Author: solarenergy

The number of rooftop solar panels installed in Australia has continued to decline for the second month in a row, with national market volumes in September down around 3% compared to August, when 273 MW were installed. October 8, 2024 David Caroll By pv magazine AustraliaAustralian households and businesses installed almost 265MW of new rooftop solar last month, but the latest data from industry analyst SunWiz shows the market fell by around 8MW in volume monthly compared to August.SunWiz chief executive Warwick Johnston said the slowdown, which comes after rooftop PV installations reached a record 302 MW in Julyhas caused…

Avaada will establish a wafer-to-module project to support the company’s existing PV module factory in Dadri. The plant will also produce next-generation batteries and electrolyzers. October 8, 2024 Uma Gupta Avaada team at REI India 2024Image: Avaada Group By pv magazine IndiaIndian renewable energy company Avaada Group has laid the foundation stone for its new manufacturing facility, Avaada Electro, at Addl. Butibori Industrial Park in Nagpur, Maharashtra.The new facility, part of Avaada’s INR 13,650 crore ($1.4 billion) investment, will house a vertically integrated solar manufacturing unit with production from billet wafers to PV cells and modules. It will also produce…

Queensland electricity utility Cleanco has set a new quarterly generation record with its 570 MW Wivenhoe Power Station, surpassing all previous production milestones since the plant opened in 1984. October 7, 2024 Ev Foley By pv magazine AustraliaQueensland electricity company Schoonco has set a new quarterly generation record at its 570MW Wivenhoe Power Station, 75km west of Brisbane, surpassing all previous production milestones since the plant came into operation in 1984.The station’s two pumped hydro power stations at Wivenhoe have generated 199 GWh since 1 July 2024, exceeding the station’s historical quarterly average by more than 5.2 times.Using electricity from…

The US heating specialist said its Vilter VQ95 heat pump is an ideal solution for district heating and industrial processes. It has a heating capacity of 1MW to 5MW per skid and can reportedly deliver temperatures up to 95C. October 7, 2024 Emiliano BelliniAmerican heating specialist Copeland launched a heat pump this week for applications in district heating and industrial processes.The Vilter VQ95 is described as a modular, single-stage, closed-loop heat pump that can be scaled with parallel or serial pipe connections. It has a heating capacity of 1MW to 5MW per skid and can reportedly deliver temperatures up to…

Illinois will switch to a new net solar billing structure on January 1, 2025. Trade to impose tariffs on solar energy imports from Southeast Asia, some by as much as 300%Washington, DC Following an affirmative determination by the U.S. International Trade Commission in June that the U.S. solar panel industry is materially harmed by imports of silicon solar cells and panels from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, Commerce released its preliminary tariff amounts. These range from less than 1% to almost 300% and are expected to increase further in the final determination. The Treasury Department is updating the proposed rules…

Researchers from the University of New South Wales claim to have identified new TOPCon contact degradation mechanisms that are significantly affected by the combination of ions and aluminum-silver paste compositions. The primary degradation mechanism was a significant increase in series resistance. October 7, 2024 Emiliano BelliniScientists from Australia’s University of New South Wales (UNSW) and Chinese-Canadian PV module manufacturer Canadian Solar have investigated the degradation of industrial TOPCon solar cells subjected to accelerated test conditions of 85 C and 85% relative humidity under the so-called moist heat test (DH85).“Our findings highlight the vulnerability of TOPCon solar cells to contact corrosion,…

Researchers have conducted a techno-economic analysis to investigate the feasibility of a 10 MW-80 MWh liquid air energy storage system in the Chinese electricity market. Their assessment found that a significant level of price volatility is currently a critical factor for the commercial maturity of this storage technology. October 7, 2024 Emiliano BelliniResearchers from China’s Sichuan Normal University have introduced a real options-based framework to evaluate investments in large-scale liquid air energy storage (LAES).Their work builds on previous research, in which they presented a LAES system that stores electricity in the form of liquid air or nitrogen cryogenic temperatures. “In…

The French energy company said its 100 kW agrivoltaic installation linked to cow farming in France’s Puy-de-Dôme region has not changed the functioning of the pasture or the behavior of the animals. October 7, 2024 Gwénaëlle DeboutteBy pv magazine FranceEngie Green, part of French energy giant Engie, has been operating a vertical agrivoltaic demonstrator on the grounds of the National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRAE) in Laqueuille, Puy-de-Dôme department, in the Auvergne for the past two years. Rhône-Alpes region in the center of France.The choice for this photovoltaic technology was made because of the production profile, where the solar power…

This summer, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a 40-year-old precedent that said those with expertise in federal agencies should interpret ambiguous laws passed by Congress. By 6-3 votes, Runner Bright Enterprises against Raimondo reversed the decision Chevron USA vs. Natural Resources Defense Council, a 1984 case known as the “Chevron Doctrine.” Runner Clear now allows federal district court judges to use their own judgment instead of the subject matter experts at federal agencies. Overturning the Chevron Doctrine, a longstanding goal of the fossil fuel industry and anti-regulation advocates, will likely lead to challenges to many older laws under the sway…

The new Fidra Energy team. Image: Fidra Energie. Institutional energy investment company EIG today (October 7) announced the launch of a new battery energy storage systems (BESS) developer, Fidra Energy. Fidra Energy is headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, and aims to have 10 GW of BESS projects in the UK and Europe by 2030. To date, Fidra Energy has a development pipeline of 3.15 GW in Britain. The largest of these projects is the 1.45 GW Thorpe Marsadh project, which will start construction in South Yorkshire next year and, when completed, will be the largest BESS project in Europe. In addition,…