Skip to content

Top News

Chinese PV Industry Brief: January-May solar curtailment rate hits 3.3%

China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) says that nationwide solar curtailment reached 3.3% in the January-May period, and 2.5% in May alone.
Markets & Policy

Spain’s Catalonia region buys solar plants

L’Energética, a regional energy company in Catalonia, Spain, has invested €10 million ($10.7 million) in solar plants with a combined capacity of at least 5 MW.
Markets & Policy

The Hydrogen Stream: 20 companies ask Europe to protect electrolyzer industry

Twenty companies have signed a letter to the European Commission, calling for a shift in European industry policy and protections for the electrolyzer industry, while Germany and Morocco have signed a declaration to establish a joint climate and energy a...
Announcements

New pv magazine Global - Down to the wires

pv magazine Global June edition 2024

Due to market developments, we are moving the event dates to provide the most value to the Spanish market.

Solar + Storage España will now occur April 9-10, 2025.

pv magazine Webinar

What are the benefits of “Made in Germany” for inverters?

Registration Link

pv magazine Webinar

Unlocking Solar Project Success: Best Practices for Selecting the Right Tracker System

Registration Link

Sign up for our free pv magazine newsletters

With our free daily newsletters, you will receive the latest solar and storage news directly in your inbox

 

newsletter pv magazine

Now live: www.ess-news.com

We are delighted to announce the launch of our new dedicated energy storage news platform. Brought to you by pv magazine, the ESS website will keep you abreast of the latest developments and trends in the fast-changing energy storage space.

ESS website announcement box

Sponsored
Manufacturing

French startup unveils ‘low-carbon’ anodized aluminum solar carport

KparK Énergies says its low-carbon Carport Solaire Aluminium system and comes equipped with solar panels, microinverters, virtual batteries, and charging stations for electric vehicles.
Markets & Policy

India launches 1.6 GW of hybrid wind-solar tenders

NTPC has started accepting bids from developers to supply 1.2 GW of wind-solar hybrid projects throughout India. Solar Energy Corp. of India (SECI) is also accepting bids to develop 400 MW of wind-solar hybrid power projects on a build-own-operate basis.
Sponsored
Sponsored
Installations

Romania mandates energy storage for prosumers

Romania’s parliament has adopted a bill mandating prosumers with PV systems with capacities from 10.8 kW to 400 kW to install energy storage systems.
Markets & Policy

World’s largest sodium-ion battery goes into operation

The first phase of Datang Group’s 100 MW/200 MWh sodium-ion energy storage project in Qianjiang, Hubei Province, was connected to the grid.
Markets & Policy

France’s Carbon choses locations for R&D center

Carbon, a French PV module maker, says it will invests €33 million ($35.4 million) in a new R&D center.

Press Releases

World Energy Council Announces New Cohort of Global Future Energy Leaders

The World Energy Council is proud to announce the selection of 49 exceptional young professionals for the 2024-2025 cohort of the prestigious Future Energy Leaders programme. The new additions bring the total number of current Future Energy Leaders to 108 under the three-year programme.

Six Highlights: Huasun’s Bulgaria HJT Exclusive Gala Delivers Success and Innovation

Following Intersolar Europe 2024, Huasun has triggered another peak in Europe. On June 26th, the "HUASUN HJT EXCLUSIVE GALA" was held again in Sofia, Bulgaria's capital, attracting numerous HUASUN partners, renowned energy companies, financial institutions, and EPCs from the Balkan area.

GoodWe Seduces Intersolar 2024 with its BIPV Innovations

GoodWe marked its presence at the Intersolar show, held from 19 to 21 June 2024, by presenting three flagship products from its BIPV range: the lightweight Galaxy panel, the Polaris solar carport and the Suncake plug and play panel. These products met with great success and aroused great interest among the participants.

Procurement and Sale of Non-FIT Solar Power Plants

Marubeni has signed an agreement to sell 400 Non-FIT*1 solar power plants (approximately 40MW) in bulk to a joint venture company in which it invested with SMFL MIRAI Partners Co. , Ltd.

Opinion & Analysis

Featured

PV market eyes recovery amid falling module prices

Martin Schachinger, founder of pvXchange.com, says that solar module prices are falling across the board, while batteries and inverters are hitting historically low prices due to market oversupply.

‘More women in hiring positions will ensure more women will be hired’

This week, Women in Solar Europe (WiSEu) gives voice to Annemarie Schouten, Head of Solar Development Netherlands at Vattenfall. She says establishing herself in a male-dominated sector was not always easy and explains how finding mentors may offer good support in dealing with unequal treatments. “I would say to younger colleagues entering this industry to surround themselves with different people,” she stated. “People that are not just like you. We need this variety of views, insights and ways of working to tackle the challenges ahead.”

