solar modules

More than 1 GW of subsidized small solar arrays were installed in China last month alone and manufacturer Suntech has announced the start of operations at its 500 MW Indonesian cell and module fab.

German tech company Tube Solar AG has secured €10.8 million to develop its cylindrical agrivoltaic modules. The lightweight devices could also be used on roofs until now considered unsuitable for PV.

Businesses, supported by the government, will join forces to strengthen their industry and contribute to the European Green Deal through made-in-EU products.

Scientists in South Korea combined two processes to etch a nanostructure of tiny pyramids onto the surface of a silicon wafer. As well as trapping more light and increasing the cell efficiency, the group claims that its nanostructure improves the mechanical flexibility of the cells. This could potentially allow for the use of much thinner silicon wafers than is currently possible in production.

An Anglo-Egyptian research group has developed a passive cooling method based on saturated activated alumina, with saline water as a cooling agent.

Saudi Arabian and Pakistani scientists have created a serpentine cooling block structure to improve the efficiency of PV panels in floating solar projects by around 1.5%. The cooling block can be filled via a low-cost, 15.6 W commercial 12 V DC water pump with cool water.

Michelle McCann and Lawrence McIntosh, the partners behind the PV Lab panel-testing facility in Canberra, see Australia’s solar installations as a vast, aggregated virtual power plant.

On the top of the new fiscal measure, the Swedish government has also announced that the rebate scheme for rooftop PV, which was originally scheduled to be closed this year, will be continued in 2021. It will only apply to municipalities and enterprises and with a limited budget of 260 million SEK ($29.6 million), however.

Once an industrial solar giant, Suntech has worked hard to rebuild its foundations and regain a solid footing in the global PV industry, following its financial crash in 2013. pv magazine caught up with CEO Tang Jun at this year’s SNEC 2020, held in Shanghai, China, last month, to find out its plans for the future, and how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected operations. Strong global growth and continued multi-crystalline production are two cornerstones of the business.

Module manufacturer Trina Solar has completed the acquisition of the Spanish tracker company, inverter maker Sungrow has secured contracts from Three Gorges New Energy and Akcome Technologies has completed construction of its heterojunction cell and module factory.