Solar Power

The U.S. based researchers have developed a new wide-bandgap perovskite layer – called Apex Flex – which they claim is able to withstand heat, light, and operational tests, and at the same time provide a reliable and high voltage. With this material, they built tandem solar cells with 23.1% power conversion efficiency on a rigid substrate, and 21.3% on flexible plastic.

The iron and steel sector is the ‘world’s largest industrial source of climate pollution.’ This steel mill in Pueblo, Colorado, will be the first in North America to rely on solar power.

As some parts of Australia’s distribution networks threaten to black out under the flow of rooftop solar exports, ARENA announces funding for a trial that will enable flexible exports in line with what the networks can bear. Smart software is the answer.

SmartHelio claims to have witnessed a near 200% jump in demand for its deep-data driven solar asset management solution, which plugs into solar panels or energy storage systems. Sales of the internet-of-things enabled, cloud product have leapt in the last six months.

Austrian researchers have replaced heavy metals and rare earths with conventional vanillin in a redox flow battery. The Graz University of Technology team now wants to bring this technology to market.

Comoil SA is seeking approval for two solar plants with capacities of 62.2 MW and 44.8 MW. It wants to install them in an industrial zone in Macchiareddu, Sardinia.

Only 7% of Europe’s residential PV systems are linked with home storage, according to SolarPower Europe. The five largest markets – Germany, Italy, Great Britain, Austria and Switzerland – account for more than 90% of the continent’s total installed storage capacity.

The Spanish construction conglomerate plans to sell off its ACS Industrial unit, which includes solar and wind project developer Cobra, to French infrastructure giant Vinci.

The French government has decided to reduce the planned degression rates for feed-in tariffs, in addition to raising the size limit for projects.

Canadian Solar has agreed to invest $1.5 billion in a 10 GW solar cell and module factory in eastern China. GCL New Energy, meanwhile, has revealed the terms of a plan to sell a solar project portfolio to state-owned Huaneng.