Middle Eastern PV: The Jordanian solar sector has enjoyed near-constant growth in recent years, proving that it is a market founded on a sustainable and reliable base. Investors have been wondering for a few years whether Egypt can follow Jordan’s example successfully, and the signs are good that 2018 will prove to be a strong year for Egypt’s solar development. pv magazine explains the forces driving this optimism.

The latest report from the California Energy Commission shows that the state is already getting 30% of its power from renewable energy (excluding large hydro) with solar providing more than a third of this.

SECI has had a busy day, releasing three tenders worth 1.2 GW. Following on from a 275 MW tender this morning, it has now announced a 950 MW tender for grid connected solar PV projects in the state of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, under the National Solar Mission of Phase-II, Batch-IV.

A group of researchers from Duke University in the U.S. has developed a new coating process for the creation of hybrid thin film materials. The researchers say their process allows for the creation of solar materials that have until now proven difficult or even impossible to make.

Pakistan has updated its 2015 net metering scheme to make it more user friendly. The Government of Punjab, meanwhile, has unveiled a new Access to Clean Energy Investment Program, aimed at installing over 20,000 solar PV rooftop systems.

Halogens have proved to be very successful in accelerating the electron transfer between the electrolyte and the semiconductor.

In 2017, around 32 MW of new PV systems were connected to the grid of the Caribbean country, accounting for almost half of cumulative capacity.

The Finnish development financier has granted a loan of $15 million dollars for the construction of 10 solar power plants in El Salvador. The projects are expected to be fully operational by 2019. Overall, they will have a capacity of 100 MW.

Shortlisted bidders are Saudi energy company, ACWA and Japanese trading company, Marubeni, which submitted the second and third lowest bids, respectively. The lowest bid, which was proposed by consortium formed by UAE-based Masdar and French energy giant, EDF and could have become the world’s cheapest offer for solar energy, was excluded from the auction.

The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) has proposed a “green pivot” for South Sudan, where solar energy could help decouple economic growth from the geopolitics of oil and gas. In a special report, it has identified three opportunities where solar could yield benefits. A donor-led transition is required.