AU Optronics Corp got very good feedback on the newest technologies it showcased at last week's Big Sight International Photovoltaic Power Generation Expo in Japan.

AUO Solar, the company's solar division, presented two cutting-edge technologies to the world at the Expo, one that mitigates the affects of shading in residential and urban areas and another that resists salt corrosion.

"Visitors to the show were highly interested in AUO's AC module and asked about its launch schedule," AUO spokeswoman Katie Chen wrote in an e-mail from the company's headquarters in Hong Kong.

She said it's expected to be released in the United States in the third quarter of 2011.

The AC Photovoltaic system tracks the sun's maximum power point throughout the day using a micro-inverter attached to each photovoltaic panel rather than a large scale one that all of the panels are connected to, Chen wrote.

The micro-inverter is attached to the panel frame.

"The panel-level MPPT mitigates the effects of partial shading in a PV installation and makes sure the ACPV performs to its maximum power point even under shaded situations," Chen wrote.

The innovative new panel increases the energy yield by 5 to 35 percent depending on the shading conditions it's mitigating, Chen wrote.

"Although this adds a little to the cost of installation," Chen wrote, "the improved energy yield contributes to a lower cost of electricity in the long run."

In addition to the tracking and micro-inverter technology that AU Optronics has implemented to combat shading issues, the company released new organic self-cleaning technology and a technology that is extra resistant to salt corrosion.

"The environmentally friendly self clean function of the smart modules was also well received by the Japanese local market," Chen wrote.

And the panels resistant to salt corrosion, which are found in AUO's new EcoDuo module, have special advantages in Japan's island environment as well as other areas of the country surrounded by salt water and located in hot and humid locations, Chen wrote.

"By passing the salt mist corrosion test, AUO is proving that EcoDuo is able to resist severe environments, especially island climates."

The officer will generally work two days per week

Volt is looking to fill a Product Quality Assurance position with a Petaluma company. Job includes developing test methodologies and test cases for evaluating features, develop automation test capabilities and perform lab testing on a multi-node system using Ethernet and OTN. Minimum of 5 years testing experience in the telecom, Ethernet transport or software fields.

The city of Petaluma is seeking PT Parking Enforcement Officers. The officer will generally work two days per week, on Fridays and Saturdays from 7a.m. to 5p.m., and may occasionally work up to 40 hours per week.The position is responsible for patrolling assigned areas to enforce appropriate codes, laws, ordinances and regulations pertaining to on-street and public parking. $22-26/hour

Fresenius Medical Services is looking for Bilingual Nurses to assist with home dialysis. Responsible for accurate documentation of information related to the patients training and treatment. Responsible for ongoing monitoring, assessment and intervention for home patients including home visits, clinical appointments, additional training sessions or reviews, lab studies and annual studies such as x-ray and EKG.

Requires degree from an accredited nursing school and appropriate state licensure. Minimum of one-year Hemodialysis experience. Must be bilingual in English and Spanish (please note this on your resume). Peritoneal dialysis experience preferred.

CyberCoders Engineering is seeking a Multimedia Systems Developer with RTSP and G Streaming experience. Seeking candidates with a college degree, experience with Linux server application development, C/C++ programming and strong debugging skills. The job entails designing, coordinating and delivering fully functioning products that incorporate sound, full-motion video, text and graphics into one application that is interactive for the end user.

Other duties include tracking changes with the multimedia project, designing, creating and testing complete and fully working prototypes for the management team.

The Washington Square Chase Bank is looking for a PT Teller to work 20 hours a week. The right candidate will handle financial transactions accurately and efficiently, be able to work well in a team environment to service customer, have strong listening and verbal communication skills and be detail-oriented and organized.

A high school degree or GED is required, along with a minimum six months cash-handling experience. Must be able to work branch hours, including weekends and some evenings.

The Converse store at the Outlets is hiring Retail Staff. Duties include opening and closing store, ensuring that all visual directives, promotions, and markdowns are completed in a timely manner ensuring team members are motivated to hit them.

All candidates must successfully complete a thorough background investigation prior to receiving any final offer of employment.

