Australia’s rooftop solar hits 28.3 GW as home battery uptake surges
Australia’s rooftop solar fleet continues to expand with a combined 28.3 GW of generation capacity commissioned by the end of 2025 with approximately 4.3 million installations across the country.
Maxwell claims 26.92% efficiency for heterojunction solar cell
The Chinese PV equipment provider said the result was certified by Germany’s Institute for Solar Energy Research in Hamelin (ISFH). The cell was fabricated with Maxwell’s in-house heterojunction production-line equipment and an end-to-end process flow.
US solar capacity overtakes wind
Solar has become the largest renewable source of installed power capacity in the United States, surpassing wind after 27 consecutive months as the leading source of new grid additions, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
New surface texturing boosts TOPCon solar cell efficiency by 1%
Chinese researchers have demonstrated a single-step submicron structured surface texturing process that improved the absolute efficiency of a TOPCon solar cell by 1% through broadband anti-reflection and lower electrical resistance. The cell-level performance was validated in laboratory and outdoor tests.
U.S.-India trade deal reduces solar tariffs
Tariff reductions under the new U.S.-India trade agreement lower import costs for solar modules and energy storage components. Reciprocal tariffs were effectively reduced from 50% to 18%.
Chad’s installed PV capacity hits 110 MW, supplying 37% of electricity
Chad has one of Africa’s highest solar penetration rates, a result of a small power system with just 12% electrification, as large-scale solar and storage projects gather pace around N’Djamena, even as political uncertainty over oil revenues constrains faster deployment.
Spain secures major EU grant for 1 GW pumped storage project
The European Union is investing €650 million ($766.5 million) in cross-border energy infrastructure, led by a grant for the Aguayo II pumped-storage project in Spain, alongside smaller allocations for upgrades such as the Čierny Váh pumped-storage plant in Slovakia.
Senegal’s solar capacity hits 671 MW
Senegal has reached an 84% electrification rate, with 294 MW of residential PV installed, while several large-scale solar-plus-storage projects are under development, despite the start of production at the Sangomar gas field.
Germany, France, Netherlands curtail 3.9 TWh of renewables in 2025
Analysis by energy advisory service Montel finds Germany, France and the Netherlands all saw record levels of renewables curtailment last year, with the build out of solar in each market contributing to midday generation peaks and consequential price cannibalization.
Growatt launches 5 kWh AC-coupled balcony storage system
The IP66-rated Aura 5000 system features bidirectional inverter functionality and an AC output of up to 2.5 kW.
