Author: solarenergy

At the end of March, UK consumers were given the opportunity to own shares in the first community-operated battery energy storage system (BESS).The community energy offer represents a simple proposal: buy shares in the BESSwhich will be co-located with a solar power plant also owned by the community, and will receive a portion of the project’s profits. The extra profit is spent on community initiatives, focusing on information about renewable energy sources.Community ownership is a model that, in one form or another, has become more common in Britain and will be the focus of the current government’s £1 billion Local…

Tandem PV has opened a 40 MW commercial demonstration plant in Fremont, California, marking a significant transition for perovskite silicon technology from laboratory development to repeatable production at scale. April 21, 2026 Ryan Kennedy By pv magazine USA Tandem PV has opened a commercial demonstration plant in Fremont, California, marking a transition for perovskite silicon technology from laboratory development to repeatable production at scale. The 464.5 m² facility has a nominal annual capacity of approximately 40 MW and produces tandem solar panels approximately 60 times larger than the company’s initial research-scale devices. The company has reported internal test results of…

The Korean manufacturer said its new heat pump system can achieve a seasonal coefficient of performance of up to 4.9 when operating underfloor heating at low temperatures, and about 3.78 when operating at higher temperatures at 55 C. April 20, 2026 Emiliano Bellini Samsung Electronics this week introduced its new Eco Heating System (EHS) heat pump boiler for space heating and domestic hot water in South Korea. According to the company, the air-to-water EHS heat pump boiler can provide stable performance in cold climates. The manufacturer also states that the unit is designed to operate reliably in outdoor temperatures down…

California puts the sun to work on the heavy lift that keeps California hydrated. April 20, 2026 Ryan Kennedy Aerial view of the Edmonston pumping station Image: Tedder, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 By pv magazine USA The California Department of Water Resources and developer Calpine have brought the 105 MW Pastoria Solar Project online in Arvin, marking the largest renewable energy procurement in the history of the State Water Project. Located in Kern County at the foot of the Tehachapi Mountains, the facility uses approximately 226,000 solar panels equipped with tracking technology to follow the sun’s path. The project…

Spain and Portugal recorded a rise in negative electricity prices in the first quarter, driven by strong solar energy generation and relatively low demand on the Iberian Peninsula. Further records are likely in 2026 as solar capacity grows, with more frequent price volatility expected across Europe. April 20, 2026 Pilar Sanchez Molina By pv magazine Spain Negative electricity prices reached a new record in the first quarter on the Iberian Peninsula, driven by record renewable energy generation. According to the latest quarterly report on the European electricity market from analytics firm Montel, Spain recorded 397 hours of negative prices between…

The battery manufacturing heavyweight showcased its latest sodium-ion products at ESIE 2026 earlier this month, expanding its business into grid-scale storage, AI data centers and long-life applications. April 20, 2026 Vincent Shaw By ESS news CATL unveiled a new sodium-ion battery for energy storage at ESIE 2026 in Beijing, expanding its sodium-ion offering from passenger cars, commercial vehicles and auxiliary power to utility-scale and commercial storage. The company presented the product on April 1 under the theme “Double Sodium and Lithium Stars Creating Complete Energy Storage Solutions.” According to a company spokesperson, CATL positioned the new product as the world’s…

Jinko Power signed a framework agreement with Zhongwei to develop a 1 GW data center in Ningxia, marking its entry into green computing under China’s ‘Eastern Data, Western Computing’ initiative. However, the project remains subject to approvals and funding review. April 20, 2026 Vincent Shaw Jinko Power announced on April 16 that it has signed an investment agreement with the Zhongwei Municipal Government to develop a 1 GW data center project in Zhongwei, Ningxia Province, marking the Shanghai-listed solar power plant operator’s entry into the green computing segment. The company said it will use its experience in renewable energy to…

As delays around the reform of the UK’s grid connection queue continue, energy regulator Ofgem and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero have jointly written an open letter about the oversupply in the reformed queue.It invites industry to exchange views on whether additional measures should be taken to address the oversupply of battery energy storage systems (BESS) in the grid connection queue, even after the Reforms of the National Energy Storage System Operator (NESO)..The letter acknowledges “significant delays” in the programwhich it attributes to data errors in historical connection agreements and the need to rework network studies and…

The Chinese manufacturer said its lightweight Light Diamond TOPCon module delivers 560W with an efficiency of 24.94%. April 20, 2026 Emiliano Bellini Chinese solar panel manufacturer JinkoSolar has launched a new lightweight TOPCon solar module for use in residential and commercial applications in buildings with limited load-bearing capacity. “JinkoSolar’s ‘Light Diamond’ lightweight, high-strength modules weigh just 7kg per square meter, representing a weight reduction of more than 40% compared to conventional double-glazed modules,” the company said in a statement. “The total module weight for a 1 MW project is only 28.6 tonnes, a reduction of approximately 20 tonnes compared to…

This, the CRU says, would avoid distortions arising from volumetric charging on ESUs, and create a level playing field between ESUs in the Internal Electricity Market (SEM) in Ireland and Northern Ireland, and between ESUs and other generation technologies providing the same services. It will also provide location signals for ESUs.Since 2020, battery energy storage systems (BESS) have been operating under a scheme introduced by the CRU as an interim decision stating that ESUs would only pay D-TUoS, and not both generator and demand fees, as previously required. However, the CRU now acknowledges that the decision “may not accurately reflect…