The requirements of measures such as the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) mean that solar panel prices in the United States can be twice as much as in Europe.

Prices for tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) solar panels continue to fall. pvXchange.com founder Martin Schachinger explains how this will affect the sale of PV modules based on passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) cells.

Economic cooperation between India and Australia may open doors for investment in clean energy technology, but challenges still abound in a competitive global market. Vibhuti Garg and Shantanu Srivastava, of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), discuss the role that public funding and resource pooling could play in supporting manufacturing ambitions.

IEA PVPS is about to start a new format for expert engagement: an Action Group on Agrovoltaics; a collaborative effort to harness the synergy between agriculture and solar energy generation. Through international cooperation and interdisciplinary engagement, the group aims to unlock the potential of agrivoltaics, optimizing land use efficiency, enhancing agricultural resilience to climate change, and fostering social consensus towards solar energy development.

Global solar demand will continue to grow in 2024, with module demand likely to reach 492 GW to 538 GW. Amy Fang, a senior analyst at InfoLink, looks at module demand and supply chain inventories in a market still affected by oversupply.

Danish citizens will once again be able to apply for heat pump subsidies from May 27. A DKK 17,000 ($2,469) grant will be available for air-to-water pumps and DKK 27,000 for liquid-to-water heat pumps.

Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency is partnering with Husk Power Systems for interconnected minigrids and isolated minigrids, rooftop commercial and industrial (C&I) solar, productive use of energy (PUE) initiatives, appliance sales, and financing.

The French research institute presented in a scientific paper the technical details of its recyclable heterojunction module with a power output of 566 W and a carbon footprint of just 313 kgCO2eq/kW.

Christian Victor, an X (formerly Twitter) user, has published a new map showing land consumption in Germany. It reveals that open-cast mines occupy more square meters than ground-mounted solar arrays and wind farms combined.

Australian Energy Minister Chris Bowen says the federal government’s AUD 1 billion ($662.2 million) Solar Sunshot initiative could lead to domestic production covering 20% of the nation’s PV panel needs by the end of the decade.

Gamesa Electric has released a white paper on losses due to harmonics in PV plants, including an independent study that compares the performance of ultra-low total harmonic distortion inverters.

A research group in Spain has demonstrated the technical feasibility of using repaired solar modules with satisfying results. It also warned, however, that there is an urgent need to define a protocol for evaluating the features of a “viable” repaired panel.

Acciona Energía has finished building a 458 MW solar farm in Texas – its largest PV project to date.

BloombergNEF says in a new report that solar and wind must drive most emissions cuts before 2030 to stay on track for net-zero by 2050. Its net-zero scenario targets a combined solar and wind capacity of 31 TW by 2050.

Researchers in Niger have proposed to use photovoltaic energy to power the operations of evaporative cooling greenhouses. The proposed experimental solution uses locally made pads and is reportedly able to compete with commercial counterparts.

Researchers at the University of Bologna carried out crash simulations to qualify a novel solar powered 350 kg passenger vehicle for the next edition of the 3,000 km Bridgestone World Solar Challenge (BWSC) across the Australian continent.

Energy Vault and Enel have revealed plans to build 18 MW/36 MWh of gravity storage in the United States. They say that the project will be the first large-scale gravity energy storage in a Western country.

India’s Pahal Solar has launched n-type tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) glass-backsheet modules with peak power outputs of 560 W to 595 W and efficiency ratings ranging from 21.68% to 23.03%.

The tandem solar cell is based on a perovskite top cell treated with an additive known as 2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorobenzylphosphonic acid (pFBPA), which reportedly improves its power conversion efficiency and fill factor. The tandem device also integrates a bottom heterojunction silicon cell made with a 190-μm-thick, 2 Ω.cm, n-type, float-zone, shiny-etched monocrystalline wafer.

Scientists in China have fabricated a prototype of a PV system integrating phase change materials, a thermoelectric generator and thermal collectors. The three technologies are intended to cool the solar panel and increase its power generation efficiency.

Silfab Solar is one of seven recipients of US Department of Energy (DoE) funding for projects that will rely on dual-use PV technologies to electrify buildings, decarbonize the transportation sector, and reduce land-use conflicts.

The Durable Module Materials consortium (DuraMAT) announced in its latest annual report the availability of new PV forecasting tools, and new research results towards the goal of more reliable PV modules.

Daewoo’s new hybrid inverters feature LiFePO4 batteries. They are available in six variants, with power ratings ranging from 0.5 kVA to 10 kVA.

Researchers in China have outlined a new surface engineering strategy to build low-cost solar cells without a hole transport layer. The devices were treated with benzoylcholine halide to reduce non-radiation recombination and achieved remarkable efficiency and stability.

Researchers in China have developed a model to predict lifetimes of heterojunction (HJT) modules made with ultraviolet cut-off polyolefin elastomer (POE) encapsulant. The approach considers factors such as temperature, humidity and UV irradiation.

The Israeli authorities have proposed a plan to deploy 250 MW of floating solar and agrivoltaics through four PV plants in the Negev Desert near Ramon Airport.

Japanese power generator Jera says it aims to take the lead in developing the global hydrogen & ammonia value chain with about 7 million tons of handling volume, while Cepsa reveals it is moving forward with its green hydrogen plans in Spain.

Conceived by a Dutch research group, the proposed system is intended to store surplus renewable electricity via hydrogen generation and battery storage, with the latter being used only when hydrogen generation is not immediately available. Despite its high initial costs, the system can reportedly offer stable operation.

Adnoc has delivered the world’s first certified bulk commercial shipment of low-carbon ammonia to a client in Japan, while Plug Power has agreed to supply a 3 GW electrolyzer in Australia.

Japan’s Leapton Energy has developed EH-A05, a 20.48 kWh residential battery featuring storage capacities starting at 5.12 kWh, with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries.