Policy

Agriculture accounts for 21.5% of Brazil’s gross domestic product and 27% of its emissions. PV companies are now targeting an industry that represents 14% of the nation’s small-scale installations. With credit incentives and growing familiarity with the technology, agribusinesses and solar specialists are discovering new opportunities for collaboration.

In this week’s column, Women in Solar Europe (WiSEu) explains why mentoring can represent a powerful tool to combat modern-day issues like the gender pay gap, leadership inequality, and pervasive gender biases, both conscious and unconscious.

A research team from Poznań’s University of Economics & Business and SMA Solar Technology AG spoke to installers, designers, distributors and manufacturers in Poland’s solar industry to identify key barriers to PV development. They highlighted a lack of connection capacity and prices of non-renewable energy sources as the main issues.

Researchers from Canada’s Western University have developed an open-source, blockchain-based virtual utility for peer-to-peer (P2P) solar trading, using smart contracts to save up to $1,600 (US dollars) for 10 homes in simulated scenarios.

The latest report from the International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (IEA-PVPS) says that building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) could be key to help decarbonize cities in the Netherlands, but it warns that the needs of the solar and construction sector must be bridged.

The US Energy Information Administration (EIA( says 20.2 GW of electricity generation capacity was added in the United States during the first half of 2024. Solar energy led the way, with significant deployments in energy storage as well.

Australia can still reach its net-zero energy goal by 2050, according to BloombergNEF (BNEF), but there is no time to waste, with a need for significant investments in solar, wind, and energy storage to stay on track.

Led by First Solar and Qcells, US solar module manufacturers have filed allegations with the US Department of Commerce, citing “critical circumstances” and suggesting increased module imports due to their previous lawsuit filings.

Moldova aims to procure 60 MW of solar in its first renewables auction. Successful investors will secure fixed price guarantees for power generated over periods of 15 years. The deadline for applications is March 31, 2025.

With the world’s islands already experiencing some of the worst effects of climate change, much could be learned from their ability to demonstrate the viability of 100% clean energy systems. Greening the Islands’ Gianni Chiannetta examines the case for two islands in the Caribbean Sea and Indian Ocean.