Sharp Solar Panels Power Array At Washington DC Sheridan School

The Sheridan School in Washington, D.C., recently flipped the switch on a 3,800

square foot roof-mounted solar power array. This solar installation, comprised of 252

224 watt panels from Sharp Solar, is one of the largest in the District, and it will

provide 56 kilowatts of energy. Working with Rockville, Maryland-based Clean Currents

Solar, Sheridan was able to tap Washington, DC's $2 million-a-year Renewable Energy

Incentive Program (REIP) to help fund the project. The school is expecting a complete

payback of their investment in the solar array within ten years. Sheridan students

are particularly excited by plans to install a digital readout in the lobby of the

school and on the school's Web site that will allow real-time monitoring of the

output from each of the 252 solar panels. This capability is made possible by the

separate micro inverters installed on each of the 15-square-foot panels, a first for

a commercial-scale system in the area.


"Sharp is delighted to be a part of this project that will educate the Sheridan

School's students about renewable energy while simultaneously reducing the school's

carbon footprint," said Eric Hafter, senior vice president of Sharp Solar Energy

Solutions Group. "This project highlights what can be accomplished taking advantage

of the public programs that support the solar industry.  In this case, the Renewable

Energy Incentive Program helps to drive home the importance of renewable energy

sources to students and in turn helps build a greener future.  It's a win for the

students, for the school, for the nation's capital and for the future of our planet,"

he said.

"I'd be hard pressed to think of a better way to teach kids about both sound

environmental stewardship and smart economics than by lighting their learning

experience with solar power," said Lee Keshishian, president of Clean Currents Solar.

"This project, made possible by the partnership of The Sheridan School, Clean

Currents Solar, and the DC government's Renewable Energy Incentive Program, is a

great example of the long-term benefits of solar power to the community and the

environment."


"This project reflects the Sheridan School's long-term commitment to environmental

responsibility and sound economic planning," said Mike Stoll, director of finance and

operations at Sheridan. "At Sheridan, we see value in teaching our students to be

wise caretakers of the planet and responsible members of the community. For us, solar

power was not only the most environmentally responsible option and the best decision

for our students, it also made good economic sense."

Enphase Launches Solar IT Offensive

Enphase Energy has been creating a market for solar microinverters –distributed inverters that replace a central inverter for solar panels — since its initial product launch in the summer of 2008 and has now shipped more than 500,000 of them.

To keep its lead will not be easy, however. Not only is venture-backed Enphase facing competition from other microinverter developers, but it's also up against companies making alternative and more mainstream products, like the traditional central inverters. To remain competitive, the Petaluma, Calif., startup will be launching a series of products this year that are smaller, lighter and tailored to different customer types.
Enphase Offensive

In June, it plans to launch its third-generation technology that will boost its microinverter's average efficiency to 96 percent, a one percentage point improvement from the current version, Enphase's VP of products, Raghu Belur, told a group of reporters at the company's headquarters Tuesday. The company will also offer a new installation method that will help shave labor costs. Enphase CEO, Paul Nahi, also hinted at the possibility of offering a warranty that will be longer than the 15 years that it current provides.

In addition, the startup, founded in 2006, is working on a microinverter specifically designed for the larger, commercial installations, Nahi said. Until now, the company has offered the same microinverter for both residential and commercial installations. And, by the end of the year, Enphase is looking at rolling out yet another product that will feature three chips, which will reduce the number of components in its microinverter box and improve its efficiency at power conversion, Nahi said.

The three-chip design will be a departure from the use of a single chip, but Nahi was mum about how the three chips will divide up the core functions of power conversion, communication, control and command. He also declined to talk about the likely efficiency of this new design.
Microinverter Market

Inverters are electronic devices that accompany every solar energy system. They convert the direct current from the solar panels into alternating current for use onsite (at home or business) or for feeding into the grid. Microinverters are so named because they are much smaller than the centralized inverters that dominate the market today. A centralized inverter is larger and sits near the edge of a solar energy system and converts all the electricity flowing from the solar panels.

A microinverter, which is roughly the size of a half-piece of paper, is attached to each solar panel instead. It's a design that enables close monitoring of each solar panel's performance and circumvents the tendency of a solar array to drop its power output collectively even if only a few solar panels aren't able to perform optimally because of, say, shading or debris that blocks the sunlight from hitting the cells inside the panels.

“Our microinverters are generating more power than you would with a centralized inverter. That's just physics,” Nahi said.

Enphase executives say they've carved out a market for a type of technology that couldn't take off before Enphase's arrival, primarily because it was too expensive, inefficient, unreliable and lacked communication functions to effectively monitor performance. The company sells not only the microinverter but also software and services for monitoring the power production of each system. Both installers and system owners can check on the performance of each solar panel by logging into an Enphase portal, and the microinverters will alert them of significant drop in power production.

