Well ahead of the German solar subsidy cuts slated for July 1, German demand for solar modules from powerhouses Suntech Power Holdings Co Ltd. and First Solar has been high—high enough to have prompted the former to add 1 gigawatt in production capacity in Shanghai over the following three years, and high enough to  have induced the latter to announce its inability to meet demand this year.

Sales were high for the first half of 2010, with solar module orders high in anticipation of July 1 subsidy cuts, according to Stephan Hansen, Managing Director at First Solar. In an interview with Swiss paper Finanz und Wirtschaft, he stated that business will likely improve fourth quarter after a slow showing in the third quarter, due to the subsidy cuts. With subsidies expected to fall again in 2011, First Solar won’t be limiting its sales operations to Germany, particularly if the country stops subsidizing farmland solar systems, as it plans to. The world’s lowest cost producer of solar modules also views the United States—where it is based, in Arizona—the Middle East, Africa, China and India as potentially lucrative markets, although it has had to postpone projects in its home country in order to meet European demand.

First Solar, of course, isn’t the only global player with its sales engine currently in overdrive. Chinese producers such as Suntech, Yingli and Trina have also showed signs of being sold out, according to Hansen. Suntech Chairman Zhengrong Shi told reporters on Saturday that he expected the German solar cell market—still the world’s largest—to grow by 70 to 80 percent this year and the U.S. market to grow to 1 GW for 2010. With a 2.68 billion yuan ($393 million US) investment in its new Shanghai facility, Suntech is certainly putting its money where its mouth is.

Just how green are the solar panels gracing your rooftop? For most home- and business-owners, it’s still difficult to tell—but, if rankings are your thing, the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition’s 2010 Solar Company Survey and Scorecard may be a good starting point. Released earlier this week, the San Jose-based organization’s report surveyed 25 of the world’s biggest solar photovoltaic panel and/or cell manufacturers and scored them based on their environmental practices and policies, which included “Extended Producer Responsibility and Takeback” (product recycling), green jobs, chemical use and disclosure. German companies topped the list, with Q-Cells, Calyxo and SolarWorld in the lead, and American powerhouse First Solar trailing not too far behind.

If these results surprise you, it might be because, out of the 25 companies surveyed, only 14 responded—although these 14 represent a hefty 28% of the 2008 world solar module market share. (Companies that presumably did not respond include Sharp, SunPower, Suntech and Solyndra, who all received scores of 0.) Furthermore, the SVTC states on the Solar Scorecard website that “product takeback and recycling” is not a common feature of most solar companies, which may partly account for the low response rate as well as the mid-to-low scores the majority of respondents received. Other findings included:

Seven of the responding companies have “undertaken analysis of their supply chain to document the social and environmental impacts associated with different production phases.”

Six companies report that their products contain lead, the most commonly used toxic element/chemical of those reviewed. All of these companies have plans to phase out lead eventually, though most say that the timeline is undetermined. Two companies will begin phasing out lead in 2010. Six companies report that they have employees doing manual lead soldering.

Three companies (Abound Solar, First Solar, and Calyxo) have products that contain cadmium compounds, and that they do not have plans to phase them out. No responding companies use mercury, hexavalent chromium (Cr6+), polybrominated biphenyls (PBB), or polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE).

The Solar Scorecard touts itself as the first survey to assess and compare the environmental procedures and performance of solar companies, and, as far as we know, it is currently the only bearer of this title. As with any company manufacturing products for the benefit of the environment—or any large company in general—the corporate social responsibility aspect of solar manufacturers’ operations is more important than ever, and it’s heartening to see an industry watchdog emerge. While the SVTC’s pool of information is still smaller than ideal—and the “green” nature of its survey questions was occasionally dubious (for example, what does prison labor have to do with a company’s commitment to environmental protection?)—chances are the 2011 Solar Scorecard will see an improved response rate, as well as a lot more buzz.

Industry cost leader First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) soon may face increased competition in the thin-film solar market in the form of GE, which is making the switch from traditional silicon to cadmium-telluride—the same material that First Solar uses—in its production of solar panels. Apparently following the same logic as the Arizona-based solar giant, GE’s research arm released on Thursday news about its activities in cadmium telluride, which it has deemed the most potentially cost-effective material to use in manufacturing solar photovoltaic cells.

“We think cad tel fundamentally has better cost structure than other thin-film technologies” [said Danielle Merfeld, the solar technology platform-leader at GE’s research facility in Niskayuna, NY]. “The combination of efficiency that we think we can get to, the yield of the manufacturing line, the cost of manufacturing, and the cost of raw materials–the combination gives us the best outcome for making electricity.”

GE’s thin-film solar cells will utilize technology from PrimeStar Solar, a Denver, Colorado-based company of which it was the majority shareholder in 2008, and will go into production sometime in 2011. While that’s still a long way off, GE isn’t letting its announcement go unnoticed by potential rivals.

In terms of efficiency, Merfeld said GE projects it can come to market with a solar panel that is more efficient than what First Solar already offers, which is about 11 percent.

