Utility Scale PV

The First Light project is billed as the first industrial-scale solar power plant built entirely for self-consumption in the South Caucasus region.

German researchers found that agrivoltaics costs far exceed agricultural benefits, raising doubts about subsidies and highlighting the need for more cost-competitive system designs.

The country’s cumulative installed PV capacity reached 1.59 GW at the end of December, according to new figures released by the Colombian administrator of the wholesale energy market.

The Portuguese company said its new Drone AgroPV Cleaning Agent is scheduled for release in June. It has a safe formulation for crops and soil.

Research analyzing surface solar radiation data across the past three and coming three decades finds Europe has gotten sunnier at an average rate of 2.4 W per decade. This increase in solar radiation is anticipated to slow in the next three decades.

Carbon dioxide removal is most likely needed for rebalancing the climate to comply with the 1.5 C target set in the Paris Agreement, as data suggest this level has already been breached on an annual basis. Beneath natural climate solutions and land use change, technological and bio-technical solutions are most promising. Solar PV may play a key role in minimizing area demand and supporting cost optimization even in unexpected places such as Iceland.

The Canadian Renewable Energy Association is forecasting Canada’s cumulative solar capacity, which stands at 5.4 GW today, could surge to around 21 GW by 2035, driven by a healthy procurement pipeline across most provinces. Official deployment figures for behind the meter solar installations last year, which are driving Canada’s solar market today, are yet to be finalized.

An international research team reviewed agrivoltaic systems, highlighting challenges in design, crop performance, and PV efficiency, while mapping their global potential. They call for innovative layouts, targeted crop selection, and improved modeling to maximize energy yield and land-use efficiency.

Greece’s energy regulator has launched two new auctions under the Apollo Program, covering up to 200 MW of solar with storage and a separate 400 MW wind tender, marking the scheme’s first operational rollout since becoming law in 2024.

The Chinese manufacturer said it developed a new circuit-model–based method to accurately detect hot-spot risks in TOPCon back-contact modules, overcoming limitations of the IEC 61215 approach caused by low shunt resistance. Validated through indoor and outdoor tests, the method predicts temperature rise under shading and reportedly enables faster, more accurate hot-spot risk assessment.