2022

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Sola Group plans to build two 100 MW siolar projects in South Africa’s North West province. It will sell the electricity under power purchase agreements to US-based titanium products provider Tronox, which operates several mines and smelters in the region.

German scientists have conducted a series of experiments on gallium-doped silicon solar cells to understand the causes of degradation in PV cells and modules treated with gallium rather than boron. They confirmed that the performance losses are caused by a bulk defect in the material, and found that the right combination of light and temperature can “heal” earlier damage and even lead to small improvements in overall cell efficiency.

Hanersun claims that its new TOPCon solar modules are suitable for residential and commercial rooftops, as well as small-scale, ground-mounted PV plants. They have a temperature coefficient of 0.31%.

Energy management startup Ez4EV has introduced an electric-vehicle charging solution with integrated battery storage. The complete unit-in-a-box can be charged using electricity produced from solar, compressed biogas, and compressed natural gas.

The Enphase IQ8 Microinverter system has been certified to the new North American safety and grid interconnection standards for connecting solar inverters, energy storage systems, and distributed energy resources to the grid.

NYSE-listed iron flow battery specialist ESS is expanding into Europe to meet demand for long-duration energy storage. It has already bagged its first order in Spain, with local manufacturing in the cards.

Mahindra Susten has switched on 175 MW (AC) of its 250 MW solar project in Bikaner district, Rajasthan. The massive installation, which uses bifacial modules, will supply electricity to Solar Energy Corp. of India over a period of 25 years at a price of INR 2.54 ($0.03)/kWh.

German battery manufacturer Intilion has released the Scalestac commercial energy storage system, which features a built-in safety feature for fire containment, in order to minimize damages to single modules. It is available in capacities ranging from 123 kWh to 1 MWh.

Kiwa Deutschland has acquired PI Berlin for an undisclosed sum, but the technical consultancy will retain its name and structure.