China

Jinko Solar has launched a new bifacial solar module, with a clear backsheet manufactured by DuPont, to compete with standard glass-on-glass bifacial products, as well to create markets where bifacial might not have previously fit.

In the run-up to the Energy Storage Europe conference pv magazine is featuring the top ten developments in the field as our Energy Storage Highlights, selected by an independent jury of experts. Yesterday we entered our top five, with MAN’s thermoelectric energy storage.

The Saudi energy company and Chinese inverter maker and comms firm will team up to use information and communications technology to improve the performance of the former’s PV plants.

It turns out the cash element of the HK$54.9 billion ‘cash and stock replacement’ plan to privatize Hanergy’s Hong Kong listed thin film division amounts to around HK$0. Thin Film shareholders face a Hobson’s Choice between a convoluted scheme laced with uncertainties or writing off their stock.

The manufacturer endured a rollercoaster ride in 2018, as China’s 5/31 policy decision saw prices plunge before staging a partial recovery. But the Wuhu-based company saw an uplift in its development business and is forging ahead with production expansion amid bullish predictions for the future of PV.

Following a petition by domestic PV panel manufacturers, India’s Directorate General of Trade Remedies has recommended the imposition of duties ranging from $537-1,559/metric ton on solar ethylene vinyl acetate sheets imported from China, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Thailand.

The president last night announced he is hoping to arrange a meeting with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to bring an end to the long-running trade stand-off between the two nations, provided further progress can be made in negotiations.

Analysts at PV InfoLink said the number of markets open to new technologies such as half-cut and shingled panels is constantly rising. Australia, Japan, Spain, the UAE and Brazil were cited as the hottest markets for Chinese “special modules”. Total annual production in China for half-cut modules, which are set to increase their market share this year, should reach around 20 GW.

The Singapore research institute will cooperate with China’s Ruxing Technology to increase the efficiency of its monoPoly™ technology. Through this cooperation, SERIS believes its solar cell efficiency could be raised to 24%, and module power beyond 345 W.

Projects not encompassed by the new, central-subsidy-free, ‘grid-parity’ regime will be eligible to bid for a government subsidy. But, at a reported $446 million, the pot is not very big.