5B

Former Sun Cable CEO David Griffin has been appointed to the top job at Australian modular PV array manufacturer 5B, where he will oversee the rollout of its solar energy solutions.

Australian modular solar manufacturer 5B will work with researchers from the University of Sydney to optimize the design of large-scale solar farms, in a bid to minimize temperature-induced panel efficiency losses. The research project secured funding support in the latest round of the Australian Research Council’s Linkage Project Grants program.

Australian modular solar manufacturer 5B has secured a $13.7 million (AUD 20 million) investment from the venture capital arm of British energy giant bp, which will allow it to accelerate the development of its preassembled, relocatable modular solar technology.

The modular solar marketplace is growing, especially in Australia where remote mining and agricultural sites appreciate the benefits of compact, movable solar. One new entrant is Western Australia’s CDI Energy with its “Rapid Solar Module”, which CDI founder and CEO Darryl Bower told pv magazine is up to 30% cheaper than fixed axis alternatives.

In many respects, the past year has been unlike any other. But the innovation and ambition driving the expansion of the solar and energy storage industries is one constant that has remained, Across seven categories, pv magazine’s award winners for 2020 demonstrate high levels of technical expertise, creativity, mass production capabilities, and real market impact from PV and power electronics companies big and small. Following on from the virtual award ceremony held this morning, the winners are….

South Australian utility SA Water is set to flick the switch on the “world’s largest” portable solar array, as work has started on a 12 MW prefabricated PV system at the Happy Valley Reservoir near Adelaide.

The state government has partnered with the German energy storage company to offer 188 families locally assembled sonnenBatteries as they rebuild their homes.