Germany installed 7.19 GW of new solar in 2022
Germany deployed around 350 MW of new PV capacity in December alone. Its cumulative solar capacity reached 66.5 GW last year.
Solar may cover the world’s electricity demand with 0.3% of its land area
An international research group claims that raw materials and land availability do not present a real barrier for a global energy system with solar at its center. They said that forecasts for PV growth should not have their axis on utility-scale power plants and instead consider vertical PV, agrivoltaics, and floating PV as the source of future big market volumes.
Only5mins! – Standards in agrivoltaics might limit innovation
Makoto Tajima, an agrivoltaics analyst for Japan’s Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies (ISEP), speaks to pv magazine about the growth of agricultural PV in Japan, as well as cost considerations and the pace of technological development.
Community solar up, net metering down in US this year
Five US states will introduce community solar programs in 2023. Net metering continues to be challenged, but flexible financing may offer a competitive edge, says Wood Mackenzie.
Steam-generating heat pump for industrial applications
The Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT) plans to build a heat pump that generates steam at 184 C at 11 bars without using gas. The tech, which uses natural refrigerants, will be used in the pharmaceutical industry.
Only5mins! – Europe may deploy 53 GW of solar this year
pv magazine speaks to Raffaele Rossi, head of market intelligence for SolarPower Europe, about the solar outlook in 2023. He says the European solar market may grow by around 29% compared to 2022.
Novel snow-removal tech uses electricity from uncovered PV panels
JA Solar has worked with Chinese scientists to test a new electrical heating system for solar panels that uses the heat from uncovered panels to remove snow. The system starts by using grid electricity, but then relies on the thermal effect of resistance to uniformly heat the whole PN junction area of the snow-covered panels.
Yaskawa releases 25 kW inverters for rooftop PV
Yaskawa’s new Enewell-SOL P3A 25kW inverters are suitable for applications in medium- or large-size rooftop solar projects and carports.
Netherlands reports 40 PV installation accidents over past 18 months
The Netherlands Labour Authority (Nederlandse Arbeidsinspectie) has provided accident statistics related to the installation of solar energy systems. It says there have been four casualties among solar installers over the past three years.
Puerto Rico could approach 40% renewables by 2025
Rapidly deploying 5.2 GW of planned solar and storage in Puerto Rico, a possibility raised in a report by six national laboratories, would require an improvement in the Puerto Rico utility’s practices. A mandated procurement process has suffered delays at many steps.
