Emiliano Bellini
Spain’s Iberdrola secures third PPA for 391 MW Núñez de Balboa solar plant
The agreement will help supply Spanish distribution group Uvesco with 100% renewable energy. The first two PPAs for the huge solar plant were signed by Iberdrola in July and October, respectively.
ACWA receives $320m financing for 300 MW Saudi project
The project, tendered by the Saudi authorities in February, will be built by a new company which is 70% controlled by the energy giant and 30% by contractor AlGihaz Holding. The plant will sell power to the Saudi Power Procurement Company at $0.0236/kWh.
Spain’s Endesa to deploy 4 MW / 1.7 MWh battery in Melilla
The battery will be made by assembling 78 second life battery packs from Nissan’s electric Leaf vehicles. The project is expected to help resolve imbalances in the electrical system of the autonomous city and improve quality of supply.
Canada’s Alberta raises budget for solar rebates
The Canadian province will provide an additional CA$7.5 million for projects run by municipalities, while offering more advantageous conditions for businesses and non-profits.
Canadian Solar revenue down but profits up in Q3 results
The Chinese-Canadian solar manufacturer shipped 1.59 GW of panels in the latest quarter. Despite a 15.8% turnover decline, operating result and net profit both grew significantly. Capacity expansion plans for 2019 are now said to be under review.
A2A, Talesun plan 300 MW of grid-parity PV projects in Italy
The Italian power and gas provider and the European subsidiary of the Chinese module maker have created a join venture, which will acquire Talesun’s existing Italian PV plant portfolio of 43.2 MW and develop another 300 MW of market parity projects.
Boom in electromobility unlikely to cause lithium shortage
The French Environment & Energy Management Agency (Ademe) has published a report in which analyzes the dynamics of lithium supply and demand in different scenarios of global electrification by 2050. The agency experts are convinced that only with a 75% penetration of electric vehicles there is the real risk of a marked decrease in the safety margin of lithium supply.
Edison connects large-scale storage system at PV plant in southern Italy
The Italian power provider has implemented its first pilot storage projects linked to solar. The system can provide grid services such as primary and secondary frequency regulation and tertiary and voltage regulation.
Dutch government sets up €100 million fund for PV in schools
The scheme would provide low interest loans to Dutch schools willing to go solar. Some 6,000 of the country’s 7,000 school buildings have yet to install an array.
Czech Republic may exclude PV from future renewables auctions
Once a leading European PV market, the Czech Republic may resume development of large-scale renewables from 2021. Only wind, hydro and biomass projects, however, will be eligible, under a proposal from the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Only rooftop solar, of up to 1 MW, would be backed by a ‘feed-in premium’ scheme.