Microinverters have no shortage of critics, who contend that microinverters haven't proven their staying power because they are new to the market. They also argue that installing a bunch of microinverters could lead to frequent repairs and replacement. Microinverter advocates have countered that the failure of a centralized inverter will cripple the production of an entire solar array, whereas problems with a few microinverters will only handicap the performance of those few solar panels.
Future of Microinverters

Microinverters do remain more expensive than central inverters. Enphase executives say their gears are 15 percent more expensive, but they have come up with installation methods to cut labor costs. A new installation method, to be offered with the third-generation microinverter in June, will involve Enphase-provided cables with built-in connectors and clips to pin the cables to the racks underneath the solar panels. A single bolt will secure each microinverter, which will then plug into the connector on one side and solar panel on the other.

So, that 15-percent price premium will be offset by a lower installation cost and the extra 5-25 percent electricity production, Nahi said. This sales pitch could work well for installers who care more about the amount of energy to be produced over time than the upfront installation cost.

The majority of its microinverters have gone to residential systems. Enphase is keen to expand its reach in the commercial sector, where each installation is larger and therefore requires more microinverters. The company plans to launch a microinverter with a higher voltage to target the commercial sector, Nahi said. The largest project to date that uses Enphase's gear has 750KW of generation capacity, Belur said.
Enphase Wins Converts

The company sells its microinverters and services through distributors and solar panel makers such as Suntech Power, Canadian Solar and Siemens. A major installer who until recently wasn't an Enphase convert will use the microinverters as a result of snapping up businesses that were Enphase customers. That installer is SolarCity, based in San Mateo, Calif., which bought Clean Currents Solar and groSolar's residential installation business recently in order to expand its business to the East Coast, said Jake Whiteley, strategic account manager at Enphase.

Although Enphase is the largest microinverter supplier, it's not the only one and will face a growing competition from fellow microinverter developers. Competitors include SolarBridge Technologies in Texas and Enecsys in the United Kingdom. Its central inverter nemeses include SMA Solar Technology and Power-One.

Transphorm, a Google Venture-backed startup, also is eyeing the solar market with its power conversion technology. Instead of using silicon chips, as Enphase does, Transphorm is using gallium nitride. Enphase also is investigating the use of these more exotic materials, Nahi said, but has no plans to roll out products using them any time soon.

The Apple of Solar Energy? Enphase Applies Silicon Valley Smarts to Solar's Neglected Plumbing

When the sun shines, free electrons pour out of rooftop solar panels in the form of direct current (DC). But every light bulb, fan, and appliance in a house needs alternating current (AC), which reverses direction 60 times per second. And therein lies a huge headache for installers and owners of photovoltaic systems. The central "inverters" that turn solar DC into grid-compatible AC are among the most finicky and failure-prone parts of any solar installation. When they burn out, they put entire solar installations out of commission until they can be replaced, usually at a cost of several thousand dollars. Yet while solar panel manufacturers continue to invest in R&D to make photovoltaic cells more efficient, the old inverter box hasn't changed much in decades.

Until recently, that is. Befitting the Silicon Valley spirit, there's a Bay Area startup that's out to replace the big, dumb inverters attached to most solar energy systems with small, sleek, smart "microinverters." It's called Enphase Energy, and under its approach, each panel or module gets its own inverter. It's sort of like putting out lots of small bowls to catch the water from a leaky ceiling rather than running around with a single big pail.

Enphase's microinverters are full of custom microelectronics, so they cost more than traditional inverters. But the five-year-old startup in Petaluma, CA, which has raised about $100 million in venture capital, says the devices are more reliable than central inverters and can help harvest more energy from solar installations. Plus, they're easier for installers to work with, and they emit a constant stream of data that lets owners track performance down to the level of an individual panel. That gives the company an advantage that can be likened to Apple's emerging lead in the mobile computing market. And, as in the Apple case, Enphase's systems thinking and marketing savvy could end up helping it grab a huge share of a market that nobody else thought was ripe for disruption.

