Power Electronics

Enphase and SolarEdge dominate US sales of rooftop solar inverters, but Tesla could be set to change that.

Solax claims its new hybrid inverters can oversize PV systems by 200%, making them an ideal solution for commercial rooftop installations. There are five versions, featuring rated power outputs ranging from 15 kW to 30 kW.

As renewable energy generation grows, demand is rising for grid-forming inverters to deliver the same functions as traditional rotating synchronous generators. The UNIFI Consortium is now taking the lead in advancing the development of this new inverter technology.

Riello Solartech has developed new hybrid inverters for rooftop PV, designed for commercial and industrial applications The Italian manufacturer says they have a European efficiency rating of roughly 98%.

Hoymiles has developed new hybrid inverters for residential PV applications. They have a nominal power range of 3.8 kW to 11.5 kW and an efficiency of 97.6%.

Toshiba has developed a 2,200 V silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET for inverters and energy storage systems, in order to help inverter manufacturers to reduce the size and weight of their products.

Livoltek plans to build a 1.8 GW inverter factory in Manaus, northern Brazil. It says the facility will manufacture single-phase and three-phase devices.

WattPower has inaugurated a string solar inverter factory in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, with an annual production capacity of 10 GW.

Yaskawa Solectria Solar has developed new utility-scale string inverters with capacities ranging from 175 kW to 250 kW. They are optimized for use with First Solar modules and qualify for the US domestic content bonus tax credit.

TSUN’s new microinverter line has an input current of up to 16 A and an efficiency rating of up to 96.7%. It claims that the microinverters are particularly suitable for complex installation environments.