Tesla has reported that its Energy business unit achieved a “positive gross margin” in Q4 2015, while the company has delivered its 11th quarterly net loss. Tesla pointed to its Energy segment as a key lead generator for the firm, with its Powerwall and Powerpack products delivering more than double the amount of potential Tesla customer inquiries than its automotive business.

Having installed over 913 MW of new solar in 2015, Australia now boasts some 5 GW of PV generating capacity. Local market analysts Sunwiz published the figure today, concluding that solar was the leading source of new generating capacity in Australia in 2015, now comprising 9% of installed electric generating capacity in the country.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has released a shortlist of 22 PV power plant projects for its AU$100 million (US$69.4 million) large scale solar scheme. The shortlisted projects total around 766 MW of capacity, indicating that around 250 MW is likely to be developed under the scheme.

Low oil prices present the mining and resource community with the opportunity to strike favorable deals from renewable energy providers. Offgrid renewable consultant THEnergy made the claim this week, noting that remote mine sites reliant on diesel for electricity generation now have the opportunity to make a “clever anti-cyclical” decision and sign a favorable PPA with an offgrid wind or solar provider.

France’s Exosun has signed a deal with integrator Pheonix Solar and Millennium Energy Industries to supply 11 MW of its Exotrack HZ horizontal single-axis trackers for three projects totaling 11 MW in capacity. The projects are merchant arrays, providing electricity to Sheraton and Marriott hotels in Jordan.

Major West Australian solar and storage provider Infinite Energy pushes customers towards ‘energy independence’ as battery storage moves into the market. With solar feed-in not provided to many commercial customers, anticipates steep demand for Tesla PowerPack.

Global energy advisory DNV GL has created a free battery standards and best practice one-stop resource. The online publication will provide companies and organizations working in the storage space to access global standards, regulations and best practices to facilitate the “safe and reliable” rollout of storage technologies.

Heineken has taken steps to take its distribution facilities in its native Holland 75% climate neutral, through a combination of rooftop solar and e-mobility solutions. BYD is partnering with Heineken on the endeavor.

SolarWorld sponsored EU ProSun has failed in its attempt to have the Bloomberg benchmark replaced in the European Commission’s determination of the PV Minimum Import Price (MIP) replaced. “The existing benchmark remains representative,” the EC responded in its Official Journal yesterday.

Solar PV electricity generation has surpassed hydro in the UK for the first time in 2015. EnAppSys has revealed the impressive result in a report this week in which it concluded that renewables growth in Britain is causing, “the continued fall in power supply from coal-fired power stations.”