Policy

An all-party U.K. parliamentary group for renewable and sustainable energy event in London has again confirmed the view the government remains unmoved by calls for support for the solar sector. However, a window of opportunity may be about to open for rooftop PV thanks to proposed legislation for new homes building standards.

Developer Photosol was selected as project developer through a tender launched by the Ministry of the Armed Forces in August. The solar park is scheduled to be commissioned in 2022 and the ministry, which has committed to making 2,000ha available for PV projects, plans a similar tender in February, and more every six months.

Panellists including a government representative and a member of the chief policy thinktank used by Narendra Modi agreed coal will continue as the staple source of Indian power into the mid century and technology should be employed to ‘clean’ it.

pv magazine has spoken to José Antonio Unanue, director of the battery energy storage system business at Ingeteam, the equipment integrator and manufacturer of the first grid-connected battery storage system in Spain, which electric utility Iberdrola launched in Caravaca de la Cruz, Murcia, at the end of November.

WoodMac analysts say the amount of new battery manufacturing capacity added in the nation this year could fall by as much as 10% because of the outbreak. With Tesla’s Shanghai gigafactory affected by the extended new-year-holiday shutdown, the analyst warned of potential supply shortages for Australia and the U.S. and U.K.

Financial newspaper Globes has reported the tender, launched only three weeks ago, is being opposed by the country’s Land Authority, which claims the project could interfere with sand-mining near Dimona.

The debt-saddled PV project developer appears to again be piling up credit lines as it awaits the outcome next week of its latest, $231 million Chinese state-backed bail-out.

With fire-extinguishing rain on the east coast, coronavirus flagged an urgent threat and PM Scott Morrison drumming up support for technology and free-market forces to beat climate change, it all made for a weekend to shake the resolve of some Australians to act on their carbon emissions. Understanding the psychology of how we perceive risk and commit to action can help us focus and keep fighting the fight.

The government has announced 17 MW of utility scale solar is under construction and the Ministry of Energy is seeking consultants to help promote mini-grids and solar net metering.

Batteries, and the raw materials that make them, are a frequent target of public criticism. The high water consumption required for lithium extraction is speeding up desertification around the salt lakes of Latin America’s “lithium triangle”, for example. The mining debate highlights general problems with the extraction of raw materials including copper, crude oil and lithium but international companies can still influence extraction methods – and there are plenty of different approaches.