Argentina grants final approval for new distributed generation law
Under the new rules, which are expected to come into force in the first quarter of 2018, owners of residential and commercial PV systems will be allowed to sell excess power to the grid under a net metering mechanism.
Lithuania’s new energy strategy bets on wind and prosumers
Although the country’s new national energy independence strategy says wind will represent 65% of its total renewable energy share by 2050, the number of households that self-generate their power (predominantly from solar) is expected to increase from 34,000 in 2020, to 500,000 in 2030.
Switzerland’s solar power production could reach 19 TWh by 2050
A report from the Paul Scherrer Institute forecasts a bright future for PV technology in the Alpine country. Solar may even be able to grow by 18 TWh over the next 30 years from just 1 TWh currently.
Germany adds 150 MW of solar in October
In the first ten months of 2017, new PV additions totaled 1,465 MW, which is almost the same amount of installed solar capacity installed in the same period of last year.
Fortum to buy 35 MW of solar plants in Russia
The Finnish power utility has agreed to acquire three solar facilities, commissioned between 2016 and 2017 and located in Russia, from local solar module maker Hevel.
BNEF summit: Low solar prices spreading spending doubt among Tier-1 firms
Trina Solar may scrap planned Indian PV fab amid tumbling prices driven by solar auctions, reports Bloomberg New Energy Finance during its Shanghai summit. Demand for lithium, meanwhile, poised to reach record high on back of expected EV growth.
Tin makes nanoparticles better at absorbing sun’s rays, researchers find
Addition of tin in germanium nanoparticles helps to improve their photoluminescence thanks to better matching of lattice structures that boost structural characteristics, aiding light absorption, says Ames Laboratory in U.S.
Spain’s Aragón region prepares to host Europe’s largest solar plant
The 549 MW PV facility will be built by Spanish industrial group ACS on 2,369 hectares of land, spread across the municipalities of Escatrón and Chiprana. The project was selected by the Spanish government in this year’s second renewable energy auction, in which around 3.9 GW of solar power was allocated.
Argentina allocates 556.8 MW of PV in third round of RenovAr program
The lowest bid among the selected solar projects was confirmed at US$40.44/MWh. The average price of all the 66 qualified offers for PV was $43.5/MWh.
Mexico: Third power auction likely to be more successful, despite too-low prices
In an interview with pv magazine, Santiago Barcón, columnist for Energía Hoy and advisor to Mexico’s Energy Regulatory Commission, talks positively about the results of Mexico’s third power auction, despite final prices coming in lower than expected.
