Is this the end for Korean polysilicon?
The nation’s only two poly manufacturers could both shutter factories in their homeland due to downward price pressure. OCI says it will maintain only 6,500 MT of its 52,000 MT annual production capacity in an operational state and Hanwha Chemical says it is ‘examining the situation’. Poly analyst Johannes Bernreuter has discussed the reasons for the crisis with pv magazine.
Ganfeng Lithium affected by coronavirus but share price keeps on rising
The board of the lithium miner and refiner has revealed how the outbreak has hit its Chinese production after noting ‘unusual’ share price gains this week.
A titanium solar cell with 24% efficiency
The Australian research team which developed the device said the higher efficiency was achieved through a nanowire design which eliminates the interface inside the titanium dioxide band.
Vattenfall secures 10-year power supply deal for 60 MW of German solar
A Deutsche Telekom subsidiary has agreed to buy solar power from Vattenfall.
Storage Highlights 2020 – Gigawatt Winner: Enapter
And so it is again. With the new decade, pv magazine brings forth yet another energy storage highlights. Approximately two weeks of work went into sifting through this year’s 22 highlights submissions, conducting research, and preparing them for the jury. Once again, this year’s work was crowned by the moderation of the jury meeting, in which six leading industry experts discussed the technologies and solutions. Differing from previous years, the jurors have selected the top five “Gigawatt” winners, followed by five “Megawatt” winners, and a series of “Finalists” which will be published in the coming weeks, leading up to Energy Storage Europe.
UK energy minister says country is ‘now off coal’ – despite still operating four major coal-fired plants
An all-party U.K. parliamentary group for renewable and sustainable energy event in London has again confirmed the view the government remains unmoved by calls for support for the solar sector. However, a window of opportunity may be about to open for rooftop PV thanks to proposed legislation for new homes building standards.
Jinko Solar the world’s biggest module provider again in 2019
The solar giant shipped 14.2 GW of modules last year, up 33% on 2018 for the high-water mark of another year dominated by Chinese manufacturers.
An inverted perovskite cell with 22.3% efficiency
Saudi researchers have developed a cell which is said to exhibit improved structural and optoelectronic properties as well as enhanced carrier mobility and diffusion lengths. The feat was achieved by reducing voltage losses using a new passivation technique.
French Army plans for 246 MW solar plant
Developer Photosol was selected as project developer through a tender launched by the Ministry of the Armed Forces in August. The solar park is scheduled to be commissioned in 2022 and the ministry, which has committed to making 2,000ha available for PV projects, plans a similar tender in February, and more every six months.
The inner workings of a lithium battery
An international group of scientists has developed a comprehensive method to track the microscopic processes at work in lithium batteries. Employing a ‘virtual unrolling’ model developed for ancient manuscripts too sensitive to be opened, the group peeked inside the layers of a commercial battery to gain a better understanding of the processes at work and the degradation mechanisms affecting them. Their findings, the group says, could provide a benchmark for battery characterization.