China modules prices trend lower on weak demand, oversupply

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.

New Mexico solar output drops amid heatwave-induced storms

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that summer weather and a heat dome have brought increased irradiance to both US coasts. As a result, much of the continental United States saw irradiance moderately above average, 5-10% above historical June averages, with the increase most notable along the East Coast.

The many potentials of solar energy

In addition to producing renewable electricity, solar energy can also enable the clean production of hydrogen. Its potential in different applications is being assessed by several teams of researchers around the world. Adrian Pennington reports on some of this R and D and how IEC Standards can help in the third of the IEC columns for pv magazine

IEA-PVPS releases fact sheet on environmental life cycle assessment of PV Systems

The updated IEA PVPS Task 12 Fact Sheet provides a comprehensive assessment of the environmental impacts associated with PV systems. It highlights the significant advancements made in PV technology, emphasizing improved efficiencies and reduced environmental footprints.

Markets & Policy

Featured

Google invests in Taiwanese solar developer New Green Power

Google has made a capital investment in Taiwan-based New Green Power, in a deal that grants the US company the rights to procure up to 300 MW of solar assets.

Tunisian solar module maker Ifrisol targeting US market

Ifrisol, a Tunisian PV module maker, is targeting the US market by producing solar panels with cells sourced from unspecified “non-Chinese” Asian manufacturers.

Net-metering scheme tops 116 MW in Philippines

The energy regulator in the Philippines reports a positive trend in net-metering adoption after enhancing its information and education campaigns.

Yotta Energy launches ‘panel-level storage’ package for C&I solar

US storage and inverter specialist Yotta Energy says its new package has several advantages compared to conventional C&I solar storage solutions. For example, the design cuts out the need for a dedicated room or separate space for the battery racks and it reportedly keeps batteries cool, passively maintaining an ideal working temperature range, between 21 C and 38 C.

Chinese venture commissions 68 MW solar plant in Bangladesh

Bangladesh-China Renewable Energy Company (BCRECL) has commissioned a 68 MW solar plant in Bangladesh. The Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) has agreed to buy electricity from the facility at $0.102/kWh.

World Bank approves $1.5 billion loan to support India’s hydrogen plans

The World Bank has approved a $1.5 billion loan to help promote the development of the green hydrogen market and scale up renewable energy penetration in India.

Installations

Photovoltaics for hydroponic greenhouses

Researchers in Iran have investigated the operation of a real solar-powered greenhouse in the Alborz province and have found that only 4% of the greenhouse’s roof needs to be covered with PV modules to meet demand for lighting and pumping water.

Property owners look to large-scale solar to revitalize land

Renewables developer Lodestone Energy will build a 220 MW solar farm on one of New Zealand’s iconic high-country grazing properties, with the landowners targeting the PV facility to help rehabilitate redundant land.

Belgian wildlife park hosts world’s largest wooden solar carport

Belgian energy company Perpetum Energy has built a 40 MW solar carport at Pairi Daiza, a privately owned zoo and botanical garden in Hainaut, Belgium. It said the total investment reached €40 million ($43 million) investment.

Udinese Calcio builds 1.1 MW PV system on stadium in Italy

Bluenergy is developing a 1.1 MW PV system on Udinese Calcio’s football stadium in Italy. The company said the project might include a 300 kW battery.

AEG unveils hybrid inverters for high-voltage PV systems

The new three-phase hybrid inverter series includes five versions with power ratings of 6 kW to 15 kW. They feature efficiencies of up to 98.2% and a maximum input voltage of 1,000 V.

New pulse width modulation tech to reduce switching losses in three-phase inverters

Scientists in the Emirates have conceived a new space vector pulse width modulation method that reportedly reduces switching losses and increase efficiency in three-phase photovoltaic inverters. The proposed technique was found to have a higher efficiency, while providng lower common-mode voltage, leakage current and total harmonic distortion compared to traditional pulse width modulation approaches.

Technology

Featured

Fraunhofer develops tandem module for direct hydrogen production

Three Fraunhofer institutes in Germany have developed a tandem module for direct hydrogen production, as a modular, flexible alternative to large electrolyzers. PV is an additional power supply.

KAUST builds perovskite-perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell with 31.5% efficiency

The Saudi research institute said its new four-terminal tandem device has achieved the highest efficiency ever reported for perovskite-based 4-T and triple-junction tandem solar cells to date. The key feature of the cell is the hole transport layer of the top perovskite cell, which was engineered with self-assembled monolayers.

