Inverters

Livoltek says it has invested $13.2 million in a new inverter factory in Brazil. The facility will also produce soon lithium-ion batteries and electric-vehicle rechargers.

The Chinese PV industry has benefited from the availability of substantial finance over the past two decades, supporting the development of the renewable, zero-carbon capability essential for meeting the goals of the Paris climate agreement. Easy access to finance has led to unsustainably low prices and unnecessary losses, however, impacting China’s ability to sustain support for renewable energy systems. As the nation expands clean power installations and enhances grid-balancing capacity, maintaining consistent financial support has become more challenging.

TBEA has developed new products with nominal power ratings of 75 kW to 110 kW and efficiencies of 98.6%. Their European efficiency rating is 98.4%.

The European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) has voiced support for the inclusion of non-price criteria in auctions for solar modules, as laid out in the EU Net Zero Industry Act. The council’s recommendation paper also calls for member states to adopt the act as quickly as possible and highlights concern around cybersecurity and data security in relation to Chinese inverters.

Daewoo’s new hybrid inverters feature LiFePO4 batteries. They are available in six variants, with power ratings ranging from 0.5 kVA to 10 kVA.

The new MLPE from Tigo is designed to support commercial and industrial as well as utility-scale solar projects.

Indian manufacturer VSole has introduced single-phase hybrid inverters 3 kW to 6 kW with power output ratings. The inverters reportedly allow uninterrupted power to the connected loads, with a UPS-level switching time of four milliseconds.

The so-called “network checker” will allow residential PV customers in Belgium to check if there have been any inverter failures in their local area. It comes after Belgian grid operator Fluvius launched a compensation scheme for those who are not reconnected within 30 working days of a curtailment.

Indian manufacturer Statcon Energiaa has introduced a single-phase grid-tie solar inverter intended for application in residential and small commercial buildings.

Sinovoltaics analyzed publicly traded inverter producers using a balance sheet-based model and publicly available financial information to track finacial strength over the past three years. The top-five in the latest ranking are Hoymiles Power Electronics, Enphase, Kstar, Eaton, and Goodwe.