The 41st European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference (EU PVSEC) will draw to a close in Vienna this afternoon. Discussions at this year’s event leave little doubt that solar installations will continue to see impressive growth over the coming years. All week there has been plenty of optimism around new policy and technical innovations driving more solar into both electricity grids and urban and rural environments. For Europe, however, the lack of any meaningful capacity for manufacturing these promising technologies locally, puts something of a dampener on things.

European industry association PV Cycle estimates a 10 MW solar site will eventually produce 700 tons of waste material. It is becoming increasingly clear that PV modules need end-of-life protocols – for the technology and material processing, and the regulatory environment.

Renewable Energy Expo India (REI) returns to Greater Noida at the start of October, for what will be its 17th edition. For the second year running, The Battery Show India will run concurrently with REI. pv magazine had the chance to catch up with Julian Thomas, Senior Project Director at show organizer Informa Markets, to discuss why electric vehicles and energy storage are now the key to India’s energy transition.

The practical matter of taking a dead PV system apart and moving its components to their next destination has received less attention than recycling and second-life applications. In the United States, Decom Solar is offering decommissioning for commercial and industrial (C&I) solar projects. pv magazine spoke to Decom Solar co-founder Stephen Burns for an update.

Shifting requirements for supply chain traceability and carbon footprint disclosure, along with solar oversupply and unsustainably low module prices, have made 2024 a challenging year for PV manufacturers. Despite these obstacles, the industry remains committed to its crucial role in the global energy transition. pv magazine recently spoke with Haimeng Zhang, chief strategy and environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) officer at Longi Green Energy, about how the sector is preparing to meet these challenges.

Amid significant environmental concern about the impact of more widespread lithium mining, various methods of extracting the battery material from brine could offer a cleaner solution – and reignite a historic Cornish industry.

Though it already hosts several of the world’s largest PV installations, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region’s solar industry is still young, with limited local infrastructure and expertise. Project developers are learning quickly that building PV in harsh desert environments requires a careful eye on quality. New testing laboratories are looking to meet demand.

As part of our Intersolar 2024 interview series, pv magazine spoke with Amy Fang, senior PV analyst at InfoLink Consulting, about new solar factories coming online and decreasing solar modules prices. She says the downward trend may continue until the first half of next year, with prices reaching $0.07/W, and estimates global module demand for this year could reach between 470 GW and 500 GW.

At Intersolar Europe 2024, pv magazine spoke with Edurne Zoco, executive director, Clean Energy Technology at S&P Global Commodity Insights, about module price trends, increasing solar demand and PV manufacturing outside China. She claims panel prices may stabilize in the second half of this year or in early 2025 and says top seven Chinese manufacturers may even continue with capacity expansion plans. She also believes that, without further substantial incentives, Europe will not be able to recreate a domestic PV supply chain.

Held once a decade since 1994, the fourth International Conference on Small Island developing states (SIDS) began this week in St. Johns, Antigua and Barbuda with a strong message: That major changes to international finance are needed to create a level playing field for sustainable development in the world’s island nations, and that larger nations and industries bear responsibility for the impacts of climate change, and must do more to honor commitments towards their mitigation.