Commercial & Industrial PV

PV module prices have fallen since the start of the pandemic in 2020, reaching a global two-year low in April 2023, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). In the first two months of this year, average PV module prices in the United States stood at $0.36/W (DC), down 11% on a quarterly basis.

A research team in Spain has developed a PV system layout for super-intensive olive groves. The scientists said the system must ensure high levels of transparency in order to avoid a negative impact on the olive yield.

South Korean researchers have developed a long-term solar irradiance prediction method based on a reinforcement learning algorithm. They claim that the new model is able to forecast solar radiation for more than a year using just two weeks of solar radiation learning.

Germany has concluded a new renewables tender, securing 408 MW of capacity at an average price of €0.0833 ($0.09)/kWh.

The global solar industry employed around 5 million people at the end of last year, according to recently published employment report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). Despite this optimistic statistic, the female experience in the industry is “uneven” as women are mostly hired for administrative work (58%) and an even slimmer margin (13%) hold senior positions.

EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson, speaking at the European Heat Pump Association’s (EHPA) Heat Pump Forum this week, has reaffirmed the European Union’s commitment to decarbonizing heat.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that North and South America are set to experience an annular eclipse on October 14, which means that some regions could lose a significant portion of their daily solar energy production. The path of the eclipse tracks across the southwestern United States, from Oregon to Texas, before continuing through Mexico, Central America and ending in Brazil, though impacts will be seen across all of the contiguous US and the top of South America.

TotalEnergies has become the sole shareholder of French agrivoltaics specialist Ombrea, in a transaction that builds upon the partnership they started in 2019.

The French government has awarded 129 projects an average price of €0.0824 ($0.0868)/kWh in its latest ground-mounted tender. This represents the largest capacity since the beginning of the tender series held by the French authorities.

Researchers in Switzerland have found that the most effective way for governments to nudge homeowners into installing rooftop solar PV sytems hinges on individuals being told how much money they’ve lost by not getting it sooner.