Articles written by Tristan Rayner

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Hot thermal hopes Thermal energy storage is dense, efficient, and suitable for greenfield and brownfield projects, with a potentially long lifespan. It can also be built with recyclable or low-impact storage materials. So why is it taking so long to achieve widespread commercial success? Tristan Rayner explores the latest developments.
Tristan Rayner
Aug 09, 2021
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Applications & Installations
Canadian asset management co. agrees to acquire Brazil’s largest PV product distributor The transaction should be finalized by the end of the month, with the deal amounting to a $320 million equity investment.
Emiliano Bellini, Tristan Rayner
Aug 06, 2021
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Applications & Installations
Tesla sells Maxwell Technologies but dry cell tech for lithium-ion batteries retained Tesla acquired the Californian supercapacitor maker in 2019, leading some to speculate its EVs would use ‘supercaps’ for top acceleration. Two years on, it appears Elon Musk has moved on and sold Maxwell to UCAP Power, but Tesla has retained the company’s dry electrode tech.
Tristan Rayner
Jul 30, 2021
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Applications & Installations
UK power generation in 2020: Renewables up to 43% Solar contributed 28% of the U.K.’s total renewable energy generation, which was dominated by wind power. The proportion of fossil fuels in the energy mix fell to a record low last year, at 37.7%.
Tristan Rayner
Jul 29, 2021
6
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Applications & Installations
The trillions spent by G20 nations on fossil fuels between 2015 and 2019 could have paid for more than 4 TW of solar at today’s prices Polluting energy sources received more than $3 trillion from the EU and 19 of the world’s largest national economies over that four-year period, despite G20 members having pledged to phase-out fossil fuel subsidy and address climate change back in 2009.
Tristan Rayner
Jul 28, 2021
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Applications & Installations
Canadian Solar raises $100m to fund projects in Brazil Canadian Solar has banked the cash for its growing portfolio of solar projects in a nation which had module demand of 5 GW last year.
Tristan Rayner
Jul 27, 2021
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Applications & Installations
UK government launches competition to spur longer duration energy storage innovation New tech which can store power for longer than four hours can secure up to €14 million each towards their demonstrator project costs.
Tristan Rayner
Jul 26, 2021
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Gautham Ram
In Conversation: Vehicle-to-Gautham Gautham Ram completed an electrical engineering degree in his home city of Chennai, India, and won a scholarship to complete a master’s at TU Delft in the Netherlands. He subsequently completed a PhD on the topic of charging EVs with solar. Speaking with pv magazine, Ram gave insights on his life, ongoing research, and his thoughts on EVs and charging.
Tristan Rayner
Jul 08, 2021
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Verdia
Return of the sun tax Australia’s success with widespread residential take-up of solar PV installations may be facing a stumbling block, a new proposal by the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC), the rule maker of the nation’s grid. And for solar veterans, the development summons the ghoul of Spain’s infamous “sun tax.”
Tristan Rayner
Jun 07, 2021