Author: solarenergy

The CO2-based seawater heat pump from German engine manufacturer MAN Energy Solutions, located in the Danish port city of Esbjerg, has been put into operation. The plant, with a total heating capacity of 70 MW, will supply climate-neutral heat to Esbjerg and the neighboring town of Varde. November 29, 2024 Patrick Jowett Germany MAN Energy Solutions has commissioned the first unit of its industrial heat pump in Esbjerg, Denmark. Billed as the world’s largest CO2-based seawater heat pump, the facility is expected to provide approximately 280 GWh of climate-neutral heat annually, covering the heating needs of 25,000 households. The installation…

China Coal Energy Group (China Coal) has ordered 4 GW of solar panels from JinkoSolar, Tongwei, JA Solar and DAS Solar for $0.10/W, including 3 GW of tunnel oxide passivated contact panels (TOPCon) and 1 GW of passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) products. November 29, 2024 Vincent Shaw Image: Krzysztof Kowalik, Unsplash Chinese coal has announced the winners of the first centralized tender round for PV modules for 2024. It has awarded contracts to JinkoSolar, Tongwei Solar, JA Solar and Das Solar. The tender round included 3 GW of n-type TOPCon modules (2.7 GW bifacial, 0.3 GW single-sided) at…

European researchers have said this pv magazine that hydrogen production costs are often underestimated in prefeasibility studies, while South Korean authorities have reported an increase in the number of deals for large-scale hydrogen consumption projects. November 29, 2024 Sergio Matalucci European researchers have concluded that relying on simulated data instead of measured data can underestimate hydrogen production costs by 36% for users requiring a steady supply, with average underestimates of around 20% being most severe in cloudy climates. “The difference is greater in cloudy climates because, at the time of publication, open-source simulation tools using satellite data have difficulty estimating…

French agrivoltaic company Sun’Agri says two of its facilities have increased grape yields by 20% to 60% in 2024, compared to areas without solar panels. The PV modules helped regulate temperature fluctuations, reducing summer heat spikes and winter temperature drops. November 29, 2024 Gwénaëlle Deboutte By pv magazine France Sun’Agri, a French agrivoltaic specialist, has shared the results of its 2024 harvests at two pilot agrivoltaic sites in southern France. The locations at Domaine de Nidolères in the Pyrénées Orientales tested three grape varieties. The results showed that grape yields under solar panels were 20% to 60% higher than in…

NPUK focuses on acquiring utility-scale solar and BESS assets in the ready-to-build phase. Image: NextEnergy Capital. Solar energy and infrastructure investor NextPower UK ESG (NPUK) has acquired a 29MW, 2-hour standalone battery energy storage (BESS) system in Glasgow. The turnkey project, called Rutherglen, is NPUK’s 13e British takeover and the third takeover in November. NPUK is a ten-year closed-end private fund launched by NextEnergy Capital, an international solar investment and asset manager. NPUK focuses on acquiring utility-scale solar and BESS assets in the ready-to-build phase, and building projects to develop a large operating portfolio. The Rutherglen BESS will have access…

UK solar capacity has grown by 1 GW since October 2023. Image: Octopus Energy. The latest solar energy statistics from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) have revealed that Britain now has 17GW of installed solar capacity. At the end of October 2024, Britain had a total of 17.2 GW of solar generation capacity, an increase of 1 GW or 6.3% since October 2023. In October 2024, 76 MW of capacity was added across 20,102 new solar installations. Of this, 73% were residential, which amounts to 58 MW of the added installed capacity. This broadly reflects the…

The future of AI with solar-powered synaptic devices Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being relied upon to predict critical events such as heart attacks, natural disasters and infrastructure failures. These applications require technologies that can process data quickly. One such promising approach is reservoir computing, specifically Physical Reservoir Computing (PRC), known for its efficiency in processing time series data with minimal energy consumption. Optoelectronic artificial synapses in the People’s Republic of China, which mimic human neural synaptic structures, are poised to enable advanced real-time data processing and recognition, similar to the human visual system. However, existing self-powered optoelectronic synaptic devices…

The latest list includes India-based Insolation Energy, Waaree Renewable Technologies and Solex Energy in the top three, while Kyocera lands in the top ten, up from thirteenth place. November 29, 2024 Valerie Thompson Sinovoltaics, a Hong Kong-based technical compliance and quality assurance service company, has released the fourth free download edition of its Ranking of PV module manufacturers. The ranking report, which is global in scope and based on the Altmann Z-scores of listed manufacturers, includes 65 suppliers this time, which is the same number as the previous module ranking. The scores will be tracked from December 2021 to September…

Abu Dhabi-based Masdar has acquired a majority stake in Greek renewable energy company Terna Energy, with plans to launch a mandatory cash tender offer to acquire the outstanding shares. November 29, 2024 Patrick Jowett Future Energy Company of Abu Dhabi (Masdar) in the United Arab Emirates has confirmed the acquisition of Greek renewable energy company Terna Energy. The transaction was first announced in Junecorresponds to a 70% stake in Terna Energy and makes Masdar the holder of the largest portfolio of renewable energy projects in Greece. The companies agreed on a price of 20 euros per share, valuing Terna Energy…

Fraunhofer ISE researchers have investigated whether PV panels installed above orchards can affect the reception of signals from the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and in turn affect the accuracy of advanced autonomous tools. They noticed a disruption and suggested some alternatives. November 29, 2024 Lior Kahana A team of researchers led by Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (Fraunhofer ISE) has investigated the impact of above-ground agrivoltaic systems on the signal from global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) below. GNSS signals are used for precision agriculture capabilities such as planting, seeding, irrigation, fertilization and harvesting. “Disruptions to GNSS signals…