% to $78.5 million in the quarter, while average selling price for panels was $2.21 per watt, down 4.7% from the $2.32 per watt seen in Q4, 2009 thanks to a stronger US Dollar.

Manufacturing costs for solar cells dropped slightly from $2.05 per watt to $2.04 per watt compared to Q4, 2009. Wafer manufacturing costs were reduced from $0.69 per watt to $0.65 per watt.

Along with its manufacturing operations in Devens, Massachusetts, the company is expanding its manufacturing operations in China.

Richard M. Feldt, Chairman, CEO and President, said his company expected demand to be strong in the second quarter of 2010, and as a result Evergreen was planning to ship between 37 and 38 megawatts of solar capacity from the Devens facility

He said: “Additionally, we expect to begin shipping cells to China from Devens that are to be processed into panels, beginning the transition of panel assembly to China. Overall, we are very pleased with the demand we have seen for our product as well as the progress we’re making at Devens and in China.”