Author: solarenergy

The Massachusetts-based startup says the new battery is non-flammable, non-toxic and uses non-FEOC (Foreign Entity of Concern) materials, aiming for lower storage costs (LCOS). The technical specifications also offer some highlights. October 22, 2025 Tristan Rayner By ESS news US-based battery developer Alsym Energy has officially announced its new Na-Series line, a sodium-ion battery aimed at the stationary energy storage market. The Massachusetts-based company focuses its product on supply chain safety and security, without losing sight of costs. Alsym claims it is ‘property’ sodium ion formulation is ‘non-flammable’ and ‘non-toxic’. Without the company acknowledging this (the word lithium was not…

The Mwinda Fund aims to distribute $500 million in grants for mini-grids, solar energy systems and clean cooking solutions in DR Congo by 2030. It is already supported by $65 million in financing from the World Bank and $7 million from the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet. October 21, 2025 Patrick Jowett The DR Congo’s Ministry of Water Resources and Electricity and the country’s National Rural Electrification Agency (ANSER) have opened a fund that will provide subsidies for home solar systems, mini-grids and clean cooking solutions in the country. The Mwinda Fund is part of the government’s Access,…

pv magazine spoke with energy and environmental law expert Anatole Boute about the past and future role of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in regulating trade disputes involving clean energy technologies amid current geopolitical tensions. He noted that despite recent protectionist efforts to revive the solar energy production industry, the European Union is still committed to remaining compliant with WTO rules. October 22, 2025 Emiliano Bellini Once a feared international entity that regulated global trade, the World Trade Organization (WTO) appears to be heading towards its end, in a geopolitical scenario that is contributing to the rise of various forms…

The lack of grid tariff regulation has stalled 3.5 GW of large-scale renewables, mainly solar, in Croatia, with developers such as Solvis citing a lack of stable grid connection rules as a barrier to planning and investment. October 21, 2025 Blathnaid O’Dea Croatian energy regulator HERA’s continued delay in setting unit connection costs for renewable energy projects with a capacity of more than 10 MW has direct consequences for the country’s large-scale PV sector. Earlier this year, the Croatian government announced €0/kW connection fees and flexible contracts to encourage investment in battery storage, but these measures have not been fulfilled.…

The 177 MW Ridgely Solar project in Lake County, Tennessee, is now online for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). The project, located about 100 miles north of Memphis, was designed by LRE. Ridgely Solar began development in 2020 and created approximately 700 jobs during construction. LRE’s engineering team worked with Nextracker and First Solar, continuing the long-standing partnership with both US-based leaders. Nextracker’s NX Horizon-XTR terrain-following solar tracker systems, together with First Solar’s thin-film solar panels, deliver industry-leading performance and reliability. “Ridgely Solar marks a significant milestone as LRE’s first project in Tennessee,” said Eran Mahrer, Chief Commercial Officer at…

A water-enhanced sodium-ion battery could store energy and desalinate seawater Scientists from the University of Surrey have discovered a simple but transformative way to improve the performance of sodium-ion batteries – by keeping water in the key electrode material rather than removing it. The finding not only improves battery efficiency but could also enable electrochemical desalination, which turns seawater into drinkable water. Sodium-ion batteries are considered one of the most promising sustainable alternatives to lithium-ion technology, which relies on expensive and environmentally harmful materials. Sodium is plentiful and cheap, but achieving comparable performance has long been a challenge. In their…

By pv magazine Australia Australia is now the world’s third largest market by capacity for large-scale battery energy storage, with 14 GW/37 GWh of battery energy storage capacity at or near financial close, reflecting expected capacity over the next two years. The pipeline of battery projects increased by 45 GW in twelve months, from 109 GW in August 2024 to 154 GW a year later. Australia is also the first country to exceed 1 GWh of utility battery capacity per million inhabitants, putting it in a league of its own, far ahead of China and the United States, which each…

Switzerland-based analytics firm Pexapark registered 19 power purchase agreements (PPA) in Europe in September, as PPA prices fell month-on-month in most major European markets. October 21, 2025 Patrick Jowett A total of 17 power purchase agreements (PPA) were publicly announced in Europe in September, according to the latest analysis from Swiss renewable energy research firm Pexapark. The deals amount to 630 MW of contracted capacity, with Italy and Spain being the most active markets of the month, accounting for 200 MW and 132 MW respectively. The largest PPA by capacity in September was an on-site PPA of 140 MW secured…

In this contributed article, Callum Goodwin, senior ecologist at Biodiverse Consulting, discusses the impact of solar energy on biodiversity and calls for a coherent national approach to planning guidance and data collection to ensure that solar power plants deliver measurable biodiversity benefits.This month, renewable energy became the world’s leading source of electricity, a major milestone in the fight against climate change. This is the culmination of decades of investment in clean energy technologies and marks the beginning of a bigger challenge: scaling these technologies responsibly and ensuring that our transition to net zero is also positive for nature.As part of…

By SB staff October 21, 2025 The Awards for Solar Builder Project of the Year 2025 are being expanded this year with a new category – Canadian Project of the Year – and voting is now open! The form is at the bottom of the page. You can vote once per day from now until Friday, October 31 at midnight ET (creepy!). For your information: our voting widget shall lets you vote more than once per day, but we filter these out in the backend. Sorry, voters. The winners will be announced and profiled in the December edition of Solar…