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TSE and the agrivoltaic development in France

In March 2023, France passed a law to accelerate the production of renewable energy. In this interview, Bertrand Drouot L'Hermine, Deputy General Manager Business Development with TSE, discusses the important role agrivoltaics will play not only in weaning the country off fossil fuels, but also in providing benefits to France’s farmers.
Markets & Policy

India set to host first giant battery

ONGC Tripura Power Co. (OTPC) and Assam Power Distribution Co. Ltd. (APDCL) have set up a joint venture to deploy a 250 MW/500 MWh battery in Assam, India.
Markets & Policy

US Inflation Reduction Act ‘real risk’ for Australia in green hydrogen race

Former Reserve Bank of Australia Deputy Governor Guy Debelle has warned that the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) poses a “material threat” to Australia’s push to become a green hydrogen superpower.
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Markets & Policy

Dubai’s tender for 6th phase of giant solar park attracts lowest bid of $0.0162154/kWh

DEWA said it will announce the preferred bidder for the 1,800 MW 6th phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in the third quarter of this year.
Manufacturing

NASA, SpaceX launch roll-out solar arrays for International Space Station

NASA and SpaceX have successfully launched two new roll-out solar arrays, known as IROSA, to enhance the energy production capacity of the International Space Station's microgravity complex. These arrays will provide an expanded and efficient power sourc...
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Solar buildouts mapped to determine impact on biodiversity in US largest estuary

A group of researchers and data scientists from the Chesapeake Conservatory studied the construction of solar energy facilities in states surrounding the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and found that solar developments on already cultivated land did not advers...
Markets & Policy

EU to avoid prolonging revenue cap on renewables

The European Commission says it is unnecessary and unadvisable to prolong the emergency measures for the energy market that were adopted at the end of 2022. This means that the €0.18 ($0.19)/kWh price cap on solar and other renewables will no longer ap...
Markets & Policy

Hungary’s largest solar power plant goes online

Mezőcsát, a 233 MW solar plant in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén, Hungary, has officially commenced operations.

Press Releases

Qcells seals recognition for solar quality with 8th consecutive PVEL Top Performer accolade; also secures EuPD Research and n-tv Life & Living awards

For the eighth year in a row, Qcells solar modules have been rated as a Top Performer in PVEL’s PV Module Reliability Scorecard. The company also received recognition for its module and brand quality with awards from EuPD Research and n-tv.

Sungrow and Green Gold Energy Signed Memorandum to Collaborate on 500MWh Projects within the Next 3 Years

Sungrow announced it signed a memorandum with Green Gold Energy to collaborate on 500MWh projects within the next three years, strengthening the utility scale projects cooperation in the Australian market.

Advanced Hanersun Solar+Storage Solutions are poised to support Croatia’s Sewerage Treatment Plants

In June, MW-scale solar modules and energy storage products of Hanersun will be shipped for the first time to Croatia, which is known as the "Pearl of the Mediterranean. "

Growatt To Present Comprehensive Product Portfolio and Innovations at Intersolar Europe 2023

Growatt, a global leading distributed energy solution provider, will participate in the upcoming Intersolar Europe 2023 from June 14-16.

Opinion & Analysis

Featured

European energy market prices went down in first week of June

In the first week of June, prices of most European electricity markets fell and some negative prices were registered, thanks to the decrease in demand and prices of gas and CO2, and to the increase of renewable energy production in some cases. However, prices rose in the Nord Pool and MIBEL markets, with the latter being the highest weekly price, something that did not happen since the first week of November. A record photovoltaic energy production was registered in Germany on June 3.

Polysilicon prices plunge worldwide on bearish market sentiment

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.

New York and Ontario steal California’s sunshine, as high pressure systems affect May irradiance

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, presents the solar irradiance data it collected for North America in May. New York registered a new record on May 18th, when solar power met 20% of the state power demand, while Los Angeles and San Diego rooftops actually received less irradiance during May than New York’s or Boston’s.

Photovoltaic energy continues to set new records in European electricity markets

Gas and CO2 prices continued their downward trend in the fourth week of May, which led to a general downward trend in prices in European electricity markets and several negative hourly prices were registered, which reached -€400/MWh in Netherlands. The notable exception of the Iberian market, which saw a rise in prices, came from the fall in renewable energy production. During the week, records of solar photovoltaic energy production were reached in Germany, France, and Italy.

Smoke from early fire season impacts irradiance across North America

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, presents the solar irradiance data it collected for North America since early May. The province of Alberta saw close to 100 wildfires raging from the beginning of the month and solar asset operators throughout the impacted regions can expect reduced efficiency from both the irradiance impacts and increased panel soiling.

Cell prices slip, weighed down by sustained falling upstream prices

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.

Covid-19

Producing the goods

Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) is demonstrating how a solar-powered refrigeration unit and dryer could be self-sustaining and improve food security in Kenya.

