South Africa’s energy mix will be much cheaper with renewables, study says
According to a new study conducted by the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies at the Goethe-University Frankfurt, a mix of solar and wind may be over 10% cheaper than power generation from new coal and nuclear plants in South Africa, even if the cost of renewables and batteries will see no further reduction from today until 2050.
Capital Stage acquires 47 MW of solar in the Netherlands
The German solar and wind power plant operator has made its first move into the Dutch solar market.
Brazil to hold another auction including solar in April
The new A-4 auction will be open to thermoelectric, wind, solar and hydro large-scale power projects, which must be operational from 2022.
US scientists use hybrid organic–inorganic perovskites to increase solar cell efficiency
Research funded by the US Department of Energy and conducted by the University of Virginia has demonstrated how the rotation of organic molecules in hybrid organic–inorganic perovskites may expand the lifetime of photoexcited charge carriers.
Curaçao and Dutch Caribbean launch tenders for two more solar projects
While Curaçao’s power utility Aqualectra seeks developers for a 10-15 MW solar park, Saba Electric Company, the energy provider of the Saba island, is tendering 1 MW of PV capacity combined with storage.
The weekend read: Every last watt
PERC power: As PERC settles into its position as a mainstream technology, leading module manufacturers are searching for ways to push ever more watts out of their module, and eliminate lingering degradation issues. So far this has included ramping up production capacities for half-cell modules and developing innovative new connection strategies. pv magazine looks into the latest technologies leading to gains in power output and quality at module level.
US: Longi, Canadian Solar in talks with Suniva
Reports from the Suniva’s bankruptcy filings indicate conversations with multiple companies that could potentially acquire the bankrupt cell and module maker.
Italy: Solar prices on power exchange lower than reference price in 2016
According to a report from Italy’s GSE, solar power prices on the Italian wholesale electricity market last year were between 5% and 12% lower than the national reference price.
EkoRE plans 15 MW solar plant in Ukraine
The Turkish EPC contractor is also planning to install rooftop PV systems on several public buildings of the city of Ochakiv, where the solar park may be located.
Solar-powered smart window technology takes a big leap forward
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have presented a thermochromic solar window with a conversion efficiency of 11.3%. Meanwhile, performing experiments on dye-sensitized solar cells, Cambridge scientists have determined the molecular structure of working solar cell electrodes within a fully assembled device that works like a window.
