Distributed Storage

Buildings are key to our daily lives and significantly impact our health and wellbeing. The majority also have substantial carbon footprints, employing heavy use of fossil fuels across their lifetimes, from their construction, use, and demolition phases. Thus, in Q4 2021, pv magazine’s UP Initiative focused on the role solar and energy storage can play in greening the world’s urban spaces.

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.

A Spanish consortium has started commissioning tests to produce renewable hydrogen in Mallorca, while another consortium led by Portuguese energy giants EPD and Galp is set to develop 100MW of green hydrogen production in Sines, Portugal. Lightsource bp and Dourogás have also agreed to set up a joint venture to invest in solar and green hydrogen infrastructure in Portugal.

The lithium-ion battery producer began manufacturing activities at its new factory in Ningde city, Fujian Province. Aiko Solar has also secured 4,515,000,000 wafers for the next three years through three different supply deals.

Nexcharge, a joint venture between Indian lead-acid storage specialist Exide Industries and Swiss lithium-ion battery manufacturer Leclanché, has fully automated assembly lines of li-ion battery packs, modules, and cell testing labs in Gujarat. Ketan Chitnis, VP of Nexcharge’s stationary storage business unit, tells pv magazine that the government’s production-linked incentive scheme is attracting investment.

Researchers at the University of Wollongong in Australia have discovered a new form of graphene that will improve anode and cathode materials in lithium-ion batteries, making them cheaper and more efficient. They are collaborating with Sicona, which has agreed to buy the researchers’ intellectual property.

The Saddlebrook Solar + Storage Project will be a 102.5 MW installation, paired with 6.5 MW/52 MWh of Lockheed Martin’s GridStar Flow battery technology. It will be the largest flow battery energy storage facility in Alberta.

Through three different transactions, AES acquired Community Energy Solar, Stem Inc bought AlsoEnergy, and Enphase took over 365 Pronto.

NTPC Limited has selected California-headquartered Bloom Energy’s electrolyzer and hydrogen-powered fuel cell technologies for the nation’s first green hydrogen-based microgrid, which will be powered by a floating solar array.

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.