University of Queensland’s Tesla battery paying for itself
The University of Queensland has released a performance report on the Tesla Powerpack it installed in December 2019. Across a range of revenue streams, the Powerpack is already earning the university some serious cash.
Zimbabwe launches smart-meter-led net metering and 500 MW solar tender
Utility the Zimbabwe Electricity Distribution Company has offered solar power system-owning customers the chance to operate under new net metering rules. The state-owned utility has also started tendering for a total 500 MW of solar generation capacity, according to Reuters.
SunPower sells off its O&M business, gets regulatory approval for Maxeon spinoff
SunPower has had to make fundamental changes to continue to be relevant in a solar industry very different from that of its roots. The company aims to become an energy service provider and is leaving low-cost manufacturing to its Chinese partner.
The weekend read: Regulatory changes pave the C&I way
A growing number of companies in Indonesia, particularly multinationals that implement green policies or are listed as RE100 participants, are poised to adopt rooftop PV. Regulatory changes and signals from the country’s previous government, which supported coal, are paving the way for significant growth.
Australia’s rooftop PV juggernaut displaces fossil fuel generators
The unstoppable growth of Australia’s rooftop PV fleet continues to eat into the pie previously reserved for coal and gas, a new audit of the National Electricity Market shows. Meanwhile, the nation’s electricity consumption has remained mostly flat despite the economic slowdown triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic.
People in quarantine in the United States are searching for solar power
New data from The Harris Poll and LG show that LG’s solar web traffic, as well as quote requests for residential systems are both trending high since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, the issue becomes turning this interest into concrete sales.
Micronesia launches tender for utility scale solar-plus-storage
The government of the Federated States of Micronesia wants to increase power generation capacity on the islands of Yap and Kosrae.
Strong Q1 for First Solar, Enphase, Sunrun
U.S. residential solar installer Sunrun reported strong solar deployments and revenue to start 2020, even with orders decreasing by as much as 40% for periods in March. Micro-inverter manufacturer Enphase’s first-quarter revenues exceeded expectations as the company set an all-time gross margin record and announced plans for a new manufacturing location.
Power-to-heat-to-power storage for rooftop PV
Scientists in Spain have assessed the viability of ‘power-to-heat-to-power storage’ in a residential solar installation in Madrid. The technology could reduce electricity bills by more than 70% and would have a 12 to 15-year payback period, according to the researchers.
Spanish oil giant pushing community solar
Oil and gas business Repsol has launched Solmatch, the nation’s first large solar community.
