Gautam Solar unveils n-type TOPCon modules at Intersolar Europe
Indian manufacturer Gautam Solar released n-type TOPCon solar modules for the residential, commercial and industrial, and utility-scale PV markets at Intersolar Europe 2023. It is offering the modules in all black, silver frame, glass-to-glass bifacial, and lightweight bifacial variants.
Wacker to expand polysilicon production in Germany
Munich-based Wacker announced it intends to set up a new production line for semiconductor-grade polysilicon at its facility in Burghausen, Germany. The €300 million ($324.4 million) investment would expand the manufacturing capacity of the ultrapure polysilicon by over 50%.
Agrivoltaics for raspberries
BayWa r.e. and its Groenleven subsidiary are building an 8.7 MW agrivoltaics project to support raspberry cultivation, in one the largest projects of its kind in Europe. They expect to complete the project in the first quarter of 2024.
Southeast Asia solar markets set for growth this year
New PV capacity additions in Southeast Asia are expected to bounce back this year for the first time since 2020, according to the Asian Photovoltaic Industry Association. The market is expected to grow by 13% in 2023, for 3.8 GW of new installations.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: Q-Sun Solar expands module capacity by 12 GW
Q-Sun Solar says it plans to invest CNY 6.2 billion ($865.6 million) to build 10 GW of solar cell capacity and 12 GW of PV panel capacity.
Chinese PV executives reportedly detained by police in Munich
German police have detained an executive from a Chinese solar company, the day before the start of the Intersolar Europe trade show this week in Munich, according to Chinese media reports.
Treatment promises 1000-hour stability for solar perovskites
Scientists in China and Canada have developed an additive that forms covalent bonds with the organic materials in a perovskite solar cell, leading to fewer defects and greatly reduced degradation. Cells treated with the additive maintained 98.6% of their initial performance after 1,000 hours in testing. Xlynx Materials, a company spun out of the University of Victoria in Canada, is making the material available for further commercial trials.
Asia leads charge in renewable energy growth
IRENA’s report Renewable Capacity Statistics 2023 shows that in 2022, Asia accounted for nearly 60 percent of the worldwide increase in renewable energy generating capacity, resulting in a total of 1.63 Terawatt (TW) of renewable capacity by year end. A huge part of this increase occurred in China.
Reducing solar module temperature with acrylic sheets
Jordanian researchers have developed a method using acrylic sheets to reflect and absorb unused solar radiation in PV power generation. The solution has the potential to decrease solar panel temperature by more than 14% and increase power yields by approximately 2%.
Australian developer moves forward with solar-to-hydrogen project
The Hydrogen Collective (H2C), an Australian project developer, has revealed plans to build a solar-powered production facility in the state of Queensland. The facility, set to be operational from later this year, will supply commercial customers with green hydrogen. Construction is scheduled to start in the coming weeks.
