Solar Markets & Finance News

Today we have heard of farmers in Australia unhappy at the approval given for three solar projects on agricultural land and also learned the benefits PV can bring for fish and shrimp farmers. In this op-ed for pv magazine USA, Stoel Rives LLP attorneys Sara Bergan and Thomas Braun discuss the balancing act to be made between solar and agriculture in the emerging Midwestern PV market.

While the damage is largely done for cells, modules and inverters, increased tariffs on U.S. module components and 15% measures on lithium-ion batteries are not good news for either sector.

BBOXX has successfully closed a US$50 million Series D funding round that will see the next generation utility company accelerate its global expansion efforts.

India’s Maharashtra state has launched a process to procure a major slice of grid-linked solar power, pushing for low prices in line with earlier tenders this year.

Victoria’s state government has yielded to industry pressure and increased the frequency and number of rebates available in its rooftop solar subsidy programme.

Fully tapping into Latin America’s bullish solar market will require challenging preconceptions around a region that is more stable than is sometimes assumed, local operators have told PV Tech.

The two nations are due to sign an MoU today to set up the capacity in the north of Bangladesh along with 50 MW of wind power facilities in the south, near the port of Payra. China will supply an estimated $500m with the host nation freeing up land for the projects.

Looking back at the PV market in 2018, micro module technologies started maturing in development and moving on to mass production, writes TrendForce analyst Lions Shih. Modules are no longer limited to a single design as before, but rather continuing on the path toward diversification in 2019. The situation is spreading into other areas, as may be seen in the upstream silicon wafer and cell segments.

First-half losses that ballooned to $85.3 million saw the share price of the Texan third-party solar company fall 8% according to San Diego law firm Robbins Arroyo LLP. The legal business says it is investigating ‘potential violations of federal securities laws’ in connection with last month’s IPO.

Three different retail electricity providers in the United States have announced new programs to provide customers the option to buy 100% renewably sourced electricity, with one of the three even coming at no additional cost.

Midsummer rang the opening bell at Nasdaq Stockholm on Thursday, with the solar energy technology company signaling the start of trading for its new green bond.

The opening pages of the first-half update published on the Hong Kong exchange made all the right noises with the company set to be acquired by a Chinese state-owned entity. But the balance sheet makes for shocking reading.

The procurement exercise, which closes tomorrow, will be open to projects larger than 500 kW in size. The results will be announced on September 3.

Two reports have described how the world’s largest renewable energy market is moving towards maturity. According to the Brookings Institution, the Chinese clean energy market could become more open to Western investors and tech. A report by Fitch claims projects are moving back to inland provinces from coastal regions.

One of Europe’s leading utility-scale solar investors has said that the continent’s subsidy-free solar market has “developed rapidly” in recent months.