Australian green hydrogen vessel deemed ‘highly competitive’
A scoping study has found that Global Energy Ventures’ compressed hydrogen ship is technically feasible and ‘highly competitive’ to transport the hyped future fuel at distances that conveniently connect Australia to Asian markets.
India’s installed solar capacity hits 41.6 GW
India’s cumulative installed solar capacity stood at 41.6 GW as of Dec. 31, 2020, with 1.29 GW added in the October-December period. Capacity additions in the first quarter of this year could surpass 2 GW.
Germany deployed more than half a gigawatt of solar in January
The rooftop segment was once again the main growth driver in the German PV sector. The feed-in tariff for PV systems not exceeding 10 kW in size will drop under the €0.08/kWh for the first time.
Pumped hydro with desalination, powered by renewables
EDF and Oceanus plan to build a pumped hydro storage station and a desalination system powered by wind and solar. The system will use saltwater to produce hydropower during periods of high demand, while producing affordable freshwater.
France installed 973 MW of solar in 2020
The country’s cumulative installed PV power reached 10.9 GW as of the end of December. Last year, solar covered 2.9% of the nation’s electricity demand.
Infrastructure Australia adds world’s biggest PV project to priority list
Sun Cable’s ambitious 13 GW Australia-ASEAN Power Link, which is designed to export solar electricity from Australia’s Northern Territory to Singapore, continues to shine bright, with the Australian government including the mega-project on its Priority Initiative List.
First Solar signs 2.4 GW deal, reports results from a “challenging” 2020
The thin-film module manufacturer achieved a turnover of $2.7 billion and a profit of $400 million last year. The company also revealed that it is evaluating further U.S. manufacturing expansion, “contingent on the right policy environment.”
Batteries double CO2 savings of households with PV systems
Photovoltaic systems for single-family homes reduce electricity-related CO2 emissions of the households by 45%, according to EUPD Research. When a battery is added the CO2 emissions can be reduced by up to 85%.
In the mind of a residential PV system owner
Scientists in the Netherlands have identified five different profiles of homeowners that have installed or could install rooftop PV systems. According to their findings, substantial differences characterize the five segmentation groups. The research is intended to help policymakers and solar companies to better promote PV technology among potential new adopters.
Sensorless fault-detection method for rooftop, large-scale solar
Turkish researchers have developed an algorithm to distinguish faults and changes in PV plant output. The sensorless method only uses electrical data gathered from the DC inputs of inverters. They tested it on 8.5 MW of ground-mount PV at nine sites, as well as 8.2 MW across 18 rooftops.
