The Bilaj Al Jazayer Independent Power Project will be developed under a public-private partnership on a build-own-operate basis.

Fire caused by an electrical fault from an overheated arcing cable hit the solar panels at Europa Point Stadium in Gibraltar. Firefighters contained and extinguished the blaze within 20 minutes.

A new global dataset of 119 energy-sector cyber incidents from 2022–2024 shows EU and BRICS countries, followed by the US, are most affected. Attacks targeted power, oil, gas, and nuclear infrastructure, driven by both financial and political motives, with diverse threat actors involved.

Researchers in Japan have achieved a 12.28% efficiency in a copper gallium selenide solar cell, the highest reported for indium-free wide-bandgap chalcogenide absorbers in the 1.65–1.75 eV range. The device uses aluminum-engineered films with a back-surface field and optimized cadmium sulfide buffer layers to enhance voltage, reduce recombination, and improve overall performance.

Toshiba has unveiled a PV management platform within its Spinex for Energy portfolio that enables real-time monitoring and O&M of multiple solar plants.
The system uses AI to track plant performance, detect faults, calculate capacity and PR metrics, automate reporting, and support troubleshooting.

Researchers at Germany’s Fraunhofer FKIE institute developed PowerRange, a virtual simulation platform that helps power grid operators safely test cybersecurity measures and respond to realistic cyberattacks. The platform supports both traditional and renewable grids, offering immersive training across IT, OT, and control systems while highlighting the importance of coordination, communication, and practical defense strategies.

Researchers from Australian National University and Longi used photoluminescence imaging to analyze dopant distributions in RCz-grown silicon wafers doped with antimony, phosphorus, and gallium, finding highly uniform radial concentration profiles suitable for high-efficiency solar cells. The study also found that antimony-doped wafers provide more stable axial doping along the ingot, highlighting their potential for next-generation photovoltaic manufacturing.

Researchers have developed a PFAS-free dual-layer sol-gel and hydrophobic silica coating that repels water, dust, and dirt while maintaining high light transmission for solar panels. The transparent, self-cleaning coating improved photovoltaic efficiency from 13.90% to 14.56%, demonstrating strong durability and potential for future commercial applications.

Researchers from Nanchang University and Trina Solar found that TOPCon solar modules exhibit metastable “degradation–recovery” under UV exposure, with light soaking fully restoring performance and no impact on real-world energy yield. Their findings highlight the need to refine UV testing standards to better reflect field performance and guide PV reliability assessments.

Canadian researchers proposed a laminate-free solar module using polycarbonate instead of EVA and glass. The new encapsulation technique reportedly enables easy disassembly, reuse of solar cells, and open-source local manufacturing.