In another sign of trouble in the PV capital equipment sector, Veeco has decided to exit the CIGS solar systems business. Announced as part of the company's second-quarter financials, the move results in a combined negative impact and backlog removal of approximately $71 million on its Q2 GAAP results.

China's LED industry has seen significant development after the initiation of the National Semiconductor Illuminating Project in 2003, says Beijing-based CCID Consulting Co Ltd.

Solar panels integrated on LED area-light poles feed power onto the grid during daytime peak electrical usage to compound the energy savings of SSL technology.

New SSL street-light projects in Boston, MA and Weston, FL utilize Philips Hadco and Roadway luminaires, and Philips SpeedStar luminaires serve in a UK pilot.

LED lighting technology pioneer Dialight hoisted first half revenues by 12% - then predicted it can exceed expectations for the full year.

Q-Cells SE, once the world's largest solar cell maker, said it's spending 17 million euros ($25 million) to expand output of higher-priced modules as a way to diversify away from its main products.

In what may come as a surprise to some, BP Solar has revealed its intention to apply the brakes to its distribution network and module expertise in order to concentrate on project development. In a statement sent to its partners, the company explained that it had made the strategic decision in order to profitably grow over the long term.

LDK Solar Co., Ltd., a vertically integrated manufacturer of photovoltaic (PV) products, today announced that its PV Module Lab located in Nanchang City, Jiangxi Province, China, has officially taken part in Intertek Group's Satellite Program.

Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ) said its second-quarter shipments will beat its earlier expectations, but gross margins are expected at the lower end of its guidance.

The prices of solar panels are falling fast, and that's putting enormous pressure on manufacturers to cut costs and improve the amount of power solar cells can convert from sunlight.

STMicroelectronics fell the most in a decade in Paris trading after CEO Carlo Bozotti said there will be a "correction" in sales and gross margin in the third quarter because of difficulties at customer Nokia.

Patent licensing company Rambus made a net loss of US$10.6 million on revenues of US$66.2 million in the second quarter of 2011. However, the company guided that it would be profitable in the third quarter on rising revenues.

Samsung Electronics CEO Choi Gee-sung said on July 26 that the firm has no plans to revise down its capex for the second half and that its bread-and-butter memory chip business would get additional investment this year.

DuPont announced on Monday that it has bought Innovalight, a Silicon Valley startup that makes silicon ink that solar-cell makers can use to improve the amount of electricity that the cells can squeeze out of sunlight. DuPont declined to disclose the purchase price.

The next generation of solar cells may be printed on ordinary paper.

Texas Instruments sounded a warning for the holiday season as it reported lacklustre activity from manufacturers in computing and consumer electronics, including TVs and gaming machines.

"Skyworks exceeded all key metrics last quarter and we see a steep growth trajectory heading into the second half of calendar 2011," said David J. Aldrich, president and CEO of Skyworks.

Korea Exchange Bank said in a statement that STX and SK Telecom, which both submitted their initial interest in a combined 15% stake, began six weeks of due diligence from Monday.

GE Lighting announced it has signed an agreement to acquire Lightech, a privately held, advanced lighting technology leader based near Tel Aviv, Israel, with commercial teams in Europe, the U.S. and Asia.

Korean-based LG Innotek, a vertically-integrated manufacturer of LEDs for displays and lighting, claims it has built the single-largest LED production complex in the world in Paju, Korea. The manufacturing facility performs all aspects of LED production, from epitaxial wafer growth to LED module production.

First Solar Inc. has announced the sale of its 9.9 megawatt solar plant near Zamora, Spain to European Solar Power Fund, a renewable energy-focused fund for institutional investors managed by KGAL.

Ten years to the day that Q-Cells manufactured its first solar cell, the company has revealed that it is independently launching production of its Q.Peak high-performance module at its Solar Valley Thalheim headquarters.

SunPower has updated its expected fiscal second-quarter financial results, joining a growing number of PV manufacturers adjusting to weaker-than-expected demand in the second quarter of 2011.

Light bulbs haven't been sexy tech since Thomas Edison's day, but innovation has come to an industry that has seen relatively little of it for a century. Today, the lighting industry is in a remarkable state of flux, and much of it has been driven by government action.

The Bosch Group has inaugurated its new EUR530 million photovoltaics competence center in Arnstadt, Germany. The facility includes the company's solar energy division headquarters as well as R&D, PV cell and module production, and a training center under one roof. Together with an adjacent ingot and wafer manufacturing plant, Bosch covers all the steps in the crystalline-silicon value chain at this location.

As Japan rethinks its dependence on nuclear energy in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear accident, Sharp Corp. is out front in the discussion over what's next.

Smartphone manufacturer HTC is considering switching to Samsung's mobile application processors, industry sources said. HTC currently uses Qualcomm processors.

Citing the "deterioration in the overall industry climate as well as delays in the recognition of sales and earnings for projects currently under way," Roth & Rau has cut expectations for the second half of 2011 and withdrawn its forecast guidance for the year. "Given the reduction in demand for solar modules," the company stated, "some customers have reviewed their investment projects intended to expand their production capacities and postponed the agreed delivery dates."

Osram Opto Semiconductors says its new infrared III-V CHIPLEDs are ideal for small and medium size touch displays.

LG Display Co., the world's second-largest maker of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels, reported Thursday a third straight quarterly operating loss for the second quarter as consumers held back TV purchases on an uncertain economic outlook.

This particular poker game had a twist - the ante went up every hand and you had to play every hand. If you left the table, you were out of the game. Does the analogy hold true today?

BP Solar is closing its U.S. manufacturing facility and will refocus is business on developing solar power projects rather than making panels for them, a company spokesman said on Thursday.

Citing strong global smartphone adoption and the "expanded opportunities" afforded by its completed acquisition of Wi-Fi chipmaker Atheros, Qualcomm also raised its revenue and (non-GAAP) earnings guidance for the rest of the year.

According to a report soon to be published in Solar Energy, the official journal of the International Solar Energy Society, solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on roofs are also doing a surprisingly good, if unexpected, job of keeping houses and buildings cooler in summer and warmer in winter.