Greentech Lead Asia: ReneSola, a global manufacturer of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules and wafers, has signed a contract with Strata Solar to offer more than 108,000 of its 300 watt high-efficiency Virtus II 72-cell polycrystalline solar modules for use in five 6.5-megawatt solar farms in North Carolina.
According to Markus Wilhelm, chief executive officer of Strata Solar, ReneSola has the ability to increase module efficiencies and improve temperature coefficients through its proprietary wafer technology, as opposed to the less economical route of trying to achieve such milestones on the cell side.
According to the terms of the contract, ReneSola will deliver its solar modules to Strata Solar project sites in June and July of this year. The five 6.5 MW solar farms will utilize 21,677 ReneSola modules each.
ReneSola uses in-house virgin polysilicon and a vertically integrated business model to remain competitive in the challenging solar PV market. ReneSola solar modules have scored top PVUSA Test Conditions (PTC) ratings with high annual kilowatt-hour output, according to the California Energy Commission (CEC).
In 2012 ReneSola had record solar PV shipments. Total solar wafer and module shipments for the full year 2012 were a record 2.2 gigawatts (GW) in line with company guidance and representing an increase of 70.6 percent from 1.3 GW for the full year 2011.
Despite this, for the full year 2012 net revenues were US$969.1 million, a decrease of 1.6 percent from US$985.3 million in 2011.