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GE Energy has acquired Kelman Limited of Lisburn, Northern Ireland, a provider of advanced monitoring and diagnostics technologies for transformers, enhancing GE's smart grid product portfolio. GE's smart grid offerings are designed to help utilities increase productivity and reliability of both traditional and renewable energy generating assets, while also providing consumers with information to better manage their electricity use and expenses.

Higher sulphuric acid prices, up almost 200% on a year ago, to 1500 yuan per tonne, provided a big boost to China's largest integrated copper producer. Revenues contributed by sulphuric acid, a by-product of copper smelting, amounted to 1.66billion yuan in H1, a 521% increase year-on-year. Jiangxi Copper posted H1 net profit of 2.77billion yuan, an increase of 32% on the same period in 2007. The company expects demand for its products to slow in the second half of the year with global economic growth struggling to gain momentum. However, Jiangxi remain confident that copper prices will stay high as a result of, "the shortage of copper concentrates supply around the world and the downgrade of copper concentrates." Factors expected to put pressure on Jiangxi's profit margin over the second half of the year include falling smelter processing fees, as a result of global over-capacity and tight supply of concentrates, and a cut in output of semi-finished products due to China's ongoing power shortages.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy John Mizroch announced recently that the DOE will invest up to US $24 million -- subject to the availability of funds -- to develop solar energy products that will hopefully accelerate the penetration of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems in the United States. \n\nWhen the projects are combined with the overall industry cost share of up to US $16 million, more than US $40 million in total could be invested in these SEGIS projects, with future federal funding subject to appropriations from Congress.\n\nThe Solar Energy Grid Integration Systems (SEGIS) projects will provide critical research and development (R&D) funding to develop less expensive, higher performing products to enhance the value of solar PV systems to homeowners and business owners. These projects are integral to the Solar America Initiative, which aims to make solar energy cost-competitive with conventional forms of electricity by 2015. \n

Solar Thin Films, Inc. (OTC BB:SLTN.OB), a developer, manufacturer and marketer of manufacturing equipment for the production of "thin-film" amorphous silicon photovoltaic modules, has entered into a strategic alliance and cross license agreement with Amelio Solar Inc. \n\nUnder the agreement, Solar Thin Films will market and sell photovoltaic products using copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) technology developed and commercialized by Amelio Solar, and has rights to manufacture PV module manufacturing equipment using CIGS technology subject to certain terms and agreements\n

Manufacturer joins pack of thin-film companies securing big bucks to take innovations to production stage. San Jose, Calif.-based Nanosolar has raised $300 million in equity to expand production of its thin-film panels for solar power plants, Nanosolar CEO Martin Röscheisen told the Cleantech Group today. The financing-a combination of supply deals, partnerships and funding-pushes Nanosolar to nearly half a billion dollars of capital, securing the six-year-old company's position as one of the leading thin-film producers.

TOKYO, JAPAN, September 4, 2008. Mitsubishi Electric Corporation plans to quadruple its annual photovoltaic (PV) cell production to 600 MW by 2012, investing ¥50 billion.\n\nMitsubishi says it plans to construct a new building for PV cell production, the PV Cell Plant #2, at its Nakatsugawa Works Iida Factory in Nagano Prefecture.\n\nThe expansion comes as a response to "a sharp increase in demand" for solar power generation systems.\n\nThe company forecasts a global PV market size of 1,950 MW in 2009 growing to 4,430 MW in 2012, with further growth expected.\n

China will allow tax-free imports of copper, nickel and cobalt concentrate from Feb. 1, as long as the finished products are re-exported, and will also allow duty-free exports of refined copper, unwrought nickel and semi-finished aluminium products.

The commodity super-cycle is not over, it is just pausing. For the world economy to resume growth of 5 per cent, energy supply must expand by a similar rate. But with lower oil prices and a credit crunch, energy investment is plummeting, suggesting global energy demand will eventually pick up more rapidly than productive energy capacity. Assuming the ongoing global recession does not turn into a multi-year event that pushes energy demand down structurally, steep decline rates could again put upward pressure on oil prices as soon as 2010 or 2011. In particular, if the low oil price/high cost of money environment persists for most of this year and next, our base case scenario for non-OPEC production could prove optimistic, exacerbating the second leg of the commodity super-cycle. If and when the global economy starts to recover, too many dollars chasing too few barrels will only lead to much higher oil prices.