As one of the two largest solar manufacturers in the world, First Solar is unlikely to allow GE into its space without a fight, particularly since the latter is targeting the utility market with its new panels. With its reputation for efficient manufacturing and its strong financial performance even in the face of economic crisis, First Solar has presumably long since begun to gear up for a fight.

Regardless of its many advantages, we’ll be among the first to admit that solar power isn’t exactly a renter-friendly technology. Whether you live in an apartment, condo or multi-family home, the prospect of installing a solar panel array, however attractive, is for the most part dimmed by the temporality of your residence. However, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District has a program on offer for renters and others who do not currently reside in a single-family home, with an interest in going solar.

SolarShares, which services up to 1,000 customers, is essentially composed of a 1 MW solar farm from which SMUD customers can buy “shares”— parcels that grant them ownership of a small fraction of the solar array. The electricity generated by each customer’s “shares” appears as a credit on his or her energy bill, a savings expected to average between $4-$50 a month, given the variability in sunshine production throughout the year. (Naturally, summer is the most productive time for solar panels.) For a monthly fee—starting at $10.75 a month for a 0.5 kW system—SolarShares program participants can opt into solar power production without the high upfront costs traditionally associated with a full-size residential solar panel installation. In its current phase, the SolarShares program is sold out, although plans are in progress to expand capacity. You can find out more on the SolarShares website here. (And California isn’t the only state with a community solar farm setup! Similar programs can be found in Colorado, St. George, Utah, and Falmouth, Massachusetts.)

By adding on roughly 9 percent to customers’ energy bills, however, the SolarShares program is still far from perfect. After all, it’s primarily a way for those with an interest in solar—but who are ineligible for a rooftop array, for one reason or another—to opt into a system with great environmental impact. Nevertheless, in spite of its occasionally forbidding upfront costs, owning a solar array is still the best option for those seeking to take advantage of the cost-effectiveness of solar power. For many renters, SolarShares may currently be the best choice for going solar, but keeping your options open in the future—especially if you do eventually find yourself a proud homeowner—wouldn’t go amiss.

Solar powerhouse SunPower Corporation has announced plans to build two 1-Megawatt photovoltaic solar power plants, slated for completion by August 2010, in Italy’s southern region of Puglia. The San Jose, California-based manufacturer will undertake the projects in partnership with Italian investment and management company K6 S.a.S., with the electricity generated by the plants feeding into local and national electric grids alike.

The two 1-MW solar plants are just the latest additions to SunPower’s activities in Italy, as it already operates a 24-MW solar power plant in Montalto di Castro. While Italy has yet to gain the level of attention Germany or the U.S. have in terms of solar infrastructure or policy, SunPower’s inroads may be the first of many to come: some experts predict that the Mediterranean peninsula nation may be the “first place where solar-generated electricity will not need subsidies to compete with electricity from fossil fuel,” thanks to its abundant sunshine and exorbitant energy rates. We’ll be keeping watch.

By the end of this year, the world’s second-largest solar power plant will be unveiled in what were once Floridian swamplands, 500 acres north of West Palm Beach. According to the New York Times, 190,000 mirrors and thousands of steel pylons will compose the striking display in Indiantown, Florida, a glimmering ode to the nation’s renewable energy future among the humble flora and fauna of its surrounding wetlands. The story here, however, is not of the solar array’s size or splendor, but of its integration with a fossil fuel power plant—the nation’s largest, in fact.

The FPL Group utility, the parent company of Florida Power & Light, is the muscle behind the Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center, the first of several comparable hybrid energy projects springing up in the industry. Although solar plants integrated with small, gas-fired turbines for backup purposes are not uncommon, the FPL solar hybrid plant is the first instance of a “conventional plant [ ] being retrofitted with the latest solar technology on such an industrial scale.” The solar thermal system will be directly grated onto the existing natural-gas plant, and the two will share both transmission lines and a steam turbine. The benefits of such hybridization are twofold: the electricity generated from the plant’s 75-megawatt solar thermal system will cut natural gas usage and consequently carbon emissions, and the retrofit will be cheaper than building a new solar power plant from scratch. (FPL expects to cut costs by 20 percent, compared with a purely solar facility, as it is spared the trouble of constructing a new steam turbine and transmission lines.)

If successful, the hybrid solar power plant will provide a model for how to produce solar power on a grand scale while cutting costs even further. While it doesn’t completely erase the footprint of its carbon-breathing predecessor, it’s a reminder of the role economics plays in the adoption of renewable energies.

“We believe there is a cost to society associated with carbon emissions and not having energy security and not having domestic energy supplies,” [said Lewis Hay III, FPL’s chairman and chief executive.] “But it’s not a level playing field for renewable versus fossil fuels right now.”

With the utilities of 29 states required to increase their renewable energy portfolios, it’s crucial that the playing field become more even—one way or another.

