Author: solarenergy

The new 51.2 kWh modular storage system connects to European wholesale electricity markets such as NordPool and uses artificial intelligence (AI) to track and analyze dynamic rates. It provides three-phase backup and is virtual power plant ready. January 17, 2025 Marija Maisch By ESS news Lithuania-based solar panel and battery manufacturer SoliTek has launched a new commercial and industrial (C&I) energy storage system, SoliTek VEGA, with its proprietary AI-powered energy management system (EMS). The high-voltage system uses lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery cells. The battery modules integrated into the product are manufactured on SoliTek’s automatic production line in Vilnius with…

SOLRITE Energy and sonnen are launching a new virtual power plant (VPP) power purchase agreement in the ERCOT market in Texas. Under the program SOLRITE will install solar panels and sonnen batteries at eligible customer households with no upfront cost. Instead, homeowners pay a lower-than-average rate for the solar energy they produce each month, saving them money compared to typical electricity rates in Texas. Since September 2024, SOLRITE has already committed over 40 MWh of residential battery power to the Texas market through this program, working with top solar installation professionals statewide. The sonnen batteries provide backup power for each…

Solar energy project developer Verogy today released information that a planned 975 kW solar project on a former landfill in Windham, Connecticut, has generated an estimated bill of $26 million for grid interconnection. Typically, transmission interconnection upgrades for projects less than 1 MW cost approximately $50,000 to $300,000. Local utility Eversource, which serves customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, is the entity proposing the $26 million estimate. Verogy said the landfill solar project is now at risk of cancellation due to the unexpectedly high cost of the interconnection, which the project developers are expected to have to pay in…

Qcells has initiated an intellectual property (IP) dispute over alleged unauthorized use of its patented laser-enhanced contact opening (LECO) technology in tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) solar cells. The case underlines growing tensions in the PV industry over TOPCon patents. January 17, 2025 Jonathan Gifford South Korea-based PV manufacturer Qcells has initiated an IP dispute with “several” unnamed “global manufacturers” over its LECO technology. Qcells adopted the technology in 2022. This is mainly used in the production of TOPCon, to improve the sustainability and efficiency of solar cells. Earlier this week, Qcells sent a number of manufacturers an infringement notice,…

A new study from Stanford University shows that sodium-ion battery developers can take several key routes to compete on price, especially against a low-cost variant of the lithium-ion battery known as lithium iron phosphate (LFP). January 15, 2025 Marija Maisch A sodium ion accumulator stack Image: Ra Boe, Wikimedia Commons By ESS news In recent years, sodium ion batteries have emerged as a major competitor to the dominant lithium ion technology, which has suffered from supply shortages and price volatility for key minerals. Although often described as a cheaper alternative, mainly due to the abundant sodium and low extraction and…

The African Solar Industry Association (AFSIA) says utility-scale projects will dominate new solar additions in Africa in 2024, with storage installations increasing tenfold. January 16, 2025 Patrick Jowett Africa will deploy an additional 2.5 GW of solar energy by 2024, according to AFSIA’s new “Africa Solar Outlook 2025” report. AFSIA’s figures, which exclude residential installations, put the continent’s combined solar capacity at 19.2 GW. According to the report, last year’s new solar additions represented 0.5% of all new global capacity – a level last recorded in 2013. “Such a low corporate share does not do justice to Africa’s solar potential,…

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Interconnection Innovation e-Xchange (i2X) has released a new roadmap that could lead to shorter timelines and better outcomes for connecting clean energy sources to the distribution and subtransmission grids. The Roadmap for distributed interconnection of energy sources also sets ambitious goals and strategies to improve interconnection processes and maintain the reliability of the electricity grid. DOE also announced $16 million in upcoming funding to support stakeholder engagement and technical assistance in adopting interconnection strategies on the distribution and transmission grids. Additionally, DOE and the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation announced $2.1 million for…

The Chinese inverter said its new inverters have an MPPT current of up to 54 A and support a DC/AC ratio of more than 150%. The new products also have a maximum efficiency of 98.8% and a European efficiency of 98.3%. January 16, 2025 Emiliano Bellini The S6-GC3P150K07-NV-ND inverter . Image: pv magazine Solis launched new inverters for commercial and industrial (C&I) applications at the World Future Energy Summit (WFES) exhibition in Abu Dhabi this week. “The 150 kW system features 7 MPPTs and has a fuseless design,” said the company’s sales manager, Michel Abi Younes. pv magazine. “With this…

Envirostream Australia, a subsidiary of Livium, has signed an exclusive recycling agreement with Hithium Energy to recycle lithium-ion batteries supplied by Hithium to Lightsource bp’s Wolooga solar farm in Queensland, Australia. January 16, 2025 Ev Foley By pv magazine Australia based in Melbourne battery recycling solutions company Envirostream Australia has signed an exclusive agreement with China-based Hithium Energy to recycle lithium-ion batteries supplied by Hithium to Lightsource bp’s Woolooga solar farm, 193 km northwest of Brisbane, Queensland. In December 2024, Hithium Energy said it would supply the 224 MW Wolooga project with 128 units 5 MWh battery energy storage system…

The new magnetocaloric heat pump, developed by the US Ames National Laboratory, uses gadolinium as a working medium and is said to match current vapor compression heat pumps in terms of weight, cost and performance. The system is based on an active magnetic regenerator with a packed particle bed, a magnetic source consisting of permanent magnets and high permeability magnetic steel. January 16, 2025 Emiliano Bellini Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames National Laboratory have built a prototype magnetocaloric heat pump (MCHP) that reportedly matches current vapor compression heat pumps in weight, cost and performance. MCHPs use the…