CSIRO partners with Google to prototype grid-forming inverters

Scientists from Australia’s national science agency and the electricity research and development arm of Google have developed a new ‘smart’ inverter they claim is almost twice as fast and about 50% more efficient than existing commercial inverters.

Sigenergy launches new energy storage solution for C&I segment

Chinese manufacturer Sigenergy has launched a new modular energy storage solution that combines a hybrid inverter and battery pack with a built-in energy management system. The inverter series offers a range of power options from 50 kW to 110 kW.

UL Solutions introduces new testing protocol for residential battery storage systems

The latest test method addresses the fire propagation behavior of a residential battery energy storage system if a thermal runaway propagation event leading to an internal fire were to occur during the system’s lifetime.

How to recycle methylammonium lead iodide from perovskite solar cells

A German research team has developed a new technique to recover and reuse methylammonium lead iodide (MAPbI3) from perovskite solar cells via solvent extraction. Such recycling method can reportedly save up to 61% costs in the lab and industrial manufacturing.

Manufacturing

Korean researchers propose new design for aluminum frames used in glass-glass bifacial solar modules

Using a surrogate model for finite element analysis, the scientists have designed an aluminum frame for bifacial modules that reportedly minimizes deflection and production costs, without adding too much weight. Deflection can lead to cracking or delamination of ribbons inside the module, resulting in an increase number of damaged cells.

Chinese PV Industry Brief: January-May installations hit 79.15 GW

China’s cumulative installed PV capacity reached 690 GW at the end of May, according to recent numbers released by the country’s National Energy Administration (NEA).

‘We expect to ship 40 GW of back contact products in 2025’

As part of our Intersolar 2024 interview series, pv magazine spoke with Dennis She, Senior VP of Global Sales and Marketing at Longi Solar, about the company’s transition to the back contact (BC) technology, the expected shipment volumes for 2024, and the strategy to address overcapacity and pricing issues. He also spoke about Longi’s plans in the hydrogen sector and said the company does not intend to enter the energy storage business.

Israeli startup launches agrivoltaic pilot in desert with double-axis sun tracking

Agri-Light has launched its first pilot agrivoltaic project, using a two-axis solar installation on a rail system to move solar panels horizontally above a vineyard in the Negev Desert. The results are due this summer, and the company plans to build commercial projects in Israel and Spain next year.

DEWA unveils new method to measure current-voltage curves in PV systems

A group of scientists from the UAE-based energy utility has developed a new method to conduct I-V curve measurements without transporting the solar modules to laboratories for detailed analysis. The proposed Suns-Vmp approach reportedly offers a “very low” average root mean square error between the simulated and the real I-V curves.

Researchers discover method to help perovskite solar cells self-heal

A global team of researchers – lead by Monash University in Melbourne, Australia – says it has made a breakthrough that could make perovskite solar cells more reliable and efficient.

Energy Storage

Featured

624 MWh battery project breaks ground in the UK

Construction has commenced on a massive battery energy storage system (BESS) project at Cellarhead in the West Midlands, with 54 BESS containers installed in only 38 days.

Solar leading Baltic states to energy security

In recent years, the Baltic countries have experienced a solar generation boom as the region seeks to kill two birds with one stone. These nations aim to break away from years-long energy dependence on Russia amid growing security concerns while also continuing to prioritize the green energy transition.

‘From the next two years on we start to see battery supply in Europe’

At Intersolar Europe 2024, ESS News spoke with spoke with Paul McCusker, President EMEA Region at Fluence, about the company’s regionalization strategy and its ambition to bring a locally made products to its customers in Europe. McCusker also spoke about EMEA-region specific technology preferences and requirements, particularly regarding noise levels and safety. Additionally, he presented his views on battery price movements and key challenges to market growth.

The Hydrogen Stream: Microorganisms affect underground hydrogen storage

Researchers from China University of Petroleum have reported on hydrogen-microorganism interactions in underground storage, while Sungrow Hydrogen has won a $4.1 billion bid for an integrated hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol project.

Fire brigade extinguishes fire at new hydrogen refueling station in Germany

Firefighters in Gersthofen, Germany, have extinguished a fire at a hydrogen refueling station that was inaugurated on June 17 as part of a pilot project supported by the German government.

India launches 1 GW/2 GWh battery storage tender

Solar Energy Corp. of India (SECI) has started accepting proposals to set up 1 GW/2 GWh of standalone battery energy storage systems (BESS) connected to India’s interstate transmission system (ISTS). Bidding closes on Aug. 5.

This website uses cookies to anonymously count visitor numbers. View our privacy policy.

The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.

Close