African PAYG solar companies have hogged 72% of sector’s investment

The first post-pandemic update on the state of the world’s off-grid solar industry has painted a picture of domination by European companies, but highlighted the potential for new startups in West Africa and an increasing use of PV as a backup to unreliable grid supplies.

Off-grid solar continues to expand

The off-grid solar sector has shown resilience in the face of pandemic-related challenges, with 70 million people gaining access to electricity from early 2020 to the end of 2021. However, the ability to pay for solar energy kits has taken a hit.

AfDB announces cheap loans to back off-grid solar in Africa

The African Development Bank has announced that European and US donors will provide $20 million of concessional loans to support pay-as-you-go solar companies in sub-Saharan Africa.

SolarEdge reports record-breaking revenue

With comparisons with a Covid-hit 2020 inevitably offering a string of positive numbers, there was also little to concern the board of the inverter and battery manufacturer from the returns generated in the last quarter.

Solar job numbers kept on rising in 2020

The latest edition of a clean power jobs survey produced by IRENA and the International Labour Organization has stressed the important role which will need to be played by the public sector if the energy transition’s employment benefits are to be shared equally.

Markets & Policy

Featured

Asia takes the lead on floating PV

Floating PV is consolidating as a growth segment for PV demand, mainly driven by supportive policies and incentives extended by governments across the world. A major reason for this push is the limited land availability in many markets. Despite higher equipment prices compared to ground-mounted installations, developers see the opportunity to save on land and O&M costs. The output can also be as much as 30% higher than a ground-mount PV plant, depending on the site and technology used.

Pumped hydro storage development surging in India

Torrent Power has signed a deal with the Maharashtra state government in India to set up 5.7 GW of pumped hydro storage capacity, while NHPC, a state-owned hydropower producer, is actively exploring pumped storage projects across multiple states in the country.

European organizations publish EU heat pump acceleration plan

More than 20 companies, governments, and nongovernmental organizations have presented EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson with a roadmap for the European heat pump sector, including recommended solutions to overcome barriers to growth.

Shoals files patent complaint for solar connectors, wire harnesses

Shoals Technologies has filed a patent infringement complaint against Hikam America and Voltage, LLC, with the US International Trade Commission (ITC).

German PV equipment securing orders from US, European markets

German engineering federation VDMA has published a new report outlining strong demand for solar production equipment from non-Asian markets, indicating a shift in the global solar industry landscape.

Cambodia to scrap rooftop PV capacity charge, introduce new tariffs

Cambodia’s Ministry of Mines and Energy has published a document outlining principles to permit the use of rooftop PV. The new policy replaces a monthly capacity fee for rooftop systems, with a tariff calculated based on an intricate formula.

Installations

Featured

Australia builds big

While the first half of 2022 was one of the busiest periods on record for new wind projects in Australia, with more than 2 GW breaking ground, solar got off to a much slower start with construction on 635 MW of new PV projects getting underway. Rystad Energy’s David Dixon attributes this slowdown to high cost and supply chain challenges and a lack of available power purchase agreements.

Melbourne switches on 2.4 MW solar carpark

The Melbourne Market Authority has switched on a 2.4 MW solar carpark at its facility in Melbourne, Australia. It is the first phase of a three-stage project that will culminate in a 10 MW rooftop system.

PVcase acquires Anderson Optimization

PVcase, a Lithuanian PV software company, has acquired Anderson Optimization and says the integration of the US-based firm’s software could allow it to slash design times from weeks to just 20 minutes.

Photovoltaic-thermal solar panel based on water storage tank

A research group from Ireland developed a PVT system consisting of a 170 W photovoltaic panel connected to a water tank placed at the backside of the PV module itself. The PVT module is able to considerably reduce the temperature of the PV unit while producing hot water for residential use.

Akcome unveils new 730 W heterojunction solar modules

Chinese manufacturer Akcome has released a new line of heterojunction solar panels with a nominal power capacity ranging between 710 W and 730 W and a conversion efficiency of 22.80% to 23.50%.

Serbia allocates quota for solar auction, determines market premium

The Serbian government has allocated a quota of 50 MW for its first solar auction. Solar plants with capacity of more than 500 kW will be allowed to participate in the competitive tendering process, with the ceiling price set at €90 ($96.10)/MWh.

Technology

Featured

Copper is the new silver lining

As the PV industry scales to annual terawatt-level production to rapidly curtail the world’s emissions, it will become more challenging to continue the cost reduction trajectory. Increasing module production from current levels of 200 GW to 300 GW to several terawatts each year will consume significantly more material resources than the industry currently uses. This will require consideration of the additional materials to be sourced, writes Alison Lennon, chief scientist at Sundrive Solar and professor at the UNSW’s School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering.

