Vertical PV to protect biodiversity at German airport
An 8.4 kW pilot vertical PV project is now operating at the airport in Frankfurt, Germany. The solar panels are vertically arranged to protect the biodiversity of the site. In the final stage of expansion, the system will reach up to 13 MW of output.
EU solar ‘big buyers’ initiative set to launch in November
The European Commission intends to help municipalities and public entities to buy rooftop PV systems. Its DG Growth initiative aims to make the public procurement of rooftop solar systems easier.
Reflective coating to reduce solar tile temperatures
Australian scientists have tested different reflective coatings in solar tiles and have found that they could improve the performance of building-integrated PV devices by up to 6.6%. They are currently working with building product manufacturers to bring their tech closer to commercial production.
DC rooftop PV providing domestic hot water to residential building at 60 C
Domestic hot water, with a heating system powered exclusively by DC solar power, has now covered the needs of an apartment building in Linz, Austria, for a period of a year. The 14 residential units are each connected to their own 1.36 KW solar arrays.
FuturaSun unveils 425 W n-type IBC solar module for rooftop applications
FuturaSun has revealed plans to expand its production capacity in China and its home market, Italy. Its new all-black solar panel features a power conversion efficiency of up to 21.60%.
Pairing batteries with rooftop solar
A growing number of residential solar projects include energy storage batteries. In the first part of this series, we look at the backup power feature of batteries.
Portugal’s first solar energy community yields results
The first renewable energy community in Portugal was inaugurated in August 2021 in Miranda do Douro, a rural village in the north. One year on, pv magazine spoke with the company behind the project to assess its status. With a production capacity of 73.3 kWp, solar has saved the community €31,500 ($30,850) on electricity bills.
Storage could reshape solar market in MENA
Waleed AlHallaj, the head of business development for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) at JinkoSolar, recently spoke to pv magazine about the prospects for the regional energy storage market. He said that storage systems have already penetrated markets with weak grids, such as Yemen and Lebanon.
New solar tiles from Germany
Creaton and Autarq have developed a modular solar tile for complex rooftops. The product is reportedly compatible with all common PV inverters.
US electric truck company activates solar canopy charging yard
Rivian’s electric trucks will receive their first charge at the company’s US factory, from renewable energy produced by a 783 kW solar parking canopy.
