solar energy

A study of 20 solar parks in southern France found that soil biodiversity and respiration drop significantly under panels, especially in mown areas, while plant traits like height and leaf area can increase under grazing. The researchers highlighted that climate, management type, and solar shading all shape soil and plant responses.

UNSW researchers developed a chemically selective, nitrate-based, single-sided accelerated ageing method for TOPCon solar cells that replicates the mildly acidic environment inside EVA-encapsulated modules. The proposed approach enables rapid, physically meaningful screening of front-side metallisation stability, reliably predicting module-level degradation and reducing development time and costs, according to its creators.

Researchers in Brazil tested second-life polycrystalline PV modules for two years and found they retained 87–88% of their original power, with minimal degradation and stable performance. Despite strong sustainability and circular economy benefits, economic incentives remain limited due to the declining cost and short warranties of new state-of-the-art silicon PV modules.

JinkoSolar has formally terminated its 4 GW Hai Ha solar cell project in Vietnam, citing US antidumping duties that undermined its export economics. The company will maintain other Vietnamese operations while shifting focus to localized supply chains and Asia-Pacific and Middle East markets.

The U.S. Department of Energy is deploying a research framework across four national laboratories to harden the domestic power grid against digital vulnerabilities as solar deployment accelerates.

Multi-year field trials conducted in Italy show that agrivoltaic systems can support healthy potato yields without major losses. Strategic shading and dynamic light management during critical growth stages proved key to maintaining productivity.

The UK government is proposing stronger cybersecurity rules for electricity and gas sectors, prompted by recent attacks on European energy infrastructure, including a recent incident involving solar power plants in Poland. The plans would extend baseline cybersecurity requirements to all licensed energy organizations and could also adjust compliance thresholds under NIS regulations.

Bosa Energy in Hubei, China, has launched sodium-ions cells for stationary energy storage, with a volumetric energy density of 206 Wh/L

Lithuania added approximately 600 MW of solar last year, taking total capacity to 3,040 MW. Technical permits have been issued for an additional 4 GW of solar but with grid congestion becoming a primary constraint, future deployments will be increasingly dependent on integration with storage technologies.

Kyocera Corporation will begin to supply electricity generated from its solar assets to Cosmo Energy Solutions from next month. It has also entered into a separate power purchase agreement with Cosmo Eco Power for energy generated from a 48 MW wind farm.