Dutch study confirms feasibility of PV plants on dikes
A Dutch consortium recently tested four different PV system configurations along water in the Netherlands. The country has approximately 17,000 km of dikes and a preliminary study has shown that they offer the potential for 11 GW of solar capacity.
Australian rooftop solar capacity hits 20 GW
Australia’s rooftop solar capacity will overtake coal-fired capacity to become the country’s largest power generator in April, when a New South Wales coal plant is set to shut down, says solar consultancy SunWiz.
Italy hits 25 GW milestone
Italy deployed 2.48 GW of new PV systems in 2022, with the residential solar segment accounting for almost 50% of the total installed capacity.
France unveils new FIT rates for PV systems up to 500 kW
France’s new feed-in tariffs (FITs) for the first quarter range from €0.2349 ($0.25)/kWh for installations below 3 kW in size to €0.1287/kWh for arrays ranging in capacity from 100 kW to 500 kW.
India installed 15 GW of solar in 2022, says Bridge To India
Adani accounted for the largest share of India’s 15 GW of solar installations last year, with 1.75 GW of capacity additions. The developer was followed by NTPC with 1.61 GW and Avaada with 1.38 GW, according to Bridge To India’s latest report.
Sono Motors scraps development of Sion solar cars
Sono Motors, a solar electric-vehicle manufacturer in Germany, has terminated its Sion passenger car development program, as it has failed to secure enough funding to support pre-series production. It says it will now focus exclusively on retrofitting and integrating its patented solar technology into third-party vehicles.
New lithium iron phosphate battery for residential solar applications
China’s GS Energy has developed a new lithium iron phosphate battery system with a nominal voltage of 96 V. It says that up to five 3.74 kWh modules can be stacked and connected in series for a total capacity of 18.7 kWh.
South Africa introduces rebate scheme for rooftop PV
South Africa’s new rebate program for private rooftop solar arrays has a budget of ZAR 4 billion ($216.7 million). It does not cover inverters, battery storage systems, or installation costs. However, some industry analysts have already criticized the scheme for failing to fully address the country’s load-shedding problem.
Brazil imported 17.8 GW of solar modules in 2022
Brazilian demand for distributed-generation PV grew by 73% year on year in 2022, according to a new report by Greener. JinkoSolar was the largest module supplier in Brazil, with shipments reaching 3,065 MW.
Only5mins! – Solar-optimized EV charging is a no-brainer
PowerFlex CEO Raphael Declercq speaks to pv magazine about growing demand for solar-optimized smart charging. He says the company, which is owned by EDF Renewables, can control batteries and loads in microgrids with its newly expanded EV-charging management software.
