France extends collective self-consumption to 5 MW
After being exempted from excise duty up to 1 MW just over a month ago, the maximum power threshold for collective self-consumption has been raised from 3 MW to 5 MW in mainland France.
Scatec signs PPA for large-scale solar-plus-storage project in Egypt
Norway’s Scatec Asa has signed a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Egypt Aluminium for a 1.1 GW solar plant with 100 MW/200 MWh of battery energy storage. The agreement has been billed as Egypt’s first utility-scale PPA with an industrial offtaker.
Dutch regulator launches probe into home solar feed-in costs, compensation
The Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) says it will study how energy companies are incorporating home solar costs into prices, as feed-in costs have risen 10% over the past month.
Indian startup testing 15%-efficient perovskite solar modules
P3C Technology and Solutions plans to initially produce the 30 cm2 modules at a pilot 60 MW manufacturing facility.
Tilt angle has greatest impact on power losses caused by soiling
Scientists in China have analyzed the impact of soiling of PV module performance and have found that tilt angle has the greatest impact, followed by irradiance intensity and dust deposition density.
U.S. residential solar declined 31% in 2024
Wood Mackenzie reports that the United States installed around 4.7 GW of new residential PV capacity in 2024.
Belgium’s Wallonia region added 92 MW of solar in 2024
The rate of solar installations slowed in the Belgian region of Wallonia last year, as government incentives for residential solar came to an end. Brussels-based renewable energy federation Edora says deployment will need to accelerate across all market segments if the region is to meet its 2030 solar targets.
Solar panel glare temporarily cancels air traffic at Amsterdam Airport
On March 4, Schiphol’s Polderbaan Runway has been unavailable to landing traffic between 10 am and 12 pm in sunny weather due to glare from solar panels.
Rooftop solar could supply two-thirds of global power, study finds
Researchers at the University of Sussex have found that widespread deployment of rooftop solar could cover the vast majority of the world’s electricity consumption, while lowering global temperatures by up to 0.13 C.
France sharply reduces PV targets in draft energy program
In the latest version of the draft Pluriannual Energy Program, photovoltaic targets have been revised downwards: For 2035, they have been reduced from the 75 GW to 100 GW range to 65 GW to 90 GW. For 2030, the target would be 54 GW, the low end of the 54 GW to 60 GW range submitted for consultation at the end of 2024.
