Off-Grid

A new survey from US-based impact measurement company 60 Decibels shows off-grid energy customers are currently facing a series of challenges such as product affordability, gender inequality, customer support, further investment in minigrids, and over-indebtedness. The report, however, reveals that most users say the quality of their lives “very much improved” thanks to off-grid PV.

In a bid to avoid costly grid augmentation, Spanish electric vehicle (EV) charger supplier Wallbox has designed a multi-layered energy intelligence solution – proving that necessity is the mother of invention.

SEI Logistics has developed a portable, folding solar panel kit with batteries. The system is designed to work in harsh, remote environments.

A new portable battery system from Mango Power features a capacity of 3.5 kWh, expandable to 28 kWh by stacking up eight systems. The new product can be used for different off-grid applications and as a residential backup solution.

Decentralized solar devices such as PV-powered portable irrigation pumps are technically viable solutions to meet the energy needs of food value chains across the high-altitude Hindu Kush Himalaya region, according to a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

US-based solar controller producer Morningstar has launched a new line of off-grid inverters, featuring six models ranging from 150 W to 2,500 W. Production and deliveries are scheduled to start this year.

Liontown Resources is set to install what could be Australia’s largest off-grid renewable energy hybrid power station, at its AUD 545 million ($374.5 million) Kathleen Valley Lithium Project in Western Australia.

Microgrids continue to prove themselves as solutions for a range of applications. Remote communities, facilities, and sites have already joined onsite distributed energy resources to work together as single resilient systems.

In two remote regions of the Mexican state of Chihuahua, PV-powered microgrids bring electricity to a university and an agricultural ranch, neither of which are well served by the regional grid. The microgrids make use of lithium-ion batteries supplied by Growatt, alongside modules from local manufacturer SolarEver. The projects serve as an example of how products like Growatt’s off-grid inverters and energy storage solutions can bring reliable solar power to regions with limited energy access.

The International Energy Agency’s latest “Africa Energy Outlook” report says grids will need to be expanded, along with natural gas exploitation, if everyone in Africa is to have access to electricity by 2030. On the solar front, the document predicts a levelized cost of energy of $0.018/kWh to $0.049/kWh by 2030 – cheaper than wind power or gas.