Solar

The UK government has increased the budget for its sixth Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction by half. Extra allocation includes millions of pounds for technologies such as solar and onshore wind, but offshore wind enjoys the lion’s share of the budget.

Moldova’s Energy Minister, Victor Parlicov, says the new regulation will facilitate the authorization of renewable energy capacities, in particular those on the free market and without a support scheme, while also providing predictability for investors.

The eight-day Electrek American Solar Challenge 2024 created three new champion solar car teams with the student-run University of Michigan team coming in first, followed by Canada’s École de technologie supérieure and the Illinois State University solar car team.

Large-scale solar-plus-storage is the main option left to avoid power shortages as such systems can be deployed much faster than new thermal and hydro assets. Recent gigawatt-scale solar-plus-storage auction results, with a record low price of INR 3.40 ($0.04)/kWh, show that such deployment will be highly economical, according to a new study from the University of California’s India Energy and Climate Center.

Thailand’s Electricity Generating Authority has opened a tender for the design, supply, construction and commissioning of a floating solar array to be built at a dam with an existing hydroelectric power station.

Researchers in Germany have proposed to use a machine learning technique known as reinforcement learning to optimize heat pump performance and reduce electricity consumption in apartment complexes. Their simulation showed that significant savings can be achieved without compromising comfort levels.

A call for the EU’s second cross-border renewables tender has gone out and will remain open until March 4, 2025. Luxembourg is providing €52.4 million ($56.7 million), while Finland and Estonia have committed to installing solar and onshore wind on their territories.

Libra Energy has unveiled its first major Australian renewables project, announcing plans to build an 850 MW / 3,400 MWh battery energy storage system in southeast Queensland to help soak up excess solar energy and stabilise the grid supply and demand during peak hours.

The 147MW/588MWh Rosamund Central battery energy storage project in Kern County, California, is paired with a 192 MW solar farm, which was completed in 2020.

The Philippines’ Department of Energy (DOE) has said that energy storage and maximizing the country’s existing renewable energy infrastructure will be a major theme for its next green energy auction. GEA-4 will take place in the final quarter of 2024.