Markets

Cuba has introduced a new tariff of CUP 90 ($3.75)/kWh for surplus renewable electricity exported to the national grid, replacing a lower differentiated pricing system for residential and non-residential producers.

The European Commission has awarded €400 million ($465.7 million) to 65 industrial heat decarbonization projects across 10 European countries in its first Innovation Fund heat auction, targeting electrification and renewable heat technologies in energy-intensive industries.

Spain and Portugal experienced a historic blackout caused not by cyberattacks or renewables alone, but by a fast-moving overvoltage event that exposed weaknesses in voltage control, grid coordination, and legacy operating practices in a renewable-heavy power system. Investigations concluded the outage was multifactorial, prompting Spain and Portugal to reform voltage-control rules, expand grid resilience measures, and accelerate deployment of batteries, grid-forming technologies, and renewable-based voltage support to stabilize future electricity networks.

San Marino’s public utility is inviting investors to sell solar assets or development-stage companies under a new program aimed at increasing domestic renewable generation and long-term energy security.

French advisory firm Finergreen has sold its African operations to local management teams and will refocus its strategy on Europe and Asia, where it says its main growth opportunities lie.

Research from the UK finds aerosols reduced global solar output by 5.8% in 2023, equivalent to 111 TWh. While China accounted for over half the global total in 2023, the country is the only major solar-producing region found to be demonstrating a decline in annual losses.

California-based Inlyte Energy plans pilot projects in Switzerland and the United States this year to demonstrate its iron-sodium battery technology for data centers and utility-scale energy storage applications.

Researchers have developed a low-temperature, hydrogen peroxide-mediated oxidative liquefaction process to recycle end-of-life solar panels by selectively breaking down polymers into useful chemical feedstocks. The proposed method reduces energy consumption, eliminates hazardous solvents, and minimizes landfill waste compared to traditional recycling techniques.

One of Australia’s biggest miners has commenced construction of a 690 MW solar farm and 650 MWh battery energy storage system in Western Australia as part of plans to eliminate diesel and gas from its iron ore operations.

Soaring energy costs have grabbed headlines around the world the past two months, but prices across the solar supply chain are marching to their own beat, writes Hanwei Wu of OPIS. Oversupply in Asia continues to distort markets, with either sharp price falls or tepid price gains.