Solar companies make splash abroad

ReneSola, a Zhejiang-based company that recycles silicon wafers for solar panels, raised US$50 million in an initial public offering in London. The company plans to use the funds to expand capacity and expects to see sales triple next year, the Financial Times reported. ReneZola is the latest of a growing string of Chinese solar companies that have attracted investors. Solar panel maker Suntech raised US$455 million in the New York Stock Exchange last year. China Biodiesel, a renewable energy company from Fujian, raised almost US$15 million in London last month. China's solar industry is leaping forward, partly due to a government decree that 15% of energy should come from renewable resources by 2020.