Minnesota isn’t exactly the first state that comes to mind when most people think of solar, but the Lone Star State and its associated utility companies are making significant strides toward a renewable energy future: Xcel Energy, the Minneapolis-based utility company that services a wide swath of Midwestern states—including Colorado, another burgeoning state for solar—unveiled yesterday its new Solar*Rewards program, which aims to increase the amount of small-scale solar photovoltaic installations in Minnesota.

Through Solar*Rewards, Xcel Energy will offer a one-time solar rebate of $2.25 per installed watt of generating capacity for solar panel installations from 0.5 to 40 kilowatts in size. A 3.5-kilowatt installation, for example, would receive a $7,875 incentive payment—and that’s not including pre-existing state and federal incentives. In return for the rebate check, Xcel would require Solar*Rewards program participants to transfer their Renewable Energy Credits to the utility for a period of 20 years—a small amount to ask for a future of lower electricity bills.

From the news release:

“The program will benefit both our customers and the environment,” said [Laura McCarten, Xcel Energy regional vice president.] “One 3.5 kilowatt photovoltaic system produces enough renewable energy to offset the carbon dioxide emissions produced from driving a car more than 6,000 miles. Also, when we buy your excess energy, we’re adding renewable energy to our grid and, therefore, reducing emissions.”

While it’s barely been a day since the program’s inception, if successful solar programs in Massachusetts or California are any indication, those interested in solar adoption would do well to act early. Solar*Rewards will fund roughly 2 megawatts of solar installations a year for the next three years, which amounts to about 450 4.4-kilowatt system installations annually. The adage “the early bird gets the worm” applies here—as with all good things.

A new bill in the Golden State could soon give home- and business-owners access to a statewide loan program that would help them finance solar installations and other renewable energy projects. The bill, SBX8 26, would create a program to standardize Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs across California and authorize a $50 million PACE fund to be used as “credit enhancements for qualified PACE financing programs to further lower financing costs.”

The long and short of it is, bill SBX8 26 has the potential to make solar adoption more financially viable for Californians—and not just those living in select cities or municipalities—by giving residential and commercial property owners the option to partially finance their energy retrofits through bonds or loans from their local government. These loans could then be repaid over time via reassessments in the borrower’s property tax bill. For more on the (rather popular) PACE model, Adam has a terrific run-down of San Francisco’s newly-unveiled PACE program here, with the nitty-gritty boiled down to a few key points.

Seeing as the bill passed unanimously (32-0!) hot off the California Senate floor yesterday morning, its chances of moving through the Assembly are good, though any number of obstacles could present themselves before the bill becomes law. Still, the bill’s main angle—job creation—is a flag Democrats and Republicans alike can wave, and the bill’s sponsor, Senator Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills), appears upbeat.

From the press release:

“We can all agree on energy efficiency and jobs. This bill will bring down the cost of energy efficiency loans and help spur job creation. It benefits workers, consumers, businesses and the environment.” said [Pavley] after the unanimous bipartisan vote. “It’s important to show the people of California that when it comes to pressing issues for California families, Democrats and Republicans can work together in Sacramento.”

Jump-starting the economy, lowering unemployment and facilitating solar adoption? Sounds like a bill we can get behind.

Coney Island, New York’s erstwhile amusement park mecca, is en route to receiving an infusion of modernity via its iconic Wonder Wheel, which is slated to install 32 solar panels atop its 16 swinging cars this summer. The man behind the idea, Deno Vourderis, hopes to bring back the bright lights that once characterized the 150-foot-tall Ferris wheel while simultaneously reinvigorating it with green energy.

“It brings back the old look – the look that people knew the Wonder Wheel for,” he said.

The Wonder Wheel used to have bulbs lighting each car before the Vourderises, who have operated the 90-year-old carnival attraction for about three decades, removed them in the 1980’s due to safety concerns over the electrical wiring. However, Vourderis hopes that the Wonder Wheel’s 32 solar panels, which he says will provide 960 watts of electricity, will restore the landmark to the glory of its heyday. Should all go well, he says, he will install more photovoltaic panels and run the entire ride on solar the following year.

“We’ve been a part of Coney Island since the dark ages,” he said. “We are ecstatic.”

In a nearly unanimous decision yesterday, the California Assembly passed a bill that would allow a greater number of people in the state who produce their own solar power to sell the excess electricity to their utility company. Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner’s (D-Berkeley) bill, AB 510, raises the Golden State’s net metering program capacity from 2.5 to 5 percent, a move that supporters say will result in wider adoption of solar technology and offset high electricity costs–and will perhaps even open up the solar market to those who had been formerly closed off to it. Governor Schwarzenegger has every intention to sign the bill, according to Rachel Arrezola, a spokeswoman for the Governor.

“The bill will help California achieve its renewable energy goals by allowing for increased solar installation, more jobs created and more renewable energy in California,” Arrezola said.

Under existing state law, California’s three largest utilities–PG&E, SCE, SDG&E–must obtain 33 percent of their energy from renewable energy resources by 2020, a renewable portfolio standard whose chances of being met would likely rise with the new measure, which provides further impetus for distributed solar generation. Considering that AB 510 passed by 53-1, California’s clean energy future appears to be on track.