Balance of Systems

The companies will collaborate on what is believed to be a first-of-its-kind attempt to incorporate QuantumScape’s solid-state lithium-metal battery technology into stationary energy storage products.

Local planning committees have given a go-ahead to a £2.5 billion gigafactory in the English West Midlands. The facility will be powered by 100% onsite solar and storage and equipped to both manufacture new batteries and recycle used ones.

Reliance Industries said its solar unit will buy UK-based sodium-ion battery technology provider Faradion for GBP100 million (US$135 million) including debt, as the Indian conglomerate pushes forward with its ambitious plan to move into the renewable energy industry.

The Swedish Electrical Safety Agency has ruled that some SolarEdge optimizers and one string inverter from Growatt do not meet its electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) requirements – halting their sale in the country. SolarEdge expressed surprise at the banning and claims that the complaints filed with the Electrical Safety Agency came from a handful of amateur radio operators.

In a draft of the Build Back Better infrastructure plan released by the Senate Finance Committee, domestic manufacturing of solar PV and balance-of-system components would qualify for incentives.

Developed by Spanish manufacturer Alusín Solar, the new mounting system is claimed to be, currently, the only one on the market that provides six fixing points for a solar panel in ballast-secured structures.

The merging of both manufacturers could create a new world market leader. The transaction is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of 2022.

The European Commission has published its second annual assessment of the competitiveness of the EU’s renewable energy technology industries, and it had a warning for policymakers about the trade balance trend being experienced by heat pump makers.

Vilnius-headquartered Solitek is preparing to ramp its output next year on the back of rising orders in Scandinavia, and says its new partnership with New York-based Convalt Energy will reduce its dependence on Asian semiconductors and solar cells.

The Spanish company recorded more than half of its year-to-date revenue in the last quarter alone – and secured a 700 MW solar project capacity order in the U.S. in September – but still shed €100,000 in the last three-month window as its nine-month net losses hit €20 million.