Growatt highlights C & I hybrid inverter at SNEC

At this year’s SNEC exhibition in Shanghai pv magazine caught up with Lisa Zhang, Vice President of Marketing at Growatt. At their SNEC booth, Growatt showcased its new 100 kW hybrid inverter WIT 50-100K-HU/AU, developed for commercial and industrial applications. This C & I storage system readily scales

IBC solar cell based on ultrathin black silicon wafer achieves 16.4% efficiency

A Spanish-Finnish research team has fabricated an IBC solar cell with an ultrathin black silicon wafer with a thickness of 40 µm. The device is based on vanadium oxide and laser-processed phosphorus-doped silicon carbide stacks as hole and electron transport layers, respectively.

MAN Energy installs world’s largest seawater CO2 heat pump in Denmark

Germany’s MAN Energy Solutions has supplied two 50 MW seawater heat pumps for district heating at the port of Esbjerg, Denmark. They use CO2 as a refrigerant and will be powered by nearby wind farms. The project will start producing 350,000 MWh of heat per year in the fall.

Chinese PV Industry Brief: TW Solar plans 20 GW module factory in Sichuan province

TW Solar announced it will invest around $1.48 billion in a new integrated solar module manufacturing facility in Chengdu City. Meanwhile, Jinkosolar began to buy new production equipment for its expansion plans from Wuxi Autowell.

Indian startup introduces 5 kWh storage system based on second-life EV battery

India’s Lohum has designed a 5 kWh energy storage system in collaboration with MG Motor India, as part of efforts to develop second-life solutions for used EV batteries.

Manufacturing

Featured

Catalyst for an EU comeback

Plans for Europe’s largest-ever PV cell and module factory are taking shape, with equipment orders placed and a projected start date in mid-2024. Enel Green Power has received €118 million ($116.36 million) in funding from the EU Innovation Fund to support the project, out of a total €600 million investment. The EU is hoping it will catalyze further investment in similar projects, and start a high-tech comeback for European solar manufacturing.

Singulus claims new coating machine can improve PV cell efficiency up to 1%

Singulus says its new production equipment can apply a passivation layer to the edges of half-cell, multi-cell, and shingle cells. Its Generis PET machine is also suitable for batch or inline processing and is compatible with all crystalline solar cell technologies.

Supply-demand mismatches, higher prices to hit utility-scale solar in India

India’s annual utility-scale solar deployment is expected to slow down in 2023, following a record-breaking 14 GW of additions in 2022, according to a new report by the International Energy Agency (IEA).

US researchers beam solar from space

Caltech’s space solar program began in 2011 when philanthropist Donald Bren donated more than $100 million in support of the project. In the first demonstration of solar energy beamed to earth, his vision is now becoming reality.

Perovskite solar cell based on Mortise-Tenon tech achieves 24.55% efficiency

Chinese researchers have used Mortise-Tenon technology to connect the perovskite absorber with the hole transport layer in a perovskite solar cell. They say that this reduces non-radiative recombination, while improving the cell’s open-circuit voltage and fill factor.

New high-voltage hybrid inverters for residential applications from China

Auxsol’s new three-phase hybrid inverters have efficiency ratings of 97.8% and European efficiency ratings of 97%. They are available in five versions, with power outputs ranging from 5 kW to 12 kW.

Energy Storage

Featured

Cobalt clings on

Cobalt is key for boosting energy density and battery life, but it comes with caveats: expensive, scarce, and linked to unethical mining practices, wild price fluctuations, and a tenuous supply chain. In recent years, battery manufacturers and automakers have intensified efforts to reduce or eliminate cobalt in lithium-ion cathodes. But sometimes, old habits die hard, as pv magazine’s Marija Maisch explains.

The Hydrogen Stream: Japan plans $150 billion hydrogen investment

Japan has announced plans to invest $150 billion in hydrogen over the next decade, while Malaysia has revealed that it will invest in solar and hydrogen under a new energy roadmap. Separately, Kansai Electric Power and Canada’s ATCO have agreed to collaborate on a feasibility study for green hydrogen supplies.

PV-powered offgrid air conditioner for building applications

A British research team has investigated the technical feasibility of an air conditioning unit powered exclusively by solar-plus-storage and has found that two 130 Ah batteries charged by two 400 W solar panels are capable of supporting the system during the night.

Australian startup unveils 100 kW hydrogen power bank

Endua has installed its first 100 kW standalone hydrogen power bank in Brisbane, Australia. The news comes weeks after the company raised AUD 11.8 million ($7.81 million) to scale the technology.

SolarEdge launches solar-optimized EV management platform

SolarEdge’s new software-based solution manages and optimizes the electric-vehicle (EV) charging process for sites that have solar resources and large numbers of EVs requiring dynamic load management.

The Hydrogen Stream: Oman awards large-scale green hydrogen projects

Oman has awarded hydrogen contracts to CIP, Shell, and BP, while Germany has strengthened its hydrogen ties by linking it to broader European initiatives.

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