Following the announcement last week that several Japanese rolled copper makers are to increase their rolling margins for rolled copper products, Mitsui Mining and Smelting announced it is seeking a Y20-30 per kilogram increase in rolling margins for its brass strip and flat rolled products. This is to cover the higher costs for energy, freight and subsidiary materials and is to be implemented for loss making items, which are mainly in the brass products line. Mitsubishi Shindoh, Japan's largest copper flat rolled and strip products maker, also recently announced it was increasing its rolling margins.

The global wind turbine market has seen rapid shifts in scale and product sophistication on the back of booming demand for wind power globally. Effective wind turbine pricing is a major challenge for all manufacturers as they strive to keep pace with higher volume and more complex demand. Suppliers are expanding their sales and production globally. Turbine prices and cost of installations are increasing as multiple players move on 2 MW turbines and above.

This all comes from these chaps, Tuscan Foundry Products, who have done some 'research' that says, the whole life cost of copper and cast iron rainwater products is a third of that of PVC and Aluminium over a 100 year life cycle.

SMS Meer GmbH, a company within the SMS Group, has recently taken over Schumag AG's machinery segment. Since the product ranges of the two companies are complementary, no jobs will be endangered as a consequence of the purchase, a member of the executive board of Schumag said. About 300 of the total 1,000 of Schumag employees will work for the new company, SMS Schumag GmbH & Co. KG. Through the purchase of the Schumag Machinery Segment SMS Meer is expanding its product range and opening up further potential for growth of the SMS group as part of its global presence.

Unveiling its annual sustainability report last week, the World Steel Association said that more than 56 steel producers had provided the organisation with data on their carbon emissions, representing 60 per cent of its members' steel production and almost a third of total global steel production.

China's color TV production sector grew steadily with exports expanding rapidly and production cost increasing in the first quarter of this year, a source with China Video Industry Association said on Wednesday.

BP has a lot of money, and they want to focus a big chunk into cellulosic ethanol. So, they're partnering up with Verenium and giving the company $90 million over the next year and a half in order to gain some of Verenium's technology and hopefully speed up commercialization of cellulosic ethanol. Looking towards sugar cane, miscanthus, and energy cane, they're hoping to scale up biofuel's availability from these and other sources. The $90m will go towards helping put up low-cost production facilities across the US, and will give BP licenses to intellectual property of Verenium. BP's president Sue Ellerbusch said that this partnership positions BP as having the best technology in cellulosic ethanol production and makes them leaders in the area. Not surprising since they're forming other partnerships that help them corner the biofuel industry, including partnerships with DuPont, Tropica BioEnergia and D1 Oils. BP's fuel sales during 2007 accounted for 10% of the global biofuels market. So they're serious about making sure that biofuels become more easily available.

China vowed on Monday to downsize some of its outmoded oil refining, steel and metal production plants, as oversupply raised challenges while demand for fuel and industrial products weakened due to its slowing economy.

Brush Engineered Materials said it is expecting Q1 revenue to be 30 to 35% lower than that in Q4 2008. The Ohio-based specialty alloys company initially predicted revenue would fall by 15 to 25% from Q4. It also announced that it will cut its staff level by 15% in order to reduce costs. In a press release, Brush Engineered Materials said that it still experiences very weak demand for its products due to the global downturn and the market visibility is very low. Medical and defense-related products are in exceptions to this trend. It suggested from recent activity, the level of business may have bottomed but it is not certain of the case.

LS Cable may see a 5% y-o-y fall in its copper consumption in the current year. This will be the second consecutive year that copper consumption dropped, as the company already experienced a 5% y-o-y plunge in 2008 to 270,000t. Copper accounts for about 30% of the company's production costs. LS Cable has announced that it is focusing on higher value added products such as underground and extra high-voltage cables in developing regions including the Middle East, China and other Asian countries.

World copper mine production is expected to increase 4% in 2009 and 7.5% in ...

Zhejiang Hailiang Co. Ltd., a Chinese copper processor, will construct a copper tube project in Vietnam. The investment will amount to US$47.2 million and will have production capacity if 71,000 tonnes per year, as a new 36,000-tonne facility will be added to the existing 35,000-tonne that has been relocated. It is anticipated that the project will be operational in 2010. The new project will benefit from the Vietnamese favourable investment policies as well as lower production costs.