Western Europe

Between January and May 2024, the value of imported solar cells and modules fell to just under €605 million compared to the same period last year, and the value of exported PV products also fell to €216 million. For the first quarter, the Federal Statistical Office reports a drastic decline in modules manufactured in Germany to just under 495,600.

Floating systems cause slightly more CO2 emissions than land-based solar systems, mainly because of the additional components for the structure. But overall, they also perform very well from a climate perspective.

After the end of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the 15 solar power plants installed by EDF ENR on the roofs of buildings in the athletes’ village will be integrated into a collective self-consumption operation once the future residents of the district have taken possession of the premises.

The UK government has increased the budget for its sixth Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction by half. Extra allocation includes millions of pounds for technologies such as solar and onshore wind, but offshore wind enjoys the lion’s share of the budget.

The country’s ecological transition ministry has published the regulatory bases of aid to large hydrogen clusters, industrial capacities in solar, wind energy, heat pumps, batteries and electrolysers; innovative renewable energy, storage and heat pump projects; and energy communities.

Researchers in Germany have proposed to use a machine learning technique known as reinforcement learning to optimize heat pump performance and reduce electricity consumption in apartment complexes. Their simulation showed that significant savings can be achieved without compromising comfort levels.

A call for the EU’s second cross-border renewables tender has gone out and will remain open until March 4, 2025. Luxembourg is providing €52.4 million ($56.7 million), while Finland and Estonia have committed to installing solar and onshore wind on their territories.

In the second quarter of 2023, the group still generated sales of €513 million from the sale of polysilicon, while this year revenue dropped to €232 million. Earnings fell even more, dropping by 65%.

It will be integrated with Fraunhofer ISE’s micro-CPV module technology, with 36.5% efficiency. A first prototype will be installed in Spain before the end of 2024.

Scientists in Finland have built a perovskite solar cell with a bio-inspired coating that reportedly improves light transmittance while providing self-cleaning properties. The film was able to improve the device efficiency by up to 6%.