Minigrid

Developer PowerGen has installed a new mini-grid in the country and plans to develop nine more projects with the support of the World Bank.

A monastic community on the Mt Athos peninsula this year installed a solar-storage-diesel mini-grid which is set to be augmented by a biomass combined heat and power system in March.

Evergen, a solar and battery optimization specialist, and battery supplier Solar Service Group have joined forces to connect thousands of residential batteries across Australia. By delivering significant benefits to consumers, the joint venture hopes to boost the uptake of home batteries across the nation.

The lender is providing the funds to support the West African country’s solar ambitions under the bank’s Desert to Power program. Several other European organizations have vowed to back the €137 million Yeleen solar project, which will encompass four sites.

Greece has published a document that lays a path for national energy and climate policy over the next decade, while outlining plans to facilitate significant PV development through 2030.

Microgrids are traditionally deployed where end users are not spoiled for choice. The remoteness and terrain of the Maldives make grid access impossible, and without any other choice, the deployment of hundreds of microgrids could be spot on. A leaf out of the island nation’s book could also support other less remote regions in preparing for the energy transition.

Offgrid solar power has emerged as a vital part of the PV business across the African continent, and is now spreading to other parts of the globe, mainly with solar home systems and microgrids. pv magazine examines the core issues of financing, business models and the quest for user data.

Two projects have been deployed by Canopy Power on private islands in Indonesia. The two 52.5 kW/77 kWh mini-grids were the only alternative to diesel generators due to the lack of a connection with the grid on the island of Batam. The projects – which rely on REC Solar modules, SMA inverters and a storage system from Tesvolt – provide around half of the energy required on their respective islands.

The successes and benefits of distributed micro-grids depend largely on intelligent controllers and the solutions on offer for such systems are diverse. In our market survey, we take a closer look at the products available from 24 manufacturers.