Covid-19 weekly round-up: Polish solar is immune to the effects of Covid-19 and the coronavirus will drive EV manufacturing from China to India, apparently
Plus, one Australian installer says residents who had installed solar and storage at home will be cushioned against thumping, coronavirus-related electricity bill rises this quarter and there are signs of recovery in overall energy consumption levels.
Israel prepares 800 MW of pumped hydro storage
Renewables company Ellomay Capital has been forced to reduce the scale of its planned 340 MW Manara Cliff project, in the north of the country, because two rival schemes have already gobbled up a large proportion of the capacity quota currently offered by the government.
EV battery passport to drive stationary storage second life in the UK
Electric vehicle producer Electra has signed up to use a system which monitors usage during a device’s in-vehicle lifetime to assess the potential for further use in stationary applications.
Axpo to market grid balancing services offered by largest Nordic grid battery to date
The Swiss utility will sell the ancillary services offered to energy network operator Fingrid by the 30 MW/30 MWh lithium-ion Yllikkälä Power Reserve One battery provided by French renewables company Neoen.
India can become electric vehicle manufacturing hub within five years says roads minister
The industry needs to cut a dependence on lithium-ion battery imports from China, according to Nitin Gadkari, who said the government is looking to support research into alternative technologies.
Adding 50MW/64.5 MWh to Tesla’s big battery in Australia
The Essential Services Commission of South Australia has approved plans to expand the Tesla big battery from 100 MW to 150 MW.
New chemistry promises better lithium sulfur batteries
Scientists in the U.S. have developed a new cathode chemistry for lithium-sulfur batteries, which they say promises to overcome performance issues stemming from sulfur’s low conductivity and tendency to react with lithium.
Low-cost direct solar-to-hydrogen ambitions see the light
The road to cheap hydrogen production is riddled with potholes and energy losses. Researchers in Australia have demonstrated rethinking solar technology and skipping electrolysers could hold great promise for reaching the hydrogen holy grail.
Kstar launches all-in-one residential battery inverter solution
Its new line of residential hybrid storage systems integrates Kstar inverter technology with the lithium-ion storage technology of Chinese battery specialist CATL.
Volkswagen invests up to US$200 million in solid-state battery builder QuantumScape
This investment comes on top of US$100 million invested in 2018. Venture capital and corporate funding of new energy technologies continues despite – or perhaps because of – the pandemic.
