South-East Asia

Up to 150 GW of PV and wind projects could be postponed or canceled throughout the Asia-Pacific region by 2024 if the coronavirus-triggered recession continues beyond the current year, according to new research by Wood Mackenzie.

The solar giant shipped 14.2 GW of modules last year, up 33% on 2018 for the high-water mark of another year dominated by Chinese manufacturers.

A report by Greenpeace has found in the five years since China announced the continent spanning ‘One Belt, One Road’ infrastructure plan, investment in Belt & Road countries has supported 12.6 GW of wind and solar power generation capacity. That compares with just 450 MW which came online in the territories before 2014. The initiative has also supported 68 GW of new coal capacity.

The nation is targeting an unspecified capacity of solar PV systems to be installed on households and public facilities across several of its regions. The successful projects will be jointly financed by the World Bank and the government of Myanmar.

Solar-plus-storage could be competitive against gas peaking power plants in Australia within the next five years, as the average solar-plus-storage LCOE across the Asia-Pacific region is set to fall from $133/MWh this year to $101/MWh by 2023, according to a newly released research report.

Caterpillar-branded SunPower modules will be available in Southeast Asia, Africa, South America, and the Middle East – but not yet the United States.

The International Renewable Energy Agency wants to unlock the PV potential of the Asia-Pacific region with technical and planning support. It says a better flow of knowledge is needed to close the gap on a regional aim of generating 23% of energy from renewables by 2025.

Odyssey connects stakeholders along the mini-grid value chain to streamline development and financing processes. Reportedly over 275,000 connections would be achieved if the full pipeline is realized, and recently, it experienced a significant boost in a very dynamic mini-grid market.

The Switzerland-headquartered company has secured a contract for the delivery of its SmartWire solar module production line to an undisclosed customer in Southeast Asia.

U.S.-based tracker supplier Array Technologies took part in the panel discussion on bifacial technology at the Future PV Roundtable during Intersolar Europe last week. pv magazine caught up with panelist Caesar Alberte, VP International, to discuss the company’s new CEO and its work on bifacial tracking.