Low-cost solar PV enables to turn CO2 from an unwanted burden into a precious raw material and sequestered in materials with many applications. This effectively reframes carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration as a monetizable carbon dioxide removal option. Three recent studies on electricity-based carbon fiber, silicon carbide, and graphene aimed at enabling large-scale negative emissions by 2050.

Rooftop solar in Australia provides the cheapest, cleanest and most reliable domestic energy in history.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that April 2026 marked a reversal from March’s widespread high irradiance across North America, as weakening Atlantic and Pacific high-pressure systems brought more cloud cover to the western U.S. and neutralized Mexico’s earlier sunshine gains, while the eastern U.S. remained sunnier and warmer than average. Meanwhile, Canada stayed under persistent cold, cloudy conditions linked to polar vortex disruptions, and coastal Texas saw significantly reduced irradiance due to tropical moisture and heavy rainfall.

Women in Solar+ Europe (WiSEu Network) analyzes how psychological safety, inclusive leadership, and bias awareness influence decision-making, innovation, and energy security after hosting a workshop during the SolarPower Summit this week. Through interactive discussions and real-life scenarios, participants reflected on the growing importance of human judgment, trust, and collaboration in an AI-driven industry, highlighting that resilient energy systems are ultimately built not only through technology, but also through people and leadership.

UK-based consultancy Ricardo, part of the WSP Group, reports that EU-27 day-ahead power markets saw 1,223 negative-price hours in Q1 2026, more than double Q1 2025, driven mainly by Spain, Portugal, and Greece, while Nordic markets fell back to zero after prior spikes. Germany’s April 2026 data shows negative prices aligning with large renewable forecast errors and likely curtailment during oversupply periods.

Germany led the way with the UK and Bulgaria tied in second place, followed by Spain, Hungary, and France.

A High Court in South Africa ordered the country’s Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy to deliver full documentation relating to three solar tenders awarded in 2021 and 2022 to local solar manufacturer ARTsolar, after the company questioned if the preferred bidders had followed local content requirements for PV modules set out in the tenders. ARTsolar told pv magazine its legal team is currently reviewing the documentation it has received.

Chinese researchers have found that massive photovoltaic deployment in the Taklamakan Desert could alter regional climate dynamics and worsen water stress in the already arid Tarim Basin, despite the area’s vast solar potential.

Amazon has conducted a six-month field trial of a rooftop heat pump system developed by U.S. startup Transaera at one of its logistics facilities. The system uses metal–organic framework (MOF)–based dehumidification to remove moisture from outdoor air before cooling.

Gravity storage gets a boost from South Africa’s state-owned utility Eskom.

The Chinese manufacturer has unveiled its new Solarbank 4 E5000 Pro in Berlin. The system features 5 kW of photovoltaic input capacity and 5 kWh of storage capacity.

The OFW Solar Project in Virginia submitted an application to connect to powerlines run by the wrong power company, instead of a second set of nearby transmission lines, necessitating a total restart of the PJM interconnection process that could push construction back to 2032.

The 136 MW Itimpi II solar plant is Zambia’s largest operational solar project to date. Elsewhere in the country, an investment agreement has been signed to add 250 MW of solar to the 100 MW Nambala solar power plant.

Insurers tell pv magazine that severe convective storms (SCS) drove $60 billion in insured losses in 2025, a mounting toll that has become the primary force tightening capacity and raising prices across the solar energy insurance market.

AleaSoft Energy Forecasting’s latest analysis finds the weekly average electricity price was above €100 ($117.45)/MWh in most major European markets last week, bar the Portuguese, French and Spanish markets. 

U.S. researchers have developed an IR-CW laser-based method to remove backsheets from end-of-life silicon solar modules without damaging the glass or wafers, using controlled heating of the silicon–EVA interface through the front glass. The process enables clean mechanical delamination with preserved device performance and offers a lower-energy, lower-cost alternative to conventional thermal or chemical recycling methods.

The aircraft, acquired by Skydweller Aero in 2019 and converted into an autonomous long-endurance platform, crashed after a loss of power. It was equipped with approximately 17,000 photovoltaic cells on its wings.

The Chinese manufacturer said its novel TOPCon cell design enables partial replacement of silver with aluminum paste while maintaining TOPCon-level efficiency of over 27% and compatibility with existing production lines.

Scientists in Morocco have conceived an experimental–numerical model to quantify how fly ash soiling affects photovoltaic (PV) modules, capturing both optical losses and thermal effects. Their findings show that while dust layers can reduce panel temperature, fly ash significantly degrades efficiency in a non-linear way, highlighting the need for predictive models for real-world solar performance.

Chinese researchers developed an all-perovskite tandem solar cell using a non-contact laser polishing strategy that reduces surface defects and improves charge extraction in lead-tin perovskite films. The device achieved up to 29.80% tandem efficiency, with the bottom cell improving from 19.64% to 24.07% and showing strong operational stability under continuous illumination.

Severe shortages of power transformers are stalling grid expansion as developers face skyrocketing prices and four year wait times for critical equipment.

Researchers in Brazil have developed and simulated a hybrid tidal–PV floating farm concept for estuarine channels, analyzing wake effects, turbine spacing and hybrid energy trade-offs. Results show that integrating PV with hydrokinetic turbines improves overall energy yield by offsetting wake-related losses and optimizing modular farm configurations.

The proposed inverted perovskite solar cell design reduces band misalignment and electron accumulation, suppressing recombination losses and enabling high efficiency in both small-area devices and scalable modules.

Private equity firm FH Capital reached an agreement to acquire a 75.1% majority stake in JinkoSolar’s U.S. manufacturing subsidiary to expand domestic module and battery production.

CEA’s 2026 manufacturing quality report finds that yield rates vary widely based on the age of solar module assembly facilities, with mature Chinese firms nearing 100% and U.S. outlier facilities ranging all the way down to 30%.

The automotive giant has formally unveiled Ford Energy, its new battery energy storage subsidiary, alongside initial details of its flagship grid-scale energy storage product.

SoftBank’s mobile arm is gearing up to scale the intriguing zinc-halogen battery cell chemistry to 1 GWh annual production.

Zendure has launched PowerHub, a new energy management system for homes and small commercial sites that integrates solar PV, battery storage, grid power, EV charging, heat pumps, and smart home devices into one platform. The system supports up to 150 kWh storage capacity and up to 43 kW three-phase PV input, while the 3-phase version enables EV charging at up to 22 kW.

The Italian manufacturer has expanded its propane monobloc heat pump range with new models delivering up to 85 C flow temperature and achieving a seasonal coefficient of performance of 4.95.

The CEO of Irish PV association Solar Ireland, Ronan Power, told pv magazine that despite a healthy project pipeline and investor appetite, ground-mounted PV projects are not being delivered as fast as they could be. A national clearing house to provide more defined communication at the early stages would help developers deliver faster.