Western Europe

Designed by scientists in Germany, the module facade has to be integrated with a building’s technical equipment. The rooms behind the facade can be supplied with solar power and at the same time heated, cooled and ventilated.

German scientists have developed a novel hydrogen storage method that relies on nanostructures – tiny nanoparticles made of the precious metal palladium – instead of high pressure and lower temperatures.

The partner companies say smart heat pumps can offer flexible capacity that network operators can use for safe operation and households could also benefit from a reduction in electricity prices.

The newly installed PV capacity for the first 11 months of 2021 reached 4,844MW.

Reliance Industries said its solar unit will buy UK-based sodium-ion battery technology provider Faradion for GBP100 million (US$135 million) including debt, as the Indian conglomerate pushes forward with its ambitious plan to move into the renewable energy industry.

A row between the Greek ministry of the environment and energy, the country’s electricity utility, and a journalist has shown that Greece still has pro-lignite voices in key posts and that the government must move quickly if it wants to realize its coal phase-out plans.

Through the procurement exercise, the Spanish authorities aim to allocate 200MW of CSP, 140MW of distributed solar, 140MW of biomass capacity, and another 20MW for other minor renewable energy technologies.

In what has been described as a European first, Northvolt announces that the first lithium-ion battery has rolled off the production line at its Swedish manufacturing facility in Skellefteå.

COP26 was either a great success or an abject failure, depending on who you talk to. What matters for the solar industry is the extent to which decisions agreed in the Glasgow Climate Pact are going to change the direction of the energy and financial sectors.

The Chinese PV inverter maker has said that all its products are tested and certified in compliance with EU regulations by global leading testing and certification companies. As for the 8000TL3-S inverter series, which has now been banned from the Swedish market, the company said the device has not been in production since 2020.