Ryan Kennedy
Koch Investments unit invests $150 million in GameChange Solar
Koch Strategic Platforms, a subsidiary of Koch Investments Group, has invested in GameChange Solar, a commercial and utility-scale solar racking provider, in a clear divergence from its earlier anti-solar strategies.
NASA telescope deploys solar array
NASA sent the world’s most powerful telescope into space on Dec. 25. It deployed and powered a related PV array 30 minutes after launch.
PV and energy storage expected to comprise 62% of US capacity additions 2022-23
The US is expected to add 78GW generating capacity over the next two years, 49GW of which is expected to be large-scale solar and energy storage.
US government identifies land to support 100 GW of solar
The US government could lease about 1,400 square miles of public land for solar development, in a move that would effectively double the nation’s installed PV capacity. The Bureau of Land Management has already taken the first step by approving 465 MW of solar and 400 MW of storage in California.
Iron flow battery PV microgrid for fire-prone California
ESS announced the integration of its long-duration batteries for a microgrid project commissioned by San Diego Gas & Electric to mitigate and increase resilience to wildfires.
Paired with ‘wonder material,’ over 21% efficiency demonstrated in perovskite solar cells
The use of phosphorene nanoribbons boosted the cell, putting it on par with traditional silicon cell output levels.
Canadian BIPV maker releases 350 W shingle-mimicking modules
The panels match the look of composite shingles and come in four different shades.
US manufacture of solar modules, trackers, inverters incentivized in Build Back Better
In a draft of the Build Back Better infrastructure plan released by the Senate Finance Committee, domestic manufacturing of solar PV and balance-of-system components would qualify for incentives.
US House unanimously passes forced labor bill for China’s Xinjiang region
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would ban all imports from China’s Xinjiang region, unless the US government determines that products were not made with forced labor. The region supplies about 50% of the world’s polysilicon, which is an essential material in solar PV.
US residential PV trends in 2021
This year, residential solar reached several milestones in the United States, as extreme weather events have driven customer interest in home energy storage systems.
