Utility Scale PV

Taiwan-based TrendForce says the nation added only 410 MW of solar capacity to the end of May, towards this year’s 2.2 GW target. The lower-than-expected deployment volume may be further hampered by new restrictions for PV on agricultural land introduced by the Council of Agriculture this month.

The price tariff agreed by German company ABO Wind for a 10 MW solar project in Igoumenitsa came in a tender which allocated only 142 MW of generation capacity, well short of the hoped-for 482 MW. It is hoped a slimline licensing process, to be applied in the next procurement round, will address the problem.

The Royal Bank of Canada has agreed to buy 80,000 MWh per year from two solar parks now under construction in the province of Alberta. They will begin supplying power in April 2021.

Researchers in Spain have developed a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm based on just one input parameter – PV module temperature. The algorithm has already shown stability in testing, the scientists claim.

Saudi developer ACWA Power has announced One Belt, One Road Chinese infrastructure partner Shanghai Electric will offer engineering, procurement and construction services on the next phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar field in Dubai.

The latest edition of the US Energy Information Administration’s Electric Power Monthly report shows renewables generated more electricity through May 31 than coal and nuclear.

Spanish renewables company Acciona has commissioned Spain’s first floating installation and utility EDP has finalized the first, 1 MW phase of a 4 MW project at the Alqueva water reservoir in southern Portugal.

Spanish energy company Iberdrola plans to build a 100 MW solar park, a storage facility, and a hydrogen production station in Puertollano, central Spain. The €150 million project is scheduled to be operational next year.

U.S. scientists have developed a model to predict the performance of bifacial PV at project level. Their results show that when improved temperature sensitivity is properly taken into account, the advantage of bifacial modules could be even larger than previously thought. And for upcoming module technologies like heterojunction in particular, it could mean bifacial is viable in even more parts of the globe.

Developer Anumar has secured the signature of Norwegian renewables company Statkraft on a 50 MW power purchase agreement for the project and another 30 MW of generation capacity has been awarded a feed-in premium tariff in a tender. Umweltbank provided a €55 million loan.