Romania to expedite permitting process for solar on agricultural land
The Romanian president has passed a new law to shorten the permitting process for solar projects built on less than 50 hectares of agricultural land.
Video: Market outlook for vertical rooftop solar
Norway’s Over Easy Solar AS introduced a new vertical PV system for rooftop applications last year. pv magazine spoke to CEO Trygve Mongstad about system prices and future market prospects for vertical rooftop solar tech.
Bangladesh offers PPA for 68 MW of solar at $0.102/kWh
The Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) has agreed to buy solar electricity from a 68 MW facility that is now under construction in the country’s Sirajganj district, as part of a new state plan to buy cheap power.
Perovskite-silicon tandem PV cell with textured wafers hits 28.1% efficiency
Researchers in Saudi Arabia have built a perovskite-silicon tandem cell with textured silicon wafers to offer superior light trapping. The device has an open-circuit voltage of 1,851 mV, a short-circuit current of 18.9 mA/cm2, and a fill factor of 80.1%.
New polymer material for PV cables
Chemical manufacturer Avient has announced the launch of new, cross-linkable polymers for use in photovoltaic cables.
Polysilicon costs have slid by 96% per watt over past two decades
The volume of polysilicon per watt has fallen by 87% since 2004, while the inflation-adjusted price for polysilicon has dropped by 76%, according to Fraunhofer ISE.
Startup unveils lithium iron phosphate battery for residential applications
MyGrid’s new 1.5 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery system purportedly runs for more than 6,000 cycles. It uses a bidirectional charger to receive and send electricity to the grid via a wall socket.
Slovenia launches rebate scheme for rooftop PV tied to storage, heat pumps
Slovenia’s new rebate program for rooftop solar has a budget of €10 million ($10.7 million).
Video: ISC Konstanz director predicts 50% global market share for IBC solar panels by 2030
Radovan Kopecek, the co-founder and director of Germany’s ISC Konstanz, says interdigitated back contact (IBC) tech could account for half of the global market for solar modules by 2030. He says IBC will start to dominate once TopCON and HJT get stuck at certain efficiency limits, and he believes TOPCon will be the first victim.
Centrotherm’s order book exceeds 10 GW in India
Germany’s Centrotherm sees strong demand for its solar cell production equipment in India, as a number of companies are now starting to manufacture PV cells in the country.
