TOP notch – 03-2022
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New funds, support for Central Asian renewables
Developers have been eyeing the potential for large-scale solar development in Central Asia for a number of years, but a significant project pipeline has been slow to materialize. Fortunately, conditions are now improving, as Amsterdam-based pension fund investor ILX is partnering with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on a new fund, according to the EBRD’s head of loan syndications, Christian Kleboth, and Gianpiero Nacci, a director on the EBRD’s Green Economy and Climate Action team.
Mar 08, 2022
Grid access threatens Poland’s PV prosperity
Solar dominated the Polish renewable energy sector in 2021. PV was responsible for the largest increase in nominal capacity last year, but until recently, it was only a niche market in the country. Rising electricity prices were the main contributor to Poland’s record year for PV, as they ensured profitability for solar installations, in combination with stable, flexible support via an energy auction system. Piotr Mrowiec, associate partner at Rödl & Partner, offers an update on PV in Poland.
Mar 08, 2022
Market turmoil drives change in PPAs
Utilities are reshaping their PPA strategies as hungry corporates twist what we thought we knew about procurement approaches. All the while, project owners and operators are seeking an answer to the lingering question: After the 10-year PPA, what next? Luca Pedretti, chief operating officer at Pexapark, reads the market and predicts how we can move forward.
Mar 08, 2022
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Sodium-ion batteries go mainstream
Sodium-ion batteries are emerging as a viable alternative to lithium-ion technology. Industrial heavyweights CATL and Reliance Industries, following the acquisition of UK-based sodium-ion specialist Faradion, are bent on bringing the technology out of the lab and into mass production. Against a backdrop of soaring prices and predicted shortfalls of lithium-ion battery materials, sodium-ion chemistry has never been more tantalizing.
Mar 08, 2022
pv magazine test: Dec. 2021 and Jan. 2022 results
We are pleased to present the next batch of energy yield results from our outdoor test field in Xi’an, China. In this issue, we present data for December and January, as the pandemic lockdown delayed the publication of yield results for the final month of 2021, alongside analysis from George Touloupas, director of technology and quality at CEA.
Mar 08, 2022
Solar manufacturing’s new horizons
With supply chain and sustainability concerns an increasing feature in the solar industry, and demand for new PV installations around the world only increasing, multiple regions are looking to establish their own manufacturing base. Alongside this, cell and module makers are gearing up for a switch to n-type technologies: all of which mean fast moving developments for Europe’s PV equipment suppliers. pv magazine caught up with Thomas Kießling, senior product expert at 3D-Micromac for a look at market and technology prospects for the company’s laser cell cutting equipment in 2022.
Mar 08, 2022
Made in Indonesia
Indonesia has set itself some ambitious goals for PV manufacturing, backed by domestic content requirements and other incentives. But local demand is limited, and the nation faces stiff competition from China and other countries on the export market. While real obstacles remain, a restructuring of state-owned electricity company PLN and local raw material riches mean the potential is growing.
Mar 08, 2022
Winds of change
The Indian solar manufacturing sector is set for a boom in the coming years, due to the country’s enormous appetite for solar and policy support in the form of import duties and local production incentives. On the technology side, a few players are already looking at n-type TOPCon cells, but their embrace by the majority has been slow to materialize, due to the high investment costs that are required. This ensures that the build-out of new PERC capacity will continue over the short term.
Mar 08, 2022
The right time for TOPCon
The potential advantages of n-type technologies have long been known to solar manufacturers, and such applications have been the focus of much of their research and development activities. Recent developments see 2022 shaping up as the year when n-type goes into mass production, led by tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) cells. pv magazine takes a closer at this cell technology and its route to the mainstream.
Mar 08, 2022
The pieces that make China’s PV puzzle
Last year was a disappointing period for China’s PV industry, as high module prices restrained domestic demand and the ongoing pandemic continued to cause upheaval. This year looks more promising, even though the pieces of China’s PV puzzle have yet to fall into place. But sorting through them allows for a better understanding of the world’s largest PV market, reports Vincent Shaw, pv magazine’s China correspondent.
Mar 08, 2022
The time is now
European solar manufacturing is back on the agenda after over a decade of minimal activity. Ambitious proposals are in place to reactivate a booming industry with investment earmarked, factories planned, sustainability goals announced, and political strategies outlined to support the projected growth of PV installations. Can these plans be realized? The UP Initiative will spend the second quarter delving into these questions.
Mar 08, 2022
E+V = better vehicles
Electric vehicle batteries are packed with energy, with additional battery density and efficiency working to quell range anxiety for drivers. But with that capability lingers a concern from some that EVs may pose a fire risk and a challenge for first responders in the event of accidents. Professor Ray Wills from Future Smart Strategies bought his first EV in 2012 and argues that in terms of safety, EVs remain an easily superior vehicle, and even the tiny fire risk that exists is an ever-diminishing issue.
