A report published by German engineering federation VDMA reveals strong demand for solar production equipment, with order intake in the first quarter of 2017 tripling over the previous quarter. The book to bill ratio of orders to delivered systems hit the ‘very high’ level of 4.4 for the first quarter of 2017

German project developer BayWa r.e. today announced that it will sell the 20 MW Hughenden solar plant, located in Queensland, to Lighthouse Infrastructure, an Australian specialist in infrastructure investments.

Swiss PV equipment supplier Meyer Burger has received a further order for its MAiA PERC production platform SiNA cell coating system from an existing customer based in Asia. The combined contract for both technologies amounts to CHF 22 million ($23.2 million).

Researchers at Germany’s Helmholtz Institute have developed a new electrode material which could improve the capacity and charge/discharge speed of lithium-ion technology, as well as reducing for costly cobalt in the batteries.

Swiss equipment supplier Meyer Burger today announced the launch of its new MAiA EVO system, and the receipt of the first order for the system from PERC manufacturer LONGi Solar Technology. The tool is set to be delivered in the second half of 2017.

A single-cell concentrating photovoltaic system developed by researchers at Penn State University reportedly reached 30% efficiency, and generated 54% more energy during a two-day test than a commercial silicon solar in the same conditions.

A team of researchers from Rice University in Houston, Texas has developed a new method for using solar power to desalinate sea water. Part of a federally funded research effort into water treatment , the team has developed a system utilizing a combination of membrane distillation and nanophotonics to turn salt water into fresh drinking water.

Several of Australia’s top universities are working together on gaining a better understanding of excitons. The Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science is a partnership led by the University of Melbourne alongside other top Australian universities and organizations, and consists of a team with a broad range of expertise in physics, chemistry, mathematics, engineering and other disciplines.

The government of Atlántico Department, on Colombia’s Caribbean Coastline, has announced plans for an initiative to support the region’s dairy producers, by financing PV systems to power milk cooling tanks.

Researchers at the University of Huddersfield have developed an energy sharing platform to allow communities to share energy generated from small-scale PV. The platform also includes new systems that could allow for faster fault detection and better monitoring.