Canadian Solar secures PPAs for 274 MW in Brazil
With two new deals, Canadian Solar has expanded its pipeline of unsubsidized PV projects in the country to 1.9 GW.
PV imports to face 20-25% customs duty in India
The Indian government’s levy on modules could almost double to 40% within a year. Cells will see a similar rise, from an initial rate of 15%.
Works begin on Croatia’s largest PV plant
The 6.5 MW solar project will be built with PV modules supplied by Croatian manufacturer Solvis d.o.o.
A flexible mounting system for rooftop PV systems
Altec Metalltechnik has developed a mounting system that it claims can be combined with all roof types, regardless of the type of module.
Manufacturing industry seeks unity on wafer size
Seven solar manufacturers, including tier-1 players, have signed up to a joint initiative aiming to establish a new standard size for silicon wafers at 182mm x 182mm. Conspicuously absent from the initiative is China’s Zhonghuan Semiconductor, which last year introduced a 210mm solar wafer, the largest seen in the industry so far.
LevelTen Energy opens procurement of up to 500 MW of European renewables capacity
U.S.-based tender platform has invited proposals for projects ranging in scale from 50-500 MW on behalf of an unnamed client which is a member of the RE100 clean energy campaign. European developers have until July 20 to lodge their bids.
Shielding PV against Earth’s magnetic field
Researchers in Kenya are seeking to reduce the influence of the Geomagnetic field on PV panel performance by replacing aluminum module frames with a steel cage. They have specified they have been unable to quantify costs related to the solution, and that more research is needed.
Italy’s largest PV project comes online
A 103 MW solar park built by Danish developer European Energy has been connected to the grid after a year of construction work. The project had been started in 2011 and at one stage appeared doomed, when a national feed-in tariff program ended.
Kenya’s largest dairy producer wants to buy solar
New Kenya Cooperative Creameries has finalized the preliminary phase of a tender to buy electricity from a solar facility that will be built at its new KCC Sotik Factory. The installation is expected to cover around 40% of the site’s power needs.
Significant decline in potentially unsafe PV systems in Australia
A very small number of PV systems installed on Australian rooftops are considered to be potentially unsafe, the nation’s Clean Energy Regulator says in a new report. It identifies water entering DC isolators as the greatest risk and the most common cause of PV system failures.
