Grids & Integration

FlexiDAO is using its software to track the production of solar power from four PV plants in the nation, in conjunction with the UN Development Program.

Over the next five to 10 years, renewables will assume a larger role as a main power source for electric grids, and PV has a particularly bright future. Considering the latest trends in power electronics technology, PV is quickly evolving down the path to intelligence. Given the rapid development of emerging information and communication technologies (ICT) – such as AI, cloud computing, big data, and 5G – Huawei has an idea of what’s in store for the future of solar PV.

Plus, one Australian installer says residents who had installed solar and storage at home will be cushioned against thumping, coronavirus-related electricity bill rises this quarter and there are signs of recovery in overall energy consumption levels.

Renewables company Ellomay Capital has been forced to reduce the scale of its planned 340 MW Manara Cliff project, in the north of the country, because two rival schemes have already gobbled up a large proportion of the capacity quota currently offered by the government.

Electric vehicle producer Electra has signed up to use a system which monitors usage during a device’s in-vehicle lifetime to assess the potential for further use in stationary applications.

The Swiss utility will sell the ancillary services offered to energy network operator Fingrid by the 30 MW/30 MWh lithium-ion Yllikkälä Power Reserve One battery provided by French renewables company Neoen.

The EU appears poised to roll out battery storage capacity to provide flexibility to systems with more variable renewables. The European Commission’s Directorate-General for Energy has also noted policies that must be addressed to establish a level playing field for storage.

With electric vehicles starting to gain traction, the International Energy Agency’s updated, ten-year e-mobility forecast has suggested geopolitical and economic concerns will trump environmental niceties when it comes to encouraging recycling. But what price ever-cheaper batteries?

Bill Gates and Breakthrough Energy see enhanced transmission as facilitating electrification and grid reliability. Increasing transmission development at the “seams” between regions could save consumers more than $47 billion and return more than $2.50 on every dollar invested.

PV manufacturers unable to live with proposed new quality guidelines and project developers alike are set to be squeezed out by the state in the world’s biggest solar market, according to Frank Haugwitz, who has compiled a market update as preparations for the next five-year plan gather pace.