Canada

Days after entering office, the Trump administration announced tariffs on key US trading partners. While Canada and Mexico negotiated a one-month stay, it appears tariffs are set to play an even larger role in US trade policy through 2029. Paula Mints examines the history of U.S. tariffs with a focus on the solar industry.

The Canadian government has announced further investment in the country’s heat pump subsidy scheme, which offers homeowners an up to CAD 20,000 ($21,695) payment towards heat pump installations, aimed at the province of Manitoba.

Researchers in Canada have compared strawberry growth under uniform illumination from semi-transparent thin-film cadmium telluride panels and non-uniform illumination from semi-transparent crystalline silicon modules. Their analysis considered metrics such as fresh weight, height, leaf count, chlorophyll content, soil temperature and humidity.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports a mixed picture for solar irradiance across North America, influenced by the weak La Niña pattern that first emerged in the tropical Pacific last year.

Canada installed 314 MW of solar in 2024, bringing its cumulative installed PV capacity to more than 5 GW, says the Canadian Renewable Energy Association.

The North American manufacturing hub has added several new producers across the PV module supply chain but analysts see continued cell, wafer, and polysilicon capacity constraints. The report is based on announcements of capacities at sites in the region producing PV modules, cells, wafers, ingots, polysilicon, and metallurgical-grade silicon.

An Iraqi-Canadian research team has created a new algorithm that can detect direction change in the line current of renewables-based microgrids. The novel approach can be applied to both grid-forming and grid-following infrastructures.

Daanaa says its news Zodiac substring inverter delivers up to 42% more energy than a regular setup.

Scientists have grown strawberries under thin-film cadmium telluride panels with varying transparency. They found that 40% transparency maintained a greater than 80% yield of uncovered plants. If all strawberry farms in the world were converted to agrivoltaics, they would produce up to 173 TWh a year.

The Canadian building-integrated PV manufacturer has launched semi-transparent and opaque solar PV railing systems for balconies or walkways, for retrofit or new buildings. The products are delivered with support bars, concealed cabling and a choice of mounting systems.