The impact of wildfires on PV power generation
Scientists have quantified the impact of wildfires on the availability of direct normal irradiance and global horizontal irradiance at the state, regional, and national levels in the United States. They have found that direct irradiance is more sensitive to smoke than the PV-relevant global horizontal irradiance.
France awards 464 MW of 500 MW tech-neutral renewables tender to solar
The French government has allocated 464 MW of the 500 MW available in a technology-neutral renewables tender to PV projects.
Storing photovoltaic-thermal energy with volcanic tuff stones
Scientists in China have used ground heat exchangers based on volcanic tuff stones to improve storage capabilities and efficiency of photovoltaic-thermal systems. Their experiments showed that the proposed combination effectively improves PV module cooling and thermal efficiency.
Australian researchers question lack of solar microgrids in remote areas
Researchers from four Australian universities have released a new paper questioning why solar microgrids are not the norm in remote central Australia.
California winery installs solar with dual-axis tracking
A winery California will cover 95% of its electricity needs with a solar array that tilts on two axes to follow direct sunlight through the day.
Dominican Republic launches tender for 40 MW PV plant
Empresa de Generación Eléctrica Punta Catalina (EGEPC), the Dominican Republic’s power utility, has launched a tender for a 40 MW solar plant aimed at self-consumption.
Germany records 457 hours of negative electricity prices in 2024
Germany’s Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur) says negative wholesale electricity prices occurred for 457 hours in 2024, up from 301 hours in 2023.
Spanish startup deploys utility-scale batteries made from used EV devices
The Port of Alicante will install three 7 MW systems, each comprised of hundreds of 14 kW modules assembled by Spanish startup GDV.
Maltese scientists design offshore virtual power plant integrating PV, wind, storage
The proposed virtual power plant (VPP) integrates a platform-to-ship (P2S) setup to electrify anchored and bunkering ships, while also providing surplus electricity to the country’s grid. The system was designed to operate through a 200 MW floating wind farm and a 300 MW floating PV plant, with battery and compressed air systmes being used for energy storage.
Australian startup offers retractable PV sytem with containerized vanadium redox flow battery
A Western Australia-based hybrid solar and battery system developer has demonstrated its hybrid units deployed in remote locations for businesses and communities can potentially replace around 150 litres of diesel per day.
