In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports the Typhoon Yagi caused a significant reduction in solar power generation across key cities in Vietnam, China, and the Philippines, with some areas reporting their lowest irradiance days on record for September.

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.

Researchers led by scientists from CNRS in France are exploring an exotic form of silicon called silicon clathrate as a material for energy applications, including photovoltaics. Mastering the synthesis and using appropriate characterizations are key elements towards potential applications. Significant progress is being made for the fabrication of functional devices.

This week, Women in Solar Europe (WiSEu) gives voice to Filipa Monteiro Martins, Renewables Innovation Unit Manager at Portuguese energy company Galp. She says that inclusion is a critical driver of long-term business success and innovation, especially in the renewable energy industry, where the ability to adapt and evolve is key.

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.

EDF Renewables, Korea Western Power Co. (Kowepo), and Masdar have secured financing to build a 1.5 GW solar plant near Abu Dhabi, backed by a 30-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Emirates Water and Electricity Co.

Gautam Solar says it will invest INR 10 billion ($119.6 million) in a 2 GW solar cell factory in India.

The novel heat pump can reportedly heat air to up to 49 C. Its full-load heating capacity is of up to 63,000 Btu/hour.

Researchers in Spain have calculated the potential self-sufficiency of rooftop solar in eight districts of Madrid, Spain. They have found that single-family homes can achieve self-sufficiency rates of more than 70%, while urban areas with high-rise buildings reach 30%.

It took eight years of field measurements for researchers at the RWTH Aachen University in Germany to estimate the usable capacity of home battery energy storage systems and develop a dataset covering 106 system years and 14 billion datapoints. Their key finding was that home battery systems lose about two to three percentage points of usable capacity per year on average, meaning good news for the industry as most warranties in the market can be met with the implementation of capacity reserves.

The Chilean solar market is booming but as curtailment grows, a hybrid approach to generation is gaining ground. Storage project announcements are coming thick and fast as co-location with wind turbines offers cost efficiency and a smoother generation profile. Meanwhile, new capacity mechanism rules could take Chile one step closer to runaway battery growth.

China’s Huawei has built a 400 MW/1.3 GWh solar-plus-storage off-grid facility in Red Sea New City, Saudi Arabia.

The Hellenic Association of Photovoltaic Energy Producers (Spef) is pushing the Greek government to stop issuing new grid connection licenses for renewable energy systems to address the nation’s escalating power curtailment issue.

Italian winemaker Svolta Srl has deployed an agrivoltaic facility at its vineyard in Apulia, Italy. The PV array allowed the cultivation of vines that are normally not viable at this latitude.

Malaysia’s Sustainable Energy Development Authority reports that the 350 MW capacity allocated for residential solar under the net metering initiative has been reached. However, capacity remains available for government buildings, as well as commercial and industrial users under the same scheme.

A Qatari research group has analyzed the performance of polyethylene terephthalate backsheets in real outdoor testing conditions in desert areas and has identified the main causes that lead to degradation. These include prolonged exposure to high ultraviolet radiation, high operating temperature cycling, and relative humidity.

Researchers in China have proposed a new lithium-free doping strategy to fabricate spiro-OMeTAD-based hole transport layers (HTLs) for applications in perovskite solar cell. A PV device built with a salt-doped HTL achieved a record-breaking efficiency of 25.45%.

Researchers have measured the power loss of a 50 W panel stationed in a 30-meter wave tank. Based on ten different scenarios, they were able to draw an empirical equation for the prediction of power loss, with the highest loss being measured at 12.7%.

A group of researchers in Thailand outlined a new methodology to identify the optimal temperature in two-stage cascade heat pumps using non-azeotropic refrigerants. Through their analysis, the scientists found that the coefficient of performance for simultaneous heating and cooling is affected by the pinch point temperature at the cascade heat exchanger, with lower temperature levels being responsible for a higher COP.

Shipment volumes are growing in the global solar tracker market as innovation in project development drives demand. Joe Steveni, of S&P Global Commodity Insights, takes a look at the factors shaping the commercial landscape for trackers, from agrivoltaics and undulating terrain to Indian ambition and the United States’ Inflation Reduction Act.

Insolation Energy (INA Solar) is building a 3 GW PV module factory and aluminum frame plant in Rajasthan, India.

Carbon, a French PV module maker, has revealed plans to acquire panel manufacturer Photowatt, which is a unit of French energy giant EDF.

DYCM Power says it will build an $800 million solar cell and module factory in the United States, starting with 2 GW capacity and plans to expand to 6 GW.

The U.S. company introduced a hail-stow hanger, a hanger for north-south orientations, and rail system for clustered disconnect designs.

German fluid management company Lutz-Jesco introduced a system aimed at supporting pumping and water disinfection in cases of blackouts. The hub is preconfigured to work with solar panels, a battery charge controller, an inverter, and cabling.

This year’s edition of the China International Energy Storage Expo (EESA EXPO) has underlined the latest energy density achievements in the battery energy storage space on both cell and system levels. Meanwhile, the sheer number of commercial and industrial (C&I) systems on display spoke of growing demand in this market segment. Alternative lithium-ion battery chemistries were not easy to find.

Ballard Power Systems says it has started restructuring its global operations to cut costs due to slower hydrogen infrastructure development and delayed fuel cell adoption.

The Hungarian government says 20,000 households have signed up for its PV subsidies scheme, which offers up to HUF 5 million ($14,125) per home installation. The original HUF 75.8 billion budget was increased by HUF 30 billion in July.

An international research team has investigated how thermoelectric subcooling may be integrated into propane heat pumps to reduce power consumption in the vapor compression system. Their work showed this combination can not only reduce electricity consumption but also significantly improve heat pump performance.

The Brazilian authorities say they plan to hold a large-scale energy storage auction in 2025, potentially creating a market for large-scale storage facilities in the country.