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World Bank Group member the IFC has signed an agreement to implement tendered projects with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company. The tender for the solar complex was launched at the end of 2017.

The slew of new capacity will come from projects allocated from the bids received for the autumn 2018 round of the SDE+ program for large scale renewables. The Dutch Central Agency for Statistics revealed new PV additions last year were 200 MW more than predicted, at 1.5 GW, and the government last week announced net metering conditions for rooftop solar would be maintained until 2023.

The utility claims that current market conditions are not ideal for the project, which has been under consideration since 2012. The power station was meant to replace existing lignite capacity, and according to RWE, it would have been more efficient. The company says that it will refrain from making further investments in coal capacity while increasing its focus on renewable energy and storage.

The first part of the project will see the company connect a 25 MW PV station to a carbon ferrochrome smelter in the free zone. Several more plants could follow, ranging in size from 10 MW to 40 MW.

Scatec Solar continued to grow in the first quarter of the year, with a global pipeline of 4 GW and more capacity under construction than in operation. The company expanded slightly less than it did in the preceding quarter, but EBITDA and revenue still grew threefold year on year.

By 2050, energy use for cooling is projected to triple, according to the World Bank. And by 2050, demand for cooling in countries such as India, China, Brazil and Indonesia will grow fivefold, putting pressure on already strained energy systems and hampering efforts to curb climate change.

A total of 238,000 advanced meters will be installed by utility Western Power on the state of Western Australia’s South West Interconnected System over the next three years. The move will unlock the benefits of a technology that gives consumers more control over their energy use. In another rollout, Horizon Power has made paying for power easier for 11 Aboriginal communities across the state.

California utility PG&E has tested levels of residential solar power up to 100% penetration, and how to mitigate the effects of voltage and thermal overload via smart inverters and traditional transformer and circuit upgrades — with smart inverters shown to allow for up to 100% penetration at cost-effective pricing.

The “next-generation” utility has presented a micro-grid at a Togolese village. The concept can be reproduced and power schools, small businesses and homes alike. Even an internet connection is part of the project. Despite the World Bank and other institutions reaching out to provide capital for electricity supply, Germany-based Mobisol GmbH is currently in self-administered insolvency proceedings.

While Ford is known in the United States for its gas-guzzling pickup trucks, the vehicle manufacturer cannot circumvent the global trend towards e-mobility. The market for large electric pickup trucks could be there as Canada dashed ahead with a federal EV sales target, that aspires 100% EV sales in 2040.