CEA identifies major safety concerns in 97% of audited rooftop PV systems
Clean Energy Associates (CEA) has performed a safety audit on more than 600 rooftop PV systems and has found that 97% of installations have major safety concerns. It says that 49% of sites have grounding issues, 47% have damaged modules, and 41% have cross-mated connectors.
Known unknowns
Historic meteorological data is typically used to assess solar farm yield and secure project finance, but with climate change beginning to affect every aspect of society, past weather data may no longer be a reliable guide. Everoze Partner Nastasia Pacaut looks at how PV projects can be future-proofed in a changing climate.
Solar to reach ‘unassailable position’ as cheapest electricity source, says DNV
Solar’s levelized cost of electricity will reach $30/MWh in 2050, as global capacity surges, said DNV.
Germany’s average residential PV prices rose by 10% to €1,557/kW in Q2
According to EUPD Research figures, PV system prices for single-family homes in Germany rose slightly in the second quarter of 2023. Despite falling module prices, analysts do not expect costs to fall significantly in the coming months. Prices also depend heavily on installation context, component selection, and region, which is why price comparisons with average figures, such as those used by Enpal in emails to private households, are not particularly meaningful.
New interactive map of PV projects in Portugal
Observatório Fotovoltaico is mapping PV projects across Portugal, with information on installation size, year of commissioning, exploration type, and developer. The free tool already includes around 1,000 projects, corresponding to 60% of the country’s total installed capacity.
Lunar Energy announces new residential energy storage system
US-based Lunar Energy offers batteries, hybrid inverters, and shutdown devices.
EDF commissions utility-scale floating solar plant in France
EDF’s new 20 MW floating solar project is built close to an EDF hydropower dam near Lazer, in southern France.
Portugal’s January-April PV installations hit 118 MW
Despite a slow start to the year, BloombergNEF expects Portugal to install another 1,363 MW of solar by the end of 2023. The likelihood of that scenario seems to come down to how quickly projects from the record-breaking 2019-20 solar auctions go online, if they do so at all.
K2 releases mounting structure for green roofs
K2, a mounting system supplier, showcased a range of new solutions at Intersolar Europe, including a new mounting structure for green rooftops. It allows for portrait and landscape module elevation at 10 degrees and 15 degrees, with maximum module sizes of 2,400 mm x 1,350 mm.
Flywheel mechanical battery with 32 kWh of storage in Australia
Key Energy has installed a three-phase flywheel energy storage system at a residence east of Perth, Western Australia. The 8 kW/32 kWh system was installed over two days in an above-ground enclosure, dramatically cutting the time needed to install the flywheel system.
