Taiwan installs 2.7 GW of new solar in 2023
Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs (MoEA) says the island added 2.7 GW of new solar capacity last year, bringing its total capacity to 12.41 GW by December 2023. Feed-in tariffs for installations up to 100 kW continue to drive the market.
Lebanon launches tender for 8 MW solar plant
Lebanon’s Minister of Energy and Water has opened a tender for an 8 MW solar plant that will be publicly funded and connected to the medium-voltage grid to supply power to Electricité du Liban.
Using surplus PV power for seasonal underground thermal storage
Scientists have proposed a new system that uses surplus PV energy in the spring and the autumn to charge up underground thermal energy storage for later use in the summer and winter. They have simulated it on a school facility in Seoul, with a few optional configurations for thermal storage. Power savings were up to 39%.
Italy’s first agrivoltaic tenders draws bids for 1.7 GW
Italy’s Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security (MASE) says it has received 643 bids totaling 1.7 GW in its first agrivoltaic tender. About 56% of the proposals have come from the country’s sunny southern regions.
Enel completes 486.7 MW solar park in Colombia
Enel has finished installing PV modules at a 486.7 MW solar park in Colombia. Once fully operational, it will be the largest PV project in the country.
India’s NHPC allocates 1.2 GW of solar at average price of $0.031/kWh
NHPC has awarded 1.2 GW of solar capacity at an average price of INR 2.56 ($0.031). Avaada Energy, Essar Renewables, Jevargi Solar, Mahindra Susten, and Onward Solar Power secured the projects, which will be connected to India’s interstate transmission system.
Silfab launches 640 W utility-scale solar panels
The Canada-based manufacturer said its new panels have a temperature coefficient of -0.29% per C and an efficiency of up to 22.92%. They come with a 30-year power output guarantee for 89.3% of the initial yield.
Nextracker introduces solar mount foundation services for soil types ‘anywhere’
The solar tracking provider introduced NX Anchor, further expanding the types of soil and areas that solar installers can develop on.
Mimicking chimpanzees’ hunting behavior to improve PV prediction models
Researchers have used the chimp optimization algorithm to optimize the hyperparameters of five PV power yield prediction machine learning models. This algorithm is based on the cooperative hunting behavior of chimpanzees in nature, mimicking the way they work together to target prey.
SmartHelio launches AI solar forecasting tool with 98.5% accuracy
SmartHelio has developed an AI solar forecasting tool with 98.5% accuracy, using socioeconomic details and climate data for predictive analytics.
