Solar-industry companies need to forget ideas about office-based roles and look far afield to source the recruits necessary for the energy transition – and then they need to keep them loyal by offering a rewarding career.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that, in November, weather patterns have started to resemble the characteristic El Niño signature, with low pressure in the northwest Pacific, and an enhanced subtropical jet stream spreading from the Pacific across the southern United States.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, OPIS, a Dow Jones company, provides a quick look at the main price trends in the global PV industry.

Solar industry expansion is racing ahead but shortages of skilled labor could derail progress. Long-term solutions are required to support further growth. Benoit Ribeaud, partner at Everoze, explores how a workforce bottleneck is affecting the solar industry and calls for more action to alleviate recruitment pressure.

As solar module prices continue to drop to record lows, amid global oversupply, questions are being asked about how much inventory is sitting in European warehouses and when normal levels will return. With numerous estimates and assumptions swirling, EUPD Research’s Markus A.W. Hoehner and Ali Arfa have looked closely at the numbers in an attempt to provide a transparent view of the issue.

Brazil has announced a $3.6 billion hydrogen production plan, Adnoc has launched a green hydrogen refueling-station pilot in the United Arab Emirates, and the European Union has moved forward on the establishment of EU-wide hydrogen rules.

India’s Waaree has signed a three-year deal with Acciona to supply 1.5 GW of TOPCon solar modules for the Spanish developer’s PV installations in the United States from 2024 to 2026.

The Philippines Department of Energy says the Maharlika Consortium – representing three companies – will develop two microgrid hybrid solar and diesel generator power plants for “underserved” communities located on Panlaitan island and the island of Mindoro.

Japan’s latest procurement exercise was open to PV projects above 250 kW in size. The lowest price came in at JPY 7.94 ($0.053)/kWh, with 105 MW of allocated capacity.

Wood Mackenzie says in a new report that China could install 230 GW of PV and wind capacity and export more than 200 GW of solar panels in 2023. Unlike Europe and United States, the country is avoiding the high curtailment of PV and wind.

German researchers measured a PV-powered heat pump with battery storage in a single-family home in Freiburg, Germany, for a period of a year. It features smart grid-ready tech that adjusts operations based on the grid.

AEG is offering three versions of its new all-black solar panels, with power outputs of 435 W to 445 W and efficiency ratings ranging from 21.5% to 22.0%. They feature 108 half-cut monocrystalline cells with n-type technology.

Scientists in India have developed a 500 W seven-level inverter prototype based on switched capacitors. The device is reportedly able to achieve a high efficiency despite switching, conduction, and capacitor voltage ripple losses.

Sparc Hydrogen has successfully tested a green hydrogen tech prototype and is now advancing to a pilot plant study near Adelaide, Australia.

Solar capacity has rapidly grown in the United States, while manufacturing costs have fallen, prompting the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) to predict that PV will generate 14% more electricity than hydroelectric facilities in 2024.

The factory is located in Velika Plana, central Serbia. The production equipment was provided by Italian manufacturer Ecoprogetti.

Infinite Turbine has developed a heat pump turbine for residential and commercial applications, using PV or alternative electricity sources for simultaneous cooling and hydraulic power. The tech can be retrofitted with existing CO2 heat pump systems for air conditioning, hot water, and process heat.

Switzerland-based Studer says its new infra product can include up to 24 kW of solar and 30 kWh of battery storage. The system has two 12 kW inputs for solar panels and uses 5 kWh batteries from Italian manufacturer Weco.

Netherlands-based developer of lightweight PV systems, Rable Group, claims its new rooftop PV solution can be installed in 20 minutes without the need for special permitting or modifications to the fuse box.

An international research group has utilized through-substrate-vias to create 3D interconnections in III-V solar cells with a triple-junction architecture. The novel cell design was found to have a low shading factor of below 3% and a 6-fold increase in wafer area use compared to cells based on 2D interconnects.

Bernreuter Research says in a new report that it expects polysilicon prices to soon dip below the historical low of $6.75/kg, which was reached in June 2020. It says global polysilicon capacity could hit 2.75 million metric tons (MT) by the end of December, with just 200,000 MT of the total outside of China.

Toyo Solar, a subsidiary of Vsun Solar, commissioned a 4 GW TOPCon cell factory, completing the first phase of an 8 GW manufacturing facility in Vietnam.

The European Commission said last week it has greenlighted a €5.7 billion ($6.24 billion) scheme for Italy to develop renewable energy communities up to 1 MW in size.

AmpIn Energy Transition says it plans to invest $372 million to set up more than 600 MW of renewable energy projects and an integrated 1.3 GW solar cell and module factory in eastern India.

Graphite Energy, a thermal storage company, is building a facility in Australia to demonstrate how renewable energy and agriculture can co-exist through agrivoltaic and greenhouse systems.

Taking a rigorous approach to inspection is crucial across the energy storage supply chain. Chi Zhang and George Touloupas, of Clean Energy Associates (CEA), explore common manufacturing defects in battery energy storage systems (BESS’) and how quality-assurance regimes can detect them.

Germany, in collaboration with Italy, has revealed plans to import hydrogen from Northern Africa.

Weiheng Ecactus has unveiled its new Tianwu battery system, with 233 kWh of capacity and 100 kW of output, giving users the flexibility to connect up to 10 units in parallel.

Large-scale reconductoring of existing transmission lines could cost-effectively double transmission capacity within existing rights-of-way, a study says. Renewable energy projects near reconductored transmission lines could more easily interconnect.

The European Union has launched its first green hydrogen auction with a maximum price of €4.50 ($4.91)/kg. The approved projects will receive subsidies for a decade, alongside revenue from hydrogen sales, and must start production within the next five years.