Malaysia to allocate another 500 MW of rooftop PV under net metering
The NEM 3.0 program will run until the end of 2023 and will see the participation of residential, commercial and industrial prosumers as well as public entities and government ministries.
France publishes first-quarter FITs for PV systems up to 100 kW
The feed-in tariff granted reduces each quarter, in line with how much solar capacity was installed in the previous three-month period.
Flexible heat pumps ideal for power grids congested by solar and wind
Dutch transmission system operator Tennet, which also serves Germany, is planning to create flexible electricity demand and reduce grid congestion by promoting the use of smarter heating systems and heat pumps that can also be powered by solar and wind energy. According to its experts, intelligent control of heat pumps may result in the creation of between 0.5 and 1 GW of temporary grid flexibility by 2030.
Solar for self-consumption keeps growing in Spain
Around 569 MW of new PV systems were installed last year under the country’s rules for self-consumption. Around 56% of this capacity was deployed in the industrial segment, while commercial installations had a 23% share.
EDF acquires US solar installer
EDF Renewables North America said that its latest investment capitalizes on the growth of the commercial and industrial solar market.
Axitec launches modular residential battery
The battery has a storage capacity ranging from 10 to 15 kWh and is already commercially available in Germany and Europe.
Ireland outlines net metering scheme for solar and renewables
The scheme is now under public consultation and is aimed at enabling citizens, farmers, business owners, and community organizations to sell excess solar power to the grid.
Smart meters disrupt residential PV segment in Belgium’s Flanders region
A recent ruling of the Belgian constitutional court has canceled the 15-year grace period granted to residential PV system owners to keep operating under net metering despite the arrival of smart meters. The Flemish government said it will provide some compensation for the financial losses that this decision will cause.
Fraunhofer ISE develops technique to produce glowing colored solar modules
The German research institute has proposed a technique based on the surface structure of the wings of the morpho butterfly to produce colored BIPV panels for facades and rooftops. The process is claimed to make it possible to color the modules with an optical effect and not with color pigments, which reduce their efficiency.
‘There is no clear best module configuration under partial shading’
A Slovenian research team has analyzed the behavior of a full-size cell PV module and several 1/6 cell panels under partial shading and has come to the obvious conclusion that the cell cut panels suffer fewer energy losses. They also found, however, that the orientation of the cells connected in series should be aligned as much as possible with the shade shape to lower the losses and to minimize reverse cell voltage.
