Solar

At SNEC 2024 in Shanghai, pv magazine spoke with Puzant Baliozian, lead consultant of sector group photovoltaic equipment for Germany’s Machinery and Equipment Manufacturers Association (VDMA). He says tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) technology will dominate the solar market in the next 10 years and expects module manufacturers will compete to develop more creative product designs. He also believes that copper metallization will gain market share in heterojunction (HJT) module production in the next years. “In the upcoming decade, we will have less than mg/W of silver being used for both TOPCon and HJT technologies,” he stated.

This week, Women in Solar Europe (WiSEu) gives voice to Olga Kovalchuk, Head of Finance and Investment – Managing Director at Germany’s Goldbeck Solar. She says that the underrepresentation of women in STEM subjects affects the pipeline of women entering both the renewable and traditional energy sectors, though this is gradually improving with more targeted educational initiatives. “The gender pay gap is ever-present and, given how much pay is linked to performance in senior positions, the underrepresentation has a knock-on effect on the gender pay gap for the industry,” she stated.

The 100 MW/200 MWh energy storage project featuring lithium iron phosphate (LFP) solid-liquid hybrid cells was connected to the grid near Longquan, Zhejiang Province, China.

The Vietnamese government issued new rules this week allowing direct power purchase agreements (DPPA) between independent power producers (IPPs) and energy consumers, according to state-owned media. IPPs can now sell power to final clients via the national grid or direct connection lines.

Multinational mining company Rio Tinto has finished installation work at the Diavik Diamond Mine in Canada and has announced plans for two 5.25 MW plants at a bauxite mine in Australia’s Northern Territory.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that, while in June Western Europe experienced below-average irradiance, Eastern Europe and the Balkans in particular saw a notable increase, resulting from persistent and static weather patterns.

Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals has started accepting bids to build, own, and operate a green hydrogen plant to supply 10 kilotons per annum (ktpa( of green hydrogen. It says it will sign a 25-year gas purchase agreement with the successful bidder.

French company HDF Energy has equipped its new polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) hydrogen fuel-cell production plant with a 500 kW solar project, by adjusting the PV modules and inverters to fit the sawtooth roof design.

Researchers have simulated the operation of seven renewable energy communities in the Port of Naples and found them to offer lower life cycle costs. Using varying capacities of solar and wave energy, they were able to optimize the system to a 90% self-consumption rate. They also offered a scheme for the management of a port energy community.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, OPIS, a Dow Jones company, provides a quick look at the main price trends in the global PV industry.