The Paris Agreement has been signed by all ASEAN nations and almost all members have declared a carbon emissions reduction target. The diversity in ASEAN’s readiness for energy transition is reflected in the wide-ranging nationally determined contribution targets set for reducing greenhouse gases. An immediate quick win for the renewable energy transition is the harnessing of solar power from an abundance of resources in the region.

This year, PV cell manufacturers will face the challenge of transformation. Apart from adjusting the ratio of production for different-sized cells, some manufacturers are turning to next-generation opportunities, shifting investment from p-PERC to n-type technology. PV InfoLink Analyst Amy Fang discusses the issues facing n-type cell development this year.

Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have seen uneven development in PV installations to date, and the three Baltic states are still highly dependent on imports from Russia. Estonia needs to replace aging energy infrastructure, and so far it has led the region in PV deployments. Latvia, meanwhile, has a high level of hydro in its energy mix, and less incentive to build PV. IHS Markit analyst Susanne von Aichberger examines the latest policy developments in the Baltic states.

In the first installment of a new monthly blog by IHS Markit, Edurne Zoco, executive director for clean energy technology, writes that high prices and increased freight costs are putting solar PV procurement teams under extreme pressure, particularly those teams with connection deadlines this year that were anticipating a more favorable pricing and logistic environment in the second half of 2021.

Until 2016, Nepal suffered from chronic power shortages. At that time, just 65% of the country’s population had access to electricity. Assessing the situation, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) estimated that the country has the potential for 2.1 GW of installed PV capacity. Although the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has officially been able to buy solar power under long-term PPAs since July 2014, the majority of projects granted these contracts have been large-scale hydropower plants. Following slow activity, plans are finally afoot, however, to boost the country’s solar footprint.

Energy efficiency, electrification of heating and transport, and the provision of clean cooking facilities are all going in the wrong direction as the Covid crisis deprived millions in sub-Saharan Africa of electricity use, according to a report by the IEA, IRENA, WHO, World Bank and UN Statistics Division.

The trade show will be held from October 5-7 under the auspices of the Covid-delayed global trade fair.

The 15th edition of the world’s biggest solar exhibition got up and running in Shanghai today and we have exclusive images from the event.

Private sector fossil fuel spending on exploration is drying up just as modest rises in clean energy investments are being observed. With stock market investors increasingly embracing renewables, the IEA has observed positive signals in its latest energy investment report, but warned we are still doing far too little to keep global heating at bay.

Trade organization Solar Energy UK has called for the government to mandate that solar target in a co-ordinated rallying cry issued with two peers. One of them, the Nuclear Industry Association, is a membership body sure to raise hackles in some quarters of the energy transition movement.

The Solar Energy Manufacturing for America Act would establish a tax credit for domestic solar manufacturers in an effort to boost the U.S. solar supply chain, create American clean energy jobs, compete with Chinese manufacturers, and support energy independence.

With ‘shovel-ready’ projects across India, Africa and Latin America in line for a mix of grants, cheap loans, equity investment and financial guarantees from this year, the two bodies hope to trigger $20 billion in total funding and bring reliable power to a billion people.

Sunil Thamaran, India head for US company Enphase Energy, explains why microinverters are a good investment for rooftop solar. He also talks about the trends in microinverter design and the company’s plans in India.

Are solar projects always a sustainable investment class? How can buyers be certain an asset is a lucrative investment? And how can PV project developers fulfill the requirements set by asset managers? This year’s Asset Management Roundtable brought together stakeholders that deal with PV projects from a financial, legal, and technical perspective. You can now watch the video to discover the answers to these questions.

A government minister attending the switching-on ceremony appeared to announce a new renewable energy ambition for the South Asian nation.

Australia-based TNG Limited has signed an agreement with Malaysian green hydrogen company AGV Energy which will see its vanadium redox flow batteries integrated into the HySustain project to store solar energy for green hydrogen production.

A French start-up has developed a concrete flywheel to store solar energy in an innovative way. Currently being tested in France, the storage solution will be initially offered in France’s overseas territories and Africa.

The murkiness of the federal government’s drive to make Australia an exporter of hydrogen, of any hue, gives rise to concerns.

Through the tender, the administration of Windhoek wants to build several projects on a build, own, and operate basis.

A response issued by the Ministry of Justice to questions from an MP has revealed anxiety about any official comments on a case which involves a Lithuanian solar developer claiming restitution from the state after it retroactively reduced feed-in tariff payments for clean power in August.

Rice University engineers produced “near-perfect” 2D perovskite crystals for photovoltaic applications, grown from seeds.

The cell exhibited an open-circuit voltage of 1.1 V and was able to retain around 90% of its initial performance after 215 days of exposure to dim light at room temperature. According to its creators, this performance and the notable stability were ensured by the thermal evaporation technique used for depositing the perovskite layers onto the cell.

The residential solar industry has taken notice of the demand for beautiful, hidden panels, and is now providing creative and attractive designs that you can incorporate into your rooftop solar project.

The methylammonium-free inverted solar module was built on a flexible substrate made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). A hole transporting material made of poly(triarylamine) (PTAA) and a double-cation cesium formamidinium (CsFA) perovskite layer were deposited through blade-coating and nitrogen-assisted blade-coating.

The BWRO unit, which has a treated water production capacity of around 11.80 ​L/h, was built with a pre-filtration module, a high-pressure DC pump, an RO module, and a post-treatment module. The PVT system was designed to meet the energy requirement of a high-pressure DC pump and a diaphragm-type circulation pump utilized to circulate soft water beneath the PV module for the active cooling of the panel itself.

The solar manufacturer has started trial production of high-efficiency solar cells at its new site in the southern state of Telangana. The fab can produce 19.2%-efficient multi-crystalline cells using MCCE textured black silicon, as well as making 22.5%-efficient mono PERC products.

The two solar manufacturers will get priority access to polysilicon produced at the planned fab in Inner Mongolia, which developer Xinte Energy has said will be fully operational by June 2023.

Furthermore, Zhonghuan Semiconductor has slightly reduced its wafer prices, while Longi has maintained them unchanged. Flat Glass is raising funds to support the construction of a new glass factory with a total annual capacity of 750,000 metric tons.

The SFOne tracker is designed for modules with 72 and 78-cell designs. According to Soltec, it reduces the time spent in its installation by 75% and will be available in all markets where the company operates.

The Polish perovskite solar cell specialist claims to be the first company in the world to have commissioned commercial production of the technology.

Italian hydrogen and fuel cells association H2IT is urging the national government to support investment in green hydrogen and ensure medium-long payback periods. The trade body’s goal is to build large-scale electrolyzers (>100 MW) to decrease green hydrogen’s price below €2.0/kg.

The factory is located in Noblejas, in the province of Toledo, Castilla–La Mancha, and is planned to reach a capacity of 10 GWh by 2025.

The country added around 73.5 MW/109.2 MWh of new, small-sized storage capacity in 2020. Most of the batteries are in Lombardy and Veneto, where rebates are being offered.

Western Australia utility Horizon Power has achieved a major milestone with the coastal town of Onslow powered 100% by solar PV and battery during a successful trial of what is one of Australia’s largest distributed energy resource microgrids.

A Spanish renewable energy company has installed its first, pilot mobile PV unit at a new detention center in Chile.