World

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, OPIS, a Dow Jones company, provides a quick look at the main price trends in the global PV industry.

If demand picks up again toward the end of the year due to the current price situation, the downward trend for PV module prices could be stopped, according to pvXchange’s Martin Schachinger.

The US Department of Energy has allocated $7 billion for seven Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs (H2Hubs) to deploy commercial-scale clean hydrogen, while the Mission Possible Partnership, RMI, Systemiq, Power2X, and industry leaders have set up the Transatlantic Clean Hydrogen Trade Coalition (H2TC) to ship US clean hydrogen to Europe by 2026.

RMIT University in Australia has developed new software that integrates product, regulation, technical, economic, and construction data. It helps architects and engineers to estimate the cost of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) during the conceptual design phase.

The IEA PVPS Trends Report for 2023 discloses a historic milestone in the photovoltaic (PV) industry, surpassing 1 TW of cumulative capacity. The PV industry registered significant global growth in 2022, with China and Europe leading in charge. PV competitiveness in the market was strong, despite some regions facing problems due to supply issues, grid capacity constraints or labor shortages. The report shows that global collaboration, innovation and strategic planning remain key to a sustainable energy transition.

Alexis Issaharoff has created the ‘Sustainable Solar House’ project, which generates and produces its own food, water and energy. If the project gets enough votes, LEGO will consider creating it as a kit.

Solar panel waste will not be a problem because there is so little of it. However, there is a short-term problem in some places because panel deployment is growing fast and recycling is playing catch up.

The Japanese government has confirmed to pv magazine that it is launching a new support scheme for hydrogen in aviation, while Japanese investors continue to actively pursue participation in a green ammonia project in South Africa.

European warehouses are reporting very high inventory levels for residential energy storage systems, with aggressive prices expected, as distributors need to start clearing their stocks, according to S&P Global.