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Weekend Read: Temper tantrum

Reports of broken module glass with no obvious cause have begun to crop up at large PV projects. Module design, glass manufacturing, and interactions in the field between modules and trackers are at play and a clear solution has yet to emerge. Early signs suggest an update to certification standards may be needed.
Manufacturing

JinkoSolar to give TOPCon patents to rivals in exchange for licensing fees

JinkoSolar is offering its n-type tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) patents to competitors to encourage technological development and prevent legal conflicts.
Installations

German grid operator expects new 2023 solar capacity to hit 14.1 GW

Germany's Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur) says developers likely installed 14.1 GW of new solar capacity in 2023, with more than 260,000 balcony solar modules now in operation.
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Manufacturing

Meyer Burger unveils black HJT solar panels for balcony applications

Switzerland-based manufacturer Meyer Burger has developed black heterojunction (HJT) solar modules for balconies, featuring 800 W microinverters, smart control units, and mounting systems.
Manufacturing

South Korean researchers develop 19%-efficient stretchable organic PV cells

The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) says its new organic PV cells are suitable for wearable electronics. KAIST claims that the cells can be stretched by up to 40%.
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Markets & Policy

Chinese PV Industry Brief: CHN Energy finalizes 10 GW inverter procurement

CHN Energy has wrapped up its 10 GW PV inverter tender for 2023, with Huawei securing orders for 4.1 GW of string inverters and Sungrow obtaining 1.85 GW.
Markets & Policy

Europe should abandon ‘buy abroad’ renewables strategy, say researchers

Italian researchers have assessed the global PV supply chain and say that the EU climate strategy should foster European production of renewable energy technologies.
Installations

UK solar capacity hits 15.6 GW

UK government statistics show that the country added 871 MW of solar capacity in the first 11 months of 2023. However, the Solar Energy UK trade association says that more than 1 GW of solar was deployed last year.

Press Releases

VSUN SOLAR honored as EcoVadis Bronze Medals 2023!

VSUN SOLAR honored as bronze medal in the 2023 Global CSR Assessment by EcoVadis! VSUN has been recognized for its outstanding achievements with a Bronze in Social Responsibility Governance at: ENVIRONMENT, LABOR & HUMAN RIGHTS, ETHICS and SUSTAINABLE PROCUREMENT.

Calling all sustainable energy heroes: The European Sustainable Energy Week returns in 2024

Conference targets net-zero solutions for a competitive Europe

Shanghai Electric’s Energy Storage and PV Projects in the UK Hit New Milestones

The 100MW/100MWh REP1&2 Energy Storage Station project in Kent has been launched for commercial operation.

EDP Renewables starts production of its first photovoltaic project in the Netherlands

Developed by Kronos Solar EDPR, this marks the initial step of EDPR's plan to install close to 100 MWp in the country over the next few months.

Opinion & Analysis

Featured

Texas solar generation surges amidst North America’s contrasting December patterns

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that varied patterns have impacted solar generation across North America in late December. The South experienced up to 30% higher irradiance than the long-term December average, resulting from a persistent Atlantic high-pressure system driving easterly winds. which kept moisture from the Gulf of Mexico offshore.

China solar cell prices decline on sluggish downstream demand

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.

Wind, solar production falls at 2023 end, but demand expected at 2024 beginning

According to data collected by AleaSoft Energy Forecasting, wind and solar energy production in Italy and the Iberian Peninsula fell in the last week of 2023 contributing to price rises, but in the new year electricity demand is expected to increase in all analyzed markets.

Make PV modules as cheap as possible, but not cheaper

In a new monthly column for pv magazine, the International Solar Energy Society (ISES) explains how reducing glass thickness in PV modules may fracture the solar industry, impacting PV module and PV tracker suppliers, engineering, product and construction companies, and PV plant owners.

High pressure stalls El Nino’s expected solar boost in eastern Australia

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that eastern Australia’s behind-the-meter normalized generation has fallen by 10% to 15% year on year.

Solcast’s Solstice Forecast – Long term trends and forecast

In its last 2023 update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, presents a long-term analysis on historical average irradiance on Christmas day.

Markets & Policy

Featured

Kenya seeking consultants for 42.5 MW solar project

The Kenyan authorities have started searching for consultants to offer guidance on the development of a 42.5 MW solar project in Embu County, Kenya.

First Solar to power Indian module factory with wind, solar under PPA

Cleantech Solar says it plans to develop 150 MW of solar and 16.8 MW of wind in India, supplying around 7.3 GWh of clean electricity to First Solar’s new 3.3 GW vertically integrated solar factory in the state of Tamil Nadu. The solar component of the project will use First Solar’s India-made Series 7 modules.

Slovakia’s solar additions hit 220 MW in 2023

The Slovak solar market showed encouraging signs of growth last year, according to provisional figures from the Slovak Association of the Photovoltaic Industry. It says the country could add 300 MW of new PV capacity in 2024.

PowerChina finalizes construction of 480 MW PV plant in Chile

PowerChina has finished building a 480 MW solar plant in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile, which is recognized for having the world’s highest solar radiation levels.

EV battery prices fell by 50% at end of 2023, says TrendForce

Average sales prices of Chinese power cells at the end of 2023 were half of what they were at the start of the year, according to TrendForce. Despite the drop, the research firm says prices should stabilize in the second half of 2024.

Idaho commission cuts rooftop PV compensation, driving industry concerns

Electric utility commissions across the nation are following the lead of California to cut compensation for rooftop solar generation. Is Idaho the next step in a death march for the industry?

Installations

Featured

Energy storage provider Bluetti enters rooftop solar market

Expanding beyond portable and grid-tied batteries, Bluetti has launched its solar installation business in the United States.

