US, Europe on track for 2030 solar goals despite pipeline gaps
A report from McKinsey and Company says the relative ease of building out solar projects means the U.S and Europe are likely to meet their end-of-decade deployment targets, despite current pipeline gaps of around 205 GW and 181 GW.
Austria’s Andritz to supply South Korean 500 MW pumped storage power plant
Austrian engineering group Andritz has signed a deal to supply the pump turbine units for a 500 MW pumped storage plant in South Korea, the country’s first new pumped storage project in over a decade.
Solar Steel presents new 2P single-row solar tracker
Spanish tracker manufacturer Solar Steel has introduced an upgraded 2P single-row tracker designed to simplify assembly, improve standardization, and support deployment on complex terrain, including agrivoltaic projects.
Sungrow releases new inverters, storage system for utility and C&I solar
Chinese manufacturer Sungrow has introduced a new utility string inverter, a three-phase hybrid inverter for commercial and industrial (C&I) applications, and a liquid-cooled energy storage system.
Photovoltaics and jobs: The solar PV sector is the largest employer in the renewable energy industry
The twelfth edition of the International Renewable Energy Agency’s Renewable Energy and Jobs report, in collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO), provides the latest data and estimates of renewable energy employment globally. It finds global renewable energy jobs reached 16.6 million in 2024, but growth slowed. The solar photovoltaic sector is by far the largest employer in the renewable energy industry, accounting for over 7.2 million jobs worldwide. The report calls for stronger public action to build domestic supply chains and ensure a more inclusive workforce.
Spanish electricity grid reaches 85.7% saturation after 2.8 GW loss
Spain’s electricity grid has lost nearly 2.8 GW of available capacity in two months, lifting substation saturation to 85.7% and leaving more than 5,200 facilities without spare capacity, according to new analysis.
Grenada seeks installers for Solar for All program
The government of Grenada is looking for firms to supply and install solar systems for residential and agro-processing customers under its flagship Solar for All program. The deadline for expressions of interest is January 30.
‘Agrivoltaics is not just a land-sharing concept, but a systems-level solution to some of the world’s most pressing challenges’
Scientists have conducted a six-sphere literature analysis of agrivoltaics, considering sustainability, soil–crop productivity, socioeconomic resilience, solar power generation, spatial efficiency, and species. They found that, under optimal terms, agrivoltaics may generate over $1 trillion in added global agricultural income.
Africa’s installed PV capacity estimated above 63 GW
The Africa Solar Industry Association (AFSIA) has now identified 23.4 GW of operational solar projects across the continent but when taking into account Chinese PV export data, estimates total installed capacity in Africa could reach over 63 GW.
IEA PVPS invites modelers to join first coloured BIPV intercomparison
IEA-PVPS Task 15 has launched its first modeling intercomparison exercise on coloured building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and is inviting PV modelers and researchers to evaluate their methods using real-world performance data.
