Molecular solar battery stores energy for days, yields hydrogen on demand
Researchers at Ulm University and Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena have built a molecular system that captures solar energy in a water-soluble redox copolymer, stores it at more than 80% charging efficiency for several days, and releases it as hydrogen with 72% conversion efficiency whenever required.
Solar panels and low-carbon heating mandated for new homes in England
Heat pumps and solar PV effectively mandated under new building regulations for England. UK government says it is stepping up push for clean power in response to Iran war. Major UK retailers expected to have first plug-in solar devices on shelves within months.
Solar cyber threats expand, but inverters still stay in the crosshairs
In an interview with pv magazine, Jay Johnson, the CTO of US-based cybersecurity firm DERSec, explains the PV systems face cybersecurity risks that extend far beyond inverters, as demonstrated by a December attack on Polish solar plants where wiper malware targeted substation equipment rather than the inverters themselves. Vulnerabilities often lie in backhaul communication channels like APIs and mobile apps, making layered defenses, network segmentation, and vigilant monitoring essential to safeguard distributed energy resources.
When battery imbalance turns 11% of capacity into stranded energy
A 350 MWh battery storage system in Europe is delivering significantly less energy than expected due to cell imbalance, with the battery management system failing to detect the issue, tradable energy volumes chronically overestimated, and weekly balancing cost exposure reaching up to €110,000 ($127,745). This is one of the real-world failure scenarios to be examined at the Battery Business & Development Forum on April 1.
Enervest begins building Australia’s largest floating solar array
Melbourne-based renewables developer Enervest has begun construction of a 500 kW floating solar array on a water storage reservoir in Warrnambool, Victoria, which it says will be Australia’s largest floating solar installation on completion.
Silver prices find new floor around $70 an ounce
Silver prices have fallen by more than 40% since early January, when they reached an all-time peak of about $120/oz.
Solar and wind reach record 17% of US power generation
Combined generation from wind and utility-scale solar reached a record 17% of the US electricity mix in 2025, producing 760,000 GWh, up 88,000 GWh from 2024, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).
Spain completes testing of Europe’s largest research vanadium BESS
Spain’s Fundación Ciudad de la Energía (Ciuden), a government energy research foundation, has completed operational testing of a 1 MW/8 MWh vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) system at its Cubillos del Sil technology center, which it says is the largest vanadium flow battery in Europe dedicated to applied research.
Stricter rules for energy retailers as UK smart meter deployment slows
UK government plans new obligations for energy suppliers as smart meter deployment slows in Great Britain. Annual additions to smart electricity meter total have fallen each year since 2021. Binding annual milestones expected to come into force from 2027.
European residential heat pump sales increased in 2025
Analysis across 16 European countries finds an around 240,000 increase in the number of residential heat pump sales year-on-year. The European Heat Pump Association attributes the upward trend to governments stabilizing subsidy schemes.
