Moixa, Hitachi collaborate on GBP 10.8m Smart Islands EV, solar+storage project on Isles of Scilly
The British archipelago of islands to become global testbed for Smart Islands project that aims to provide model for use of electric vehicles and home batteries in a smart energy system.
Vattenfall uses BMW car batteries for storage projects at winds farms
German car maker BMW will provide Vattenfall with 1,000 lithium-ion car batteries. Vattenfall will use the batteries, which are also used for the vehicle BMW i3, for storage projects at wind farms.
Over 50,000 solar storage systems are now installed in Germany
The increase in new installations was mainly due to a 40% drop in prices over the past three years. German solar association Bundesverbands Solarwirtschaft expects their number will double to 100,000 in 2018.
The pv magazine weekly news digest
Amid the innovation on display in Portugal, the optimism in Japan and the, well, eagerness in Norway were stories of takeovers, Tesla and storage that shaped yet another fascinating week in the global solar PV industry.
Elon Musk throws down “serious” challenge to tackle South Australia’s energy crisis
Tesla founder Elon Musk has thrown down a challenge to the Australian government, saying that he can build a battery array capable of resolving South Australia’s energy stability issues within 100 days. Musk took to social media to make the challenge, saying that Tesla could develop a 100 MWh system to stabilize the state’s electricity network, within 100 days of a contract being signed, or that he’ll provide it for free.
EV growth gives lithium-ion batteries cost edge in stationary storage, finds Lux Research
The growing demand for affordable electric vehicle batteries is driving cost reductions in lithium-ion battery technology, which is beneficial for affordable stationary storage, finds new Lux Research report.
Aquion files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
After losing money for the past two years, the saltwater battery storage company couldn’t raise enough new capital to meet its debt obligations, leading to the filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware yesterday.
Tesla launches Powerwall 2, says all solar homes will have storage
Tesla has officially launched its range of second generation home and grid-scale battery storage products in Australia, with installations of the company’s fully integrated, 14kWh residential Powerwall 2 units to begin in homes throughout the country next month.
Manz expects to return to profitability this year
Large orders for the solar segment are expected to enable the company to return to profit in 2016. Last year, Manz was able to slightly increase its revenue, although it is still struggling with losses.
U.S. energy storage MWhs double in 2016
A rush of projects to make up for grid resources lost with the Aliso Canyon gas leak boosted energy storage deployments to a record level in Q4.