Traditionally, says Enphase CEO Paul Nahi, the larger the inverter, the less power is lost during conversion from DC to AC, which long pushed solar installers toward wiring panels in series and converting all the power at once—an average of 4.5 kilowatts per residential installation. "When you're dealing with that much wattage, you stress components," Nahi told me when I visited the company's headquarters a few weeks ago. "You generate a lot of heat in the central inverter, and heat is the single biggest enemy of reliability. But it had been drilled into [solar installers] that this is the way solar works. It never occurred to anybody that you didn't have to have that problem. And the technological leap required to solve that problem was so dramatic that it was never even discussed."

Enphase's achievement has been figuring out how to use sophisticated electronics to efficiently convert as little as 200 watts at a time—-the output of a single panel. That might mean using 20 or more microinverters in the place of a single central inverter, but the payoff comes in the form of productivity. If you wire panels the old-fashioned way—in series, like Christmas tree lights—it means that an entire array's output can only be as high as the lowest-performing panel. If one panel is dirty or shaded by trees, the whole array's output is lowered to the level of that panel. With microinverters, by contrast, each panel feeds power into the system independently, at maximum efficiency for its light conditions. "Greater energy harvest is the essential benefit," Nahi says.

National Semiconductor Introduces New SolarMagic ICs for Microinverter, Power Optimizer and Charge Controller Systems

National Semiconductor Corp. (NYSE: NSM) today introduced ten new SolarMagic™ integrated circuits (ICs), the first in a series developed to reduce cost, improve reliability and simplify design of photovoltaic (PV) systems.  Ranging from the industry's first full-bridge gate driver to a micropower voltage regulator, the new ICs are well-suited for a variety of photovoltaic electronic applications, including those found in microinverters, power optimizers, charge controllers and panel safety systems.

"National now offers an extensive portfolio of analog and mixed signal ICs that provide manufacturers of microinverters with the robust, renewable energy grade ICs they need to ensure long-term operation," said Bill Mazotti, Solar IC Business Unit Director at National.  "National's solutions for the photovoltaic space now include components for power optimizers, microinverters and inverters."

The new SolarMagic ICs are the first developed to meet photovoltaic renewable energy-grade qualification requirements.  Each IC is engineered specifically for demanding rooftop environments that range from extreme cold to severe heat, and each passes rigorous testing with enhanced reliability specific to solar requirements.  In addition, the ICs ensure long-term operation, developed to meet and exceed the 25-year life expectancy of photovoltaic modules.

Collectively provided as a complete design, SolarMagic ICs increase energy harvest, reduce cost per kilowatt-hour and improve safety in junction boxes and other types of enclosures.  Used independently, the ICs provide high voltage and high current gate drive for microinverter or power optimizer designs.

Solar Summit 2011: The Inverter War

In most businesses, competitors tend to soften their comments about one another.

That's the not the case in inverters and solar electronics.

"I don't get it," said Raghu Belur, co-founder of microinverter maker Enphase Energy, when

asked about companies that want to popularize DC maximizers for improving how centralized

inverters work during an interview at the Solar Industry Summit this week. "I simply don't

get it."

Companies that specialize in central inverters like SMA and microinverter specialists like

SolarBridge and Enphase are locked in a battle over the future of solar electronics.

Microinverter champions say that their technology works better and costs less in any type of

solar installation of any size, anywhere in the world.

Enphase has a pending third-generation product, for instance, that achieves efficiencies in

the 96-percent-plus range and will be capable of being installed at utility-scale sites. The

company is also looking at advanced AC-DC materials like gallium nitride, a material promoted

by Transphorm, and more silicon carbine.

In a few years, a microinverter could consist of three components and need very little copper

and other raw materials, Belur speculated. This will allow the industry to ride the Moore's

Law cost curve down. Dick Swanson, the keynote speaker at the event, said that the SunShot

program sponsored by the Department of Energy seeks to get solar down to $1 a watt installed:

in that scenario, only ten cents could be allocated to inverters.

Centralized inverter advocates, meanwhile, argue that they too are driving down costs and

looking at advanced materials. Some of the efficiencies obtained through microinverters with

things like DC maximizers. Most centralized inverter makers (including SMA) have actually

laid plans to make microinverters, but they generally believe that microinverters will

largely be confined to the residential market.

More importantly, central inverter advocates say that microinverters create risk. Instead of

having a centralized box, microinverters force solar installers to put 20 to 30 times the

number of devices into the field, which means more potential points of failure.

"If reliability is compromised, it will hurt the entire industry," said Jurgen Krenkhe,

president and general manager of SMA America.

