Brazil imported 7.8 GW of solar modules in H1
Brazilian consultancy Greener says that Brazil imported 7.8 GW of solar modules in the first half of this year, down 21% year on year. However, it says a reduction in distributors’ inventories and module prices could drive up cost competitiveness in the second half.
Batteries overtake pumped hydro in Australia’s National Electricity Market
Grid-scale battery storage systems have surpassed the charging capacity of pumped hydro in Australia’s national grid, following the recent completion of two new battery projects, totaling 150 MW.
Novel fins increase floating PV productivity, reduce LCOE by over 17%
A group of researchers in Egypt studied the use of partially submerged angle perforating fins (PSAPF) and solid fins (PSASF) to assess their ability to remove excess heat from floating photovoltaics under Mediterranean outdoor environments. The team found that the optimized PSAPF-FPV module achieved an LCOE of $0.068/kWh).
Five core challenges of the European solar photovoltaics research and innovation
In its latest monthly column for pv magazine, the European Technology and Innovation Platform for Photovoltaics (ETIP PV) presents its Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA), published in collaboration with the European Energy Research Alliance for PV (EERA-PV).
US developer secures $779 million for massive 800 MW solar project in Illinois
Swift Current Energy has secured $779 million in financing for an 800 MW solar project in Illinois – the second-largest PV installation in the nation.
Israel surpasses 2.2 GW of rooftop PV capacity
New figures from the Israeli authorities show that the country continues to deploy rooftop PV systems at a rapid pace. New rooftop installations hit 703 MW in 2022, up significantly from 537 MW in 2021 and 296 in 2020.
Morocco launches tender for 400 MW/400 MWh solar-plus-storage project
The Moroccan authorities are tendering the 400 MW Noor Midelt III solar project, which will be connected to 400 MWh of battery storage.
Hail-prone areas may require solar modules with 4 mm-thick front glass
New research from India claims solar modules with 3.2 mm-thick front glass may not be strong enough to withstand storms producing big hailstones. The scientists found that a front glass of at least 4 mm should be used to avoid significant damage.
Tata Power to develop 2.8 GW of pumped hydro projects in India
Tata Power and the government of the Indian state of Maharashtra have agreed to develop 2.8 GW of pumped hydro storage projects.
Control system to allow users take control of air-source heat pumps
Researchers in Korea have designed applied machine learning techniques to enable users to have more control of the timing of heating and cooling in air-source heat pumps. The system is based on backpropagation, which is an algorithm designed to test for errors working back from output nodes to input nodes.
