Finance

Longi and TCL Zhonghuan have announced wafer price cuts, Arctech Solar said it will supply 2.8 GW of single-axis trackers for solar projects in India, and Risen Energy has started mass production of its heterojunction (HJT) solar modules.

If Europe is to come up with its own Inflation Reduction Act moment, and incentivize a return of EU solar manufacturing leadership, it must lift state-aid related restrictions on the PV manufacturers who have announced a willingness to build 30 GW of production lines.

PV module prices have finally stabilized and a slight downward trend has even started to set in. Whether this will continue depends mainly on how demand shapes up over the next few months. The softening of prices reflects a gradual build-up of inventories which need to be drawn down again this year, if possible – even if it means slashing prices. But for other PV-system components, the situation is quite different, writes Martin Schachinger of solar wholesaler pvXchange.

Eiffage Concessions, a unit of Eiffage, has acquired a 75% stake in Sun’R.

While the climate summit held at Sharm El Sheikh last month prompted pledges of raised funding for solar lanterns and single-panel systems, the money allocated to date is woefully short of what has been estimated would be required to provide universal access to electricity this decade. Drew Corbyn of Netherlands-based global off-grid solar body GOGLA, outlines three urgent courses of action to accelerate access to electricity.

Mining magnate Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest is the founder and executive chair of Australian iron ore producer Fortescue Metals Group. The company has announced an ambitious $6.2 billion decarbonization strategy and its Fortescue Future Industries subsidiary has rapidly become a global player in green hydrogen, along with a host of other energy transition technologies. Whether it is pushing to decarbonize mining, hashing out headline-making green energy deals, or using the popular “Rick and Morty” cartoon to educate people about the potential of green hydrogen, Fortescue and its shining magnate are talking the talk. But can they walk the walk? Blake Matich reports.

The Romanian government has allocated EUR 103.5 million ($108.6 million) to support investments in battery energy storage systems and deliver at least 240 MW/480 MWh by 2025.

The rising popularity of “baseload” power purchase agreements (PPAs) has posed questions to solar electricity suppliers in the German market. How can projects that do not generate at night, and with wide seasonal output variation, effectively supply constant power to consumers? More importantly, who shoulders the price risk?

Swell Energy has raised funds to support the development of virtual power plants (VPP) and the deployment of 200 MWh of additional contracted capacity.

The US Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 sets aside $369 billion to decarbonize the economy and respond to climate change. pv magazine USA’s Anne Fischer and Ryan Kennedy report on the boost the landmark legislation is expected to provide to solar and battery deployment and manufacturing.