Highlights

A number of drivers are highlighting the importance of vegetation management in utility-scale solar projects, from coupling with agriculture to the significance of pollinators, as well as the related permitting and O&M benefits. Tom Karas of Minnesota Native Landscapes sets out why awareness of comprehensive vegetation management is of growing importance in the solar sector.

A research paper into the prospects of manufacturing ‘power-to-liquid’ kerosene in Germany has concluded the government will end up importing it. Wherever the world’s clean aviation fuels are made, however, it seems a lot of clean power will be needed to drive the production process.

The credit, to be made available to public bodies in the bloc’s 27 member states, would be bolstered by €10 billion from the EIB and should not, said the Council of Ministers, support nuclear or fossil fuel projects.

The Spanish solar EPC specialist has announced a “landmark” power purchase agreement for the 200 MW Blue Grass solar project in Queensland, Australia.

Analysts at Mercom Capital Group have tallied up corporate funding, venture capital and debt and public market investment for battery storage, smart grids and energy efficiency companies. From a financial perspective, the industry appears resilient to the Covid-19 crisis and ready to grow further.

Indian researchers have used an “adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system” to assess the performance of hydrogen production backed by a photovoltaic-thermal collector. They claim it can be applied to other hydrogen production systems.

In an update to its International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaics, the German engineering association the VDMA said that solar module sizes of up to 4.0m² may be brought to mass production in the future.

Tesla’s solar and battery businesses show signs of life in another profitable quarter for the EV manufacturer.

Clean energy electricity generation surpassed that from nuclear and fossil fuels for the sixth successive quarter in the July-to-September window, according to data analyst Enappsys, but Europe saw a fall in solar output and demand patterns at the end of the window may presage a second wave of Covid-19.

The pilot project, consisting of a 50 MW solar plant and a utility scale electrolyzer, is planned to test how this combination may help reduce grid constraints in the country.