Australia

South Korea’s LG has updated a recall of its solar batteries, with Australia’s consumer watchdog warning owners of LG-branded batteries to “immediately” switch off their solar storage systems, amid concerns of overheating batteries.

A team of Dutch university students under the banner Top Dutch Solar Racing has installed perovskite silicon tandem cells in its entry in the 16th edition of Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. The upcoming race is a six day, 3000 km expedition across the Australian continent, from Darwin to Adelaide.

Australia’s federal government has granted approval for a 1.2 GW/2.4 GWh battery system – one of the world’s largest – at a site northwest of Melbourne. The project is owned by Equis Development, with support from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board.

Edify Energy has commissioned the 150 MW/300 MWh Riverina and Darlington Point Energy Storage System in New South Wales, Australia.

For those who combine solar, batteries, and electric vehicles (EVs) at home, driving on sunshine is a realistic goal. However, there are many factors to consider when analyzing the economic payoffs, as well as the technical possibilities and limitations of such systems.

Octopus Investments Australia, a subsidiary of UK-based Octopus Group, has purchased the largest battery installation in the Australian state of Queensland – the 500 MW/1 GWh Blackstone project – just outside of Brisbane.

With utility scale solar installations accelerating, Philip Wolfe, founder of PV data consultancy Wiki-Solar, drills into the data to highlight some interesting variations in relative progress around the world.

Japan’s largest oil refiner, Eneos, and Tokyo-based trading firm Sojitz have jointly opened the 204 MW Edenvale Solar Park in Queensland, Australia.

Tongwei Solar’s entry into the Australian solar market has triggered disruption in recent months, amplified by the ongoing global decline in panel prices, which solar analyst Warwick Johnston says has yet to fully affect the country.

EnergyAustralia’s plans to install a 500 MW/2,000 MWh big battery storage system in the Australian state of New South Wales are gaining momentum, as the Hong Kong-owned generator has secured approval to conduct site investigation works.