Mar 08, 2022
Bringing space solar back to earth
The integration of solar into the rooftops of electric vehicles is an opportunity for PV, but it could also drive the development of very high-efficiency semiconductors, says Rupert Kogler, from development glazing, roof, and components at Webasto, a top 100 automotive supplier.
Mar 07, 2022
Backtracking is becoming smart, but it isn’t magic
Higher energy yields and a better distribution of generation over the day are the two key advantages that explain the success of single-axis trackers for PV generation in sunny places like Southern Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, or North America. As the scale of new tracker projects is increasingly reaching hundreds of megawatts, finding suitable large plots of affordable, flat land is not as easy as before. Everoze partner Felipe Canto Teixeira highlights the increased complexity in the design and energy assessment created by more challenging topographies, and discusses solutions based on his on-the-ground experience in hilly Portuguese terrain.
Mar 07, 2022
Modular building blocks for the utility-scale sector
Sungrow won this year’s pv magazine Award for inverters. We caught up with Moritz Rolf – the company’s director of central, eastern and northern Europe – to hear about the functions of the winning entry and what the company is planning in terms of product strategy for this year.
Mar 07, 2022
New dawn for Turkish solar
Flourishing commercial rooftop installations will lead to a revival of the Turkish solar market in 2022, with local EPCs and manufacturers profiting. Floating PV and co-located systems, in the form of hybrid arrays, are also emerging as a significant opportunity in a market in which creativity has been a hallmark of success.
Mar 07, 2022
Undisputed value on contested island
Island PV applications have long demonstrated their value as cheaper, cleaner replacements for diesel fuel. Solar has also been integrated with energy storage, making living laboratories for renewable microgrids. And as Vladislav Vorotnikov discovers, in Russia’s far eastern island territories, solar applications are even progressing into disputed regions.
Mar 07, 2022
Poland: A PPA market to watch
Corporate and utility power purchase agreement (PPA) demand in Poland is rising, for multiple reasons. The coal-dependent European country has been rapidly growing its solar fleet in recent years, with unsubsidized projects steadily becoming one of the tools to mitigate risk and hedge against soaring prices. pv magazine’s Marija Maisch takes a look at what lies behind this market trend and what’s still to come.
Mar 07, 2022
Super-grid forming in the Mediterranean
Electricity generation in the Middle East and Africa could soon support the development of an interconnection between Greece, Cyprus, Israel and Egypt. Ilias Tsagas examines the landscape for this infrastructure mega-project, and the possible benefits for solar.
Mar 07, 2022
EVA Outlook
Encapsulant film is a key material that determines the quality and lifespan of modules. The film is used in module encapsulation, during which solar cells are assembled into the space between the glass and backsheet and laminated into place. Like many other PV module components, encapsulant materials have been in short supply recently, and longer capacity expansion times mean that supplies of EVA, the most commonly used material, will remain tight this year. InfoLink’s Derek Zhao takes a closer look.
Mar 07, 2022
India’s solar manufacturing wave
India installed 14GW of new PV in 2021. This year, utility-scale developers are pushing to import modules and build inventory for 2022 installations, before a basic customs duty goes into effect in May, with a 40% duty for module imports and 25% for cells. PV module distributors are also expected to build their inventories to save on duties and have enough supply for the C&I segment in 2022. After assessing the country’s current demand, project pipeline, and module availability, IHS Markit’s Dharmendra Kumar forecasts 18GW to be added in 2022.
Mar 07, 2022
Time for a rethink, and a sunny future
The three-year peak in module prices now seems to have subsided. Prices are again in a slow but steady decline, particularly for project modules. For larger order quantities, panels in the 400W class and above can occasionally be ordered again at prices below the €0.26/W mark, with a delivery date of April or May at the earliest.
Mar 07, 2022
Demanding developments
In February, the Invesco Solar ETF (TAN) decreased 4.6%, while the S&P 500 fell by 3.7% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 3%, writes Jesse Pichel of ROTH Capital Partners. The slip is due to high polysilicon prices, trade friction, and a call for increased policy support from European developers.
Mar 07, 2022
Energy security, solar style
The geopolitical implications of the uptake of renewable energy were brought into focus in 2019, when the International Renewable Energy Agency launched a report, the first of its kind, into the subject. The report argued that with the dominance of oil and gas likely to wane, traditional alliances and power dynamics were likely to shift. It presented a hopeful vision, and one in which the disruption of traditional power dynamics was likely.
Mar 07, 2022
