As more states adopt ambitious renewable power and storage targets, hopes increase for continued market opportunities beyond the ITC. In the mid-term, the overall market opportunity is clear. At IHS Markit, we project 73 GW of solar PV systems will be installed in the United States from 2018 to 2022.

Independent energy analyst, Corinne Lin discusses the fallout of China’s recent solar PV policy decision, including decreasing utilization rates and serious oversupply; and a focus on equipment upgrades, particularly for PERC, SE, half cut and bifiacial technologies. The industry will bounce back in 2019, she concludes.

With the percentage of renewables in the global energy mix increasing, and global energy demand projected to increase by 30% over the next two decades, energy storage is more important now than ever. But what are the main technologies for energy storage, and how will these technologies affect global energy? Gabriel Hurtado González, Energy Solutions Manager at Mitie, and Sasaenia Paul Oluwabunmi, Operations Officer at the OPEC Fund for International Development answer this pertinent question.

The booming large scale and rooftop PV market in 2018 is providing reasons to be optimistic about the future of solar under the Australian sun. Reflecting on his six-year tenure as CEO at ARENA ahead of his departure in August, Ivor Frischknecht points to the role the agency played in bringing down the costs of large scale solar as ARENA’s greatest achievement.

For decades, hydrogen has been sold to us as the energy carrier of the future. You might not want to hear it anymore, because the future never seems to start. But times will change as recent developments in Germany indicate, writes Berlin-based renewable energy consultant, Stephan Franz.

Chinese module giant JA Solar has announced the completion of a merger that makes it the latest in a line of solar manufacturers to voluntarily de-list from a major stock exchange.

Labour politician Sadiq Khan has expanded his Solar Together group-buying scheme for rooftop installations in London after more than 1,000 households and small businesses signed up to discounts on residential systems under the initial phase.

High-ranking officials from China and the EU have signed a joint statement to foster technological and political co-operation in clean energy. The regions will also develop emissions trading systems further, with officials seeing such schemes as a policy tool to foster innovation for a low-carbon economy.

Phased import tariff would fall to 20% 12 months after introduction and 15% for final six months of a proposed two-year period. Industry watchers say the cost of Indian solar energy could rise by up to 30%.

Biggest shareholder has acquired – and postponed payment of – a chunk of debt due last month and agreed a further debt-to-equity transfer. The Swiss company today stated further measures will be required to shore up its balance sheet.

The extent of the rapid growth under way in the Australian PV market has been laid out in the latest report by the Australian Photovoltaic Institute. Pointing to 2018 representing “another record year for Australian PV” the outstanding growth of the utility scale segment is a particular highlight – with 1.1 GW commissioned and 1.9 GW under development.

The EPC provider, which is active in the MENA region, announced that it expects a 900 MW pipeline shortly. The company was recently acquired by U.K.-based Arjun Investment Partners and reportedly has increased its staff size by 30% this year. The company cites an increasing interest in asset diversification and good economics as reasons for MENA’s investment in solar PV.

At the end of June, Amsterdam’s Johan Cruijff ArenA inaugurated Europe’s largest energy storage system using new and second-life energy storage batteries in a commercial building, alongside partners Eaton, The Mobility House, Nissan and BAM. pv magazine attended the event and spoke to those involved. Below is the first in a series of three interviews with the partners, looking at their involvement in the project, and what their future plans are.

India’s solar rooftop sector continues to disappoint, with the first quarter of FY 2018-2019 achieving just 155.77 MW against the 1,000 MW EoY target.

Gogla has released a report showing the positive economic effects of deploying small-scale pay-as-you-go solar systems in off-grid regions. More than half of the survey’srespondents reported having increased economic activity, with many of those starting new businesses or significantly increasing their household income.

UN delegates are meeting in New York to negotiate further realization of the Sustainable Development Goals. One of the goals is to ‘Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.’ And Bloomberg NEF argues that thanks to new technology this goal is more feasible than ever, and that delegates should focus on building financial and regulatory frameworks to enable large scale micro-grid development.

Following the U.K. government’s announcement to significantly increase EV numbers on its roads, a call for applications was announced. Ramping up EV numbers does necessitate a convenient and low-cost charging infrastructure. To achieve this, public administration offices will fund trial phases of promising concepts. Businesses can apply until August 29.

The virtual power plant (VPP) solutions provider connected its product with a 2 MW storage system in Belgium. It will be the country’s first storage system to take part in the grid’s frequency control reserve.

The project connects four to six households, and lets dwellers pre-purchase daily access to electricity using a mobile app. A successful trial phase has just been finished and the executing association, Nanoé Développement has set new goals to reach in the near future.

A team of scientists at the University of Kansas has developed a method to boost the lifetime of excited electrons in graphene, a development which the team alleges could lead to the development of highly efficient, ultrathin solar cells.

Chinese polysilicon giant Daqo New Energy has revised down its guidance for both polysilicon and wafer sales in the second quarter of 2018. The company states, however, that it remains confident in long-term prospects for the solar industry; and is proceeding as planned with capacity expansions.

At a creditors’ meeting, important decisions have been made regarding the future of the ailing German solar module manufacturer. The creditors have decided to discontinue the loss-making business at the end of September, providing no investor can be found by then.

GTM Research says the 10% tariffs that the Trump Administration is calling for are “significant”, and some companies and sectors will be affected more than others.

The latest reports from analysts at PV InfoLink and EnergyTrend show prices continuing to fall, though at a slower rate than was immediately seen after China’s 31/5 announcements. High efficiency mono-PERC modules fell to around US$0.32/W, while multicrystalline module prices held steady at between $0.26 and $0.29/W.

Currently, new anti-dumping proceedings against solar glass makers from Malaysia are taking place in the EU. Imports of Chinese solar glass have been subject to high anti-subsidy and anti-dumping duties since 2014. The European module manufacturers fear further massive competitive disadvantages and the danger of an Interfloat monopoly in Europe.

Dr Rashi Gupta, Director at Vision Mechatronics discusses the EV landscape in India, particularly focusing on the potential for battery manufacturing. While there are currently many challenges, like a lack of raw materials and infrastructure, the opportunities are immense.

The German PV home storage provider delivered around 1,500 solar batteries globally last month. At around 75%, most systems went to Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Outlining energy pathways for the next 30 years and beyond, the U.K.’s National Grid has released four different scenarios, considering growing electricity demand and a significant increase in energy infrastructure from new renewable generation and EV charging networks. Only two of them meet the U.K.’s 2050 carbon reduction target on the back of a large growth of renewables and energy storage, and almost completely decarbonized transport.

The research team used real-world energy consumption data from 4,190 Swiss households to analyze how different cost scenarios may influence optimal photovoltaic-battery (PVB) system deployment.

DNV GL, Deakin University, the CSIRO, and the Smart Energy Council have come together to collaborate on a two-year project to develop a new performance standard for distributed energy storage systems. The work behind the proposed Australian Battery Performance Standard is being funded $1.9 million from ARENA and the Victoria state government.