Ken Christensen of central inverter maker Advanced Energy added that central inverters hit

efficiencies in the 97-percent-plus range.

Luckily, as interviews and panel discussions proved, the two sides aren't afraid to air their

differences.

"There is this idea that centralized inverters are more reliable, but the data doesn't

support that," said John Berdner, general manager of North America for SolarEdge during a

panel discussion. "This idea is simply not true."

Berdner cited a study from SunEdison that showed that central inverters exhibited a

reliability of under 50 percent, while string and microinverters were 95 percent reliable.

Part of the problem stems from how these products are made. Microinverters are produced on

manufacturing lines, while centralized inverters are largely hand-assembled.

"Reliability" in the study referred to the number of times a service call was made and did

not necessarily account for every actual breakdown. And speaking of data, Krenkhe added that

microinverters have only been in volume production for about two years.

"To look at six, nine or twelve months of data is a snapshot," he said.

That comment prompted Barry Cinnamon, CEO of Westinghouse Solar, to pop open his laptop and

show me data. (Cinnamon wasn't on the panel. He just happened to be sitting next to me in the

audience.)

Over a two-year period, Westinghouse/Akeena Solar installed 10,630 microinverters, of which

22 had to be replaced. The company also installed 3,373 centralized inverters; 318 had to be

repaired. The microinverter-powered systems lost 528 hours of power production. The central

inverter systems lost 464,000 hours. (Side note: Cinnamon noted at SMA had the far lowest

failure rate.)

The disparity in hours of power production lost comes because in a centralized inverter

system, the entire solar array goes down if the inverter does. In a microinverter system,

only individual panels are temporarily off-line.

In response, Jeff Krisa, vice president of sales and marketing at Tigo Energy, which makes DC

maximizers that link to centralized inverters, noted that a lot of residential installers

like microinverters. DC maximizers are just beginning to be introduced.

Who's right? The data over the next few years will tell the tale. Microinverters are

definitely gaining ground -- Enphase claims a 13 percent market share in recent California

residential installations. The company also gives a 15-year warranty and claims its

microinverters will last far longer. Still, the products are only a few years old and the

solar industry is notoriously conservative.

SolarBridge's Pantheon microinverter attains UL certification

SolarBridge Technologies has revealed that its Pantheon microinverter has passed all

necessary tests and has been granted the safety standard for PV inverters: UL 1741

certification by the Canadian Standards Association (CSA). The company claims that this is

the first integrated microinverter that comes with a 25-year warranty to receive such

certification.

The Pantheon microinverter was put through different testing before it was granted UL

certification including a utility-interface requirement under IEEE 1547, environmental

evaluations under UL 1703, temperature cycling, humidity cycling and wet insulation

resistance testing. Additionally, the AC connectors underwent mechanical testing, which took

into account the impact of the system at -35 degrees Celsius.

"These are great milestones for our technology and our company," said Ron Van Dell, president

and CEO for SolarBridge. "These certifications mean that our AC Module System has passed all

the necessary industry safety tests—qualifying the SolarBridge Pantheon as a power

electronics component for any AC module built for North America."

Enecsys Micro-Inverter Wins Technology Excellence Award

Enecsys Limited, a UK micro-inverter company, has won the award for Excellence in the Field

of Environmental Technology at the CleanEquity Awards Ceremony for its microinverter.

Innovator Capital and the Monaco Chamber of Economic Development hosted the two-day annual

CleanEquity event at which the world's most promising next-generation clean technology

companies presented their credentials to financial and strategic investors, policy makers,

the media and end-users. The field included 34 clean technology companies from four

continents. The invitation-only CleanEquity Monaco event, presided over by His Serene

Highness (HSH) Prince Albert II of Monaco, was held on 4 March 2011.

The Enecsys microinverter represents a breakthrough in inverter design for residential and

commercial solar photovoltaic (PV) installations. Its patented technology has, eliminated

components that limit inverter life. Originally developed at Cambridge University in the UK,

the Enecsys microinverter enables solar PV systems to harvest between 5% and 20% more energy

over their lifetime. It eliminates the high-voltage direct current (DC) wiring and it

enhances system optimisation by monitoring the performance of each solar module. It also

eliminates the string inverter, a common source of failure.

The Enecsys microinverter is available in both Europe and North America and matches the

operating life of solar modules (more than 25 years), operates from -40° to +85° C and is

warranted for 20 years. Enecsys micro-inverters are installed on the mounting rack behind the

solar modules, either one inverter per solar module, or one for every two modules.

