Marching orders for coal – 12-2021
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Excerpt from the magazine
State aid for EU solar
The European Commission’s revision of the General Block Exemption Regulation bodes well for the solar industry. The plan will allow EU member states to grant subsidies to renewables projects without first seeking approval from Brussels. Andreas Walstad reports that hydrogen projects appear to be the big winner, but notes that solar manufacturing may also benefit from the changes.
Dec 08, 2021
24/7 heaven
It’s what Google calls its “biggest sustainability moonshot yet” – 24/7 hourly matching – a new granular phase of renewable energy sourcing. The pursuit of 24/7 moves beyond buying enough renewable energy to match annual consumption, to matching consumption every hour of every day. Some say 24/7 matching could push up the price of renewables, but others say 24/7 is the only way to drive home decarbonization, minimize greenwashing, and create a truly net-zero energy system.
Dec 08, 2021
A new entrant to the energy sector
Green hydrogen can play a vital role in decarbonizing the economy and enabling countries to reach net-zero emissions. The economics of producing green hydrogen from electrolysis are maturing as developers scramble to meet expected future demand. Everoze partner Nicolas Chouleur and Neoen hydrogen expert Sacha Lepoutre discuss a case study that shows how stacking different revenue streams could improve the economics of renewable energy projects.
Dec 08, 2021
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pv magazine test: October 2021 results
As detailed in the October edition, the pv magazine test rooftop PV installation was reconfigured to ensure more accurate tracking of the high-power, high-current modules using microinverters. George Touloupas, senior director of technology and quality at CEA, discusses additional modifications to accommodate high currents on the rooftop, and presents the first results from the newly configured array.
Dec 08, 2021
Finding faults faster
PV cell and module manufacturers are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence to monitor production lines and the products coming off them in minute detail. As inline monitoring and testing equipment become more sophisticated, cell and module makers must be prepared to manage the enormous amounts of data and pull out the points that will save them time and money. pv magazine examines the software solutions backing state-of-the-art PV production.
Dec 08, 2021
A limit to module size
There is a threshold at which big becomes too big when it comes to PV module sizes, argues Hongbin Fang, the director of product marketing at Longi Solar. Fang recently said at pv magazine’s Roundtables USA event that despite size limits, there is still a lot of efficiency and cost-reduction potential to come.
Dec 08, 2021
Rush hour
Urban transportation is key to modern civilization. It has enabled humans to travel long distances and is one of the building blocks of industry and leisure. But it has come at a cost. In the first quarter of 2022, pv magazine’s UP Initiative will focus on the rise of e-mobility. We will examine urban transportation and the role electric vehicles, trains, and two- and three-wheelers can play in greening the electricity grid. In addition to technological innovation, we will also investigate market projections, the policies and infrastructure required, and the role solar and storage will play in taking this nascent industry full throttle.
Dec 08, 2021
Headroom on heat pumps
Heat pumps can now achieve sufficiently high flow temperatures to operate most heating systems, even in older buildings. They are not yet highly efficient, but new refrigerants are expected to provide a remedy. This presents a number of challenges, but German researchers and industry participants are working on solutions to harness the power of heat pumps to keep people warm throughout the year.
Dec 08, 2021
BIPV no refuge
Deployment in the building integrated PV segment is accelerating, and so too are the number of solar products available to architects and developers. And while BIPV had long been the segment in which an array of thin-film technologies could shine, they are now in increasingly stiff competition with crystalline silicon rivals.
Dec 08, 2021
China’s path to 100 GW
China is once again the focus of attention across the global solar PV industry. The country’s manufacturers have had a turbulent 2021, but domestic demand remains strong, particularly from the booming residential rooftop segment. Despite the supply challenges, China will likely reach 50 GW this year and possibly even 100 GW next year. Given the dynamic market and policy landscape, pv magazine publisher Eckhart K. Gouras recently caught up with long-time China solar expert Frank Haugwitz, the founder of the Asia Europe Clean Energy (Solar) Advisory (AECEA).
Dec 08, 2021
Development disrupted
It may be the best of times, or it’s the worst – it rather depends on who you talk to. Either way, 2021 has not been a dull year in the global solar industry. Polysilicon and commodities prices, shipping costs, tariffs, and energy shortages have all taken turns to give the supply chain a beating, but has it sent PV development off course?
Dec 08, 2021
A 200 GW year in 2022
Structural imbalances in the supply chain and the energy intensity and consumption controls that China imposed in late September have caused prices for most PV module materials and components to continue to rise. Shipping fees and PV plant construction costs also remain high. PV plants in many regions will therefore be postponed until next year, but it remains unclear when module prices will start to fall. Despite these challenges, the global race to cut carbon emissions continues, and InfoLink’s Corrine Lin forecasts a bright future for PV deployments in 2022.
Dec 08, 2021
Brazil heads for an installation rush
Brazil’s deployment of distributed generation PV (below 5 MWp) has exploded from a total capacity of 500 MW in 2018 to 7 GW by September of this year. The trigger for this increase, alongside rocketing electricity prices, was the 2019 proposal of law 5829, writes IHS Markit analyst Angel Antonio Cancino. The proposal is expected to pass into law at the end of this year and will gradually introduce grid-access charges for residential and commercial system owners.
Dec 08, 2021
The price spiral winds up
The title of Martin Schachinger’s October market commentary was “Module prices set to rocket back to 2019 levels.” This month, he writes that prices have already reached December 2018 levels and notes that there is no reversal in sight. Prices for all module technologies have once again risen by an average of 3 percentage points since last month.
Dec 08, 2021
Two sides to import tariffs
Solar stocks underperformed the broader markets in November, writes Jesse Pichel of ROTH Capital Partners. This is in large part thanks to uncertainty coming from the United States, where the Court of International Trade reinstated an exemption from import tariffs for bifacial modules – a decision that will likely see an appeal.
Dec 08, 2021
Expansion despite interruptions
A supply chain interrupted by a multitude of factors, a COP outcome that left much to be desired, and a global economy and business environment still struggling to shake off the ongoing impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. They’re hardly the ingredients for a year of expansion, yet as 2021 draws to a close, solar appears to have racked up another record year for installations.
Dec 08, 2021
