India’s installed solar capacity hits 41.6 GW
India’s cumulative installed solar capacity stood at 41.6 GW as of Dec. 31, 2020, with 1.29 GW added in the October-December period. Capacity additions in the first quarter of this year could surpass 2 GW.
Germany deployed more than half a gigawatt of solar in January
The rooftop segment was once again the main growth driver in the German PV sector. The feed-in tariff for PV systems not exceeding 10 kW in size will drop under the €0.08/kWh for the first time.
France installed 973 MW of solar in 2020
The country’s cumulative installed PV power reached 10.9 GW as of the end of December. Last year, solar covered 2.9% of the nation’s electricity demand.
Batteries double CO2 savings of households with PV systems
Photovoltaic systems for single-family homes reduce electricity-related CO2 emissions of the households by 45%, according to EUPD Research. When a battery is added the CO2 emissions can be reduced by up to 85%.
In the mind of a residential PV system owner
Scientists in the Netherlands have identified five different profiles of homeowners that have installed or could install rooftop PV systems. According to their findings, substantial differences characterize the five segmentation groups. The research is intended to help policymakers and solar companies to better promote PV technology among potential new adopters.
Belgium becomes a GW solar market
The central European country had its best year in terms of new PV deployment in 2020 with around 1,010 MW of installed capacity. Its cumulative solar capacity surpassed 6 GW at the end of December.
Poland granted preliminary grid-connection permits to 4.4 GW of PV last year
Data from the Instytut Energetyki Odnawialnej shows that the increasing number of grid-connection approvals may result in another record year for PV in the country in 2021.
Vehicle-integrated PV reduces EV charging time in sunny regions by 40%
Dutch scientist Bonna Newmann spoke with pv magazine about the present and future of vehicle-integrated PV from a technological and economic perspective. Solar panels installed on cars could have a payback time of only three or four years and ensure 10,000 km of pure PV-generated road travel per year, she said. Furthermore, if you live in a sunny place, you can drive an electric car with solar panels for weeks during summertime, without the need for recharging, she pointed out.
Storage and PAYG critical to deployment of African off-grid renewables
The former need not necessarily relate to conventional lithium-ion batteries, however, as a recent webinar staged by Solarpower Europe and EU body GET.invest discovered.
Germany has 270,000 residential batteries linked to PV
Around 88,000 energy storage systems linked to rooftop PV were installed last year in the country, which supports residential batteries through a dedicated scheme.
