PV-powered desalination system for rural areas
Italian start-up Genius Watter has developed a solar desalination solution that is claimed to be particularly suitable for remote areas with no connection to grid electricity. The system is able to produce up to 1,000 cubic meters of potable water per day at an opex of €0.20 per cubic meter.
India’s NTPC tenders 1 GW of solar capacity, BHEL issues global tender to select module partners
Developers have until May 27 to submit bids for NTPC’s projects anywhere in India. BHEL is seeking module supply partners for an aggregate 750 MW of panels.
Two firefighters killed after Beijing battery blaze
An explosion occurred as firefighters were dealing with a fire in a 25 MWh lithium-iron phosphate battery associated with a 1.4 MW rooftop array at a shopping mall in the Chinese capital on Friday.
British company to produce solid-state lithium-sulfur products this year
Oxfordshire-based Oxis Energy says it will produce the less flammable devices sought by the aviation industry using the same manufacturing processes as those used to make lithium-ion and conventional-lithium-sulfur products.
Analysis of France’s CRE4 PV tenders and their impact
This year will witness the end of the French program for PV tenders known as “CRE4”, which began in 2016. To date, they have enabled over 7.2 GW of solar capacity to benefit from a subsidized tariff (feed-in tariff or feed-in premium). A few months before the last CRE4 tenders and the launch of the PPE2 (or CRE5), Finergreen evaluates their impact on the French solar industry.
Uzbekhydroenergo, EDF join forces to develop pumped hydro, floating PV
The two companies are initially planning to build a 200 MW pumped-hydro facility in the Bostanlyk district of Uzbekistan’s Tashkent region.
Polysilicon passivate junctions getting closer to commercial production of c-Si modules
A new study from Australia has highlighted the potential of polysilicon passivated junctions for revolutionizing the commercial production of crystalline silicon solar panels. It also presented, however, the technical and economic hurdles that must still be removed to ensure its success, including the damage that this technology can produce for the polysilicon layers, due to the cell’s metallization process.
Fraunhofer ISE reveals Spain may host 5 GW module factory
The vertically integrated factory is expected to be located near Sevilla, in southern Spain. The factory will be owned and operated by the newly created company Greenland Gigafactory.
GM and LG Energy plan a $2.3 billion electric vehicle battery plant
The automaker’s future Ultium-powered EVs are designed for Level 2 and DC fast charging. Most will have 400V battery packs and up to 200 kW fast charging capability.
Australian solar installer receives unexpected response from customers after switching exclusively to microinverters
Solar installer Jake Warner has received surprising feedback from his customers after he chose to transition his company, Penrith Solar, exclusively to microinverters two months ago. “What I found is actually the opposite to what I expected,” Warner told pv magazine Australia