Color characterization technique for BIPV

Scientists in Switzerland have created a new technique to characterize the color of BIPV panels. The method uses an optical fiber spectrometer to detect color characterization signals.

Renewables-powered high temperature heat pumps are cheapest option for industrial steam

New research from Austria has compared different industrial heat-generating techniques and has found that wind or solar-powered heat pumps are the cheapest and most environment-friendly solution.

France announces new FIT rates for PV systems up to 500 kW

France’s new feed-in tariffs (FITs) for the period from August 2023 to January 2024 range from €0.2077 ($0.2270)/kWh for installations below 3 kW to €0.1208/kWh for arrays ranging in size from 100 kW to 500 kW.

Kuwait tenders 1.1 GW solar project

Kuwait has tendered a 1.1 GW solar project to supply electricity to the Ministry of Electricity, Water, and Renewable Energy under a 30-year power purchase agreement (PPA).

Renewables covered almost 60% of German electricity demand in 2023

New statistics from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (Fraunhofer ISE) show that PV systems in Germany generated around 59.9 TWh of solar power in 2023, with 6.4 TWh used for home consumption.

Technology

SPIE presents transparent spectral converter to enhance solar cell performance

The proposed converter is also aimed at acting as a protective layer for solar cells. It relies on a glass-ceramic material that can reportedly absorb UV photons from solar radiation and re-emit them as visible light.

Ambient Photonics presents indoor bifacial solar cell tech

Ambient Photonics says its new solar cell could be the future power source for connected devices, potentially eliminating the need for batteries.

Training AI to improve film quality in perovskite solar cells

With the aim of improving coating processes for large area thin films for high-performing perovskite solar cells, German and Swiss researchers have developed deep learning and explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) technology. The results suggest it can be used to define optimal coating process parameters more quickly and more accurately.

KAUST unveils triple-junction perovskite-perovskite-silicon solar cell with 26.4% efficiency

The triple-junction solar cell is based on a 15.0%-efficient top perovskite solar cell modified with potassium thiocyanate (KSCN) and methylammonium iodide (MAI). According to its creators, the triple-junction device displays a remarkable power conversion efficiency improvement compared to state-of-the-art devices.

Fraunhofer IWU unveils online tool for sizing of rooftop PV systems

Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Technology (Fraunhoer IWU) has developed a new online tool to calculate the size of rooftop solar arrays, heat pumps and batteries.

Photovoltaics may increase safety in nuclear power plants

New research from Iran shows that PV installations linked to battery storage may help prevent accidents and increase safety in nuclear power plants by acting as an emergency load. The scientists proposed a system design that considers both technical and economics factors.

Manufacturing

Featured

New passivation strategy paves the way for lead-free perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells

Scientists in Japan have developed a lead-free tin sulfide solar cell that is intended for applications in tandem perovskite-silicon PV devices. Through a new passivation technique based on the use of phenylsilane (PhSiH3) as a reducing agent, they were able to considerably increase the cell efficiency compared to a reference device with no PhSiH3 treatment.

Ocean Sun completes 270 kW off-grid floating PV system at Spanish port

Norwegian floating solar specialist Ocean Sun has deployed a 270 kW system based on its novel membrane technology at the saltwater port of Tazacorte on La Palma, one of Spain’s Canary Islands.

First Solar closes $700 million in tax credit transfer sales

US module manufacturer First Solar has closed the sale of US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tax credits.

Chinese PV Industry Brief: Akcome sets up pilot factory for perovskite PV cells

Akcome says it hopes to soon start commercial production of its heterojunction (HJT) perovskite solar cells, but it has yet to provide a specific time frame.

Italian startup unveils 350 W balcony TOPCon solar modules

Fly Solartech Solutions Srl’s new 60-cell modules have a power conversion efficiency of 17.87% and a temperature coefficient of -0.27% per degree Celsius. The company offers the panels with 300 W, CEI-021-certified microinverters featuring 96.5% peak efficiency.

Solar-assisted heat pump for biomass drying

Scientists from Finland have built an experimental system that allows the drying of woody biomass with solar thermal energy and a heat pump. They claim PV may play a complementary role in the proposed setup.

Energy Storage

Featured

Energy trade model for interconnected renewable microgrids

Scientists from China proposed a new method for energy trade optimization between interconnected microgrids and the main utility grid. The novel approach utilizes particle swarm optimization and gravitational search algorithms with Nash Bargaining.

US battery storage demand to surge within this decade, says SEIA

US demand for battery energy storage systems will grow sixfold by 2030, according to a recent report by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), but only with serious investment, coordination with experienced manufacturers, and collaboration with allies.

Asantys Systems offers containerized solar-storage solutions in Sierra Leone

Asantys Systems has developed containerized solar-storage solutions in Sierra Leone, featuring solar containers with capacities ranging from 30 kW to 130 kW. The containers include inverters from German manufacturer SMA and batteries from Hoppecke Batterien.

GDI unveils 100% silicon anode for rapid charging, higher energy density

Third-party tests of GDI’s 100% silicon anodes show that they offer more than 30% energy density than graphite anodes, allowing for 15-minute rapid charging up to 80% state of charge (SOC) for hundreds of times back to back.

PV-driven liquid air storage system for buildings

An international research group has developed a PV-driven liquid air energy storage (LAES) system for building applications. Simulations suggest that it could meet 89.72% of power demand, 51.96% of heating demand, and 11% of cooling demand in a PV-powered building.

Charging quantum batteries

Researchers in Japan have taken advantage of an unintuitive quantum process that disregards the conventional notion of causality to improve the performance of so-called “quantum batteries.” They believe these advances could help to bring the technology a little closer to reality.

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