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Michael Schoeck

Michael joined pv magazine USA in November 2022. He has been reporting on the United States solar, distributed energy, power and utility markets since 2014 and previously reported on M&A, private equity and energy technology start-up companies for corporate finance news publications. Michael focused his efforts on the North American utility, C&I solar and energy storage markets.

Solar-powered tool shed store electric lawn equipment

SunVilla says its new Smart Yard power station is a 6.4 kWh semi-solid state battery system with 3.8 kW of battery output. It features 100 W to 200 W solar modules mounted on a tool shed to charge electric systems and provide storage for lawn equipment.

The Hydrogen Stream: Thyssenkrupp lists hydrogen business in Frankfurt

German engineering conglomerate thyssenkrupp has listed shares of its hydrogen business, thyssenkrupp nucera, on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (Prime Standard).

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Cattle agrivoltaics on US ranch

Bear Valley Solar will deploy 240 kW of a 1.5 MW cattle-sited solar field pasture this year, with the first phase of construction ramping up this summer, developer David McFeeters-Krone told pv magazine USA.

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Vikram Solar announces $1.5 billion vertically integrated factory in the U.S.

Vikram’s new joint venture will build a 4 GW solar module production facility in Brighton, Colorado, followed by a wafer and ingot facility in a Southern State.

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Lunar Energy announces new residential energy storage system

US-based Lunar Energy offers batteries, hybrid inverters, and shutdown devices.

Solar-plus-storage microgrids minimize power shutoffs during wildfires

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researchers have shown that microgrids equipped with solar-plus-storage systems can maintain an average levelized cost of energy (LCOE) below $0.30/kWh and limit annual public safety power shutoffs to 2% to 3% of annual energy demand.

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Form Energy to deploy 100-hour iron-air battery system in US

US utility Georgia Power has more than 850 MW of active energy storage projects under development or in operation across its service territory.

Nickel-zinc battery systems with hydrogen, EV charging

ZincFive is supplying battery systems for Advanced Power & Energy’s hydrogen-fueling microgrid and pilot DC fast-charging station in Greenville, Pennsylvania

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US software supplier introduces hail detection solution for solar projects

Hail events have historically posed a considerable risk for utility-scale solar projects, with weather creating up to $100 million in damages at large installations in US states such as Texas.

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Sheep grazing team to reduce solar mowing costs by more than 44%

About 70 Katahdin breed sheep were dropped off at the Oberlin College campus in Ohio last week. They will graze through mid-June, stomping grass and weeding the solar field in a move aimed at reducing operations and maintenance costs.