Enecsys offers 360W dual micro-inverter that maintains individual MPPT

Enecsys has launched the ‘Enecsys Duo micro-inverter,' claiming it is the world's highest power density micro-inverter with dimensions of 262 x 160 x 35mm. Designated the SMI-D360W-72, it is designed to reduce system costs whilst supporting fully independent power point tracking of two connected photovoltaic modules.

Problem

When adopting the Enecsys micro-inverter solar PV architecture, systems do not suffer from dramatic reductions in output when modules are mismatched or when one PV module, or part of a module, suffers from lower output due to shading caused by trees, chimneys or debris on its surface. These are some of the most significant problems in conventional systems employing string inverters.

Solution

The DC power generated by the two modules is converted into a single, grid-compliant AC output in the Enecsys Duo. System layout and planning is simplified and installation time and costs are reduced because only half the number of micro-inverters is needed for each system. Solar PV systems using the Enecsys Duo will have comparable capital costs to those using string inverters but are claimed to deliver 5% to 20% more energy. The degree of improvement in energy harvest depends on the installation configuration and the operating environment. Solar modules connected to the Enecsys Duo do not need to be matched or be located on the same plane. They can be oriented in different directions to maximize usable roof space without impacting overall system performance.

Applications

Residential and small-scale industrial PV module installations.

Platform

The Enecsys Duo micro-inverter has 95% peak efficiency and 93% Euro efficiency. The Enecsys Duo micro-inverter is based on the same patented technology employed in other Enecsys micro-inverters and maintains full performance from -40 degrees C to +85 degrees C. Reliability has been verified using HALT, HASS and accelerated life tests to IEC61215, the same methodology used to test solar PV modules. The Enecsys Duo comes with a 20-year limited warranty.

Availability

The relevant agency approvals for the Enecsys Duo micro-inverter are expected during March 2011 at which time the products will be available in Europe.

PV microinverters: Enphase Energy opens offices in France, Italy

On March 3rd, 2011 Enphase Energy Inc. (Petaluma, California, U.S.) announced the

appointment of two country managers and the opening of its first European offices in

France and Italy. The company appointed Oliver Jacques to managing director of

Enphase Energy France and Roberto Colombo as managing director of Enphase Energy

Italy.

"Enphase pioneered microinverters, and we have quickly become the market leader in

North America by designing and manufacturing superior products, building a strong

installer base and providing exceptional customer support," said Enphase Energy CEO

Paul Nahi. "With our system designed to surpass the European standards for solar

electrical equipment, now is the time to build a local sales and support team to

develop and commercialize this significant opportunity."



Several GW of opportunity in Europe over the next five years

The company states that it expects the microinverter market to grow dramatically in

Europe, and that it is one of few vendors positioned to receive the CE and VDE mark

for its products. Enphase cites a 2010 global microinverter market analysis by IHS

iSuppli Corporation (El Segundo, California, U.S.) which states that the continent

represents a several GW of opportunity over the next five years.

Newly appointed regional directors Jacques and Colombo will be responsible for

implementing the company's regional strategies, as well as developing local

distribution channels.

Enphase states that Oliver Jacques has two decades of experience in high technology

companies, including working as country manager at Danfoss A/S (Nordborg, Denmark)

and managing director at Solar Total France. Roberto Colombo was formerly the sales

director for southern Europe at Korber Schleifring Italy.

Enphase Energy Expands To Europe With Two New Offices

Enphase Energy, a provider of solar micro-inverter systems, has appointed two country

managers and opened new offices in France and Italy to service global demand for its

micro-inverter system.

Enphase says it is expanding to Europe to capture a growing share of the worldwide

inverter market. Micro-inverters are expected to grow dramatically in Europe, and

Enphase is currently positioned to receive the CE and VDE mark for its products.

Olivier Jacques has been appointed managing director of Enphase Energy France and will

be responsible for implementing the company's regional strategy in addition to

developing the local distribution channel and support team. Prior to his work at

Enphase, he was country manager at Danfoss and managing director at Solar Total

France, a solar contractor.

Roberto Colombo has been hired as managing director of Enphase Energy Italy and will

also be responsible for regional strategy and channel development. Colombo previously

served as sales director for southern Europe at Korber Schleifring Italy.