News

USTDA backs 150MW solar-plus-wind-plus-storage project in Zambia

The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) has agreed to finance a feasibility study for a 150MW hybrid solar, wind and battery plant in northern Zambia.

Aug 13, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Markets & Finance News, Storage, Grids, First Solar, hybrid, solar-plus-wind-plus-storage, grid, Africa, upepo energy partners, zambia, east africa, ustda, wsp usa

FreeVolt, Apparent partner on solar+storage offerings in California

Newish European-based panel manufacturer FreeVolt has entered into a partnership with California-headquartered energy management company Apparent. FreeVolt’s U.S. installation division FreeVolt USA will team with Apparent to provide solar-plus-storage systems to California homeowners and C&I customers.

Aug 12, 2019 // Manufacturing News, Markets & Finance News, California, USA, CAISO, solar-plus-storage, FreeVolt, Apparent, Jacqueline DeSouza

Affordable Solar installs 2-MWac solar array at Kroger distribution center

Ralphs, a subsidiary of The Kroger Company, announced the installation of a 2-MWac PV solar array at its automated distribution center in Paramount, California, a 555,000-sq-ft building that provides products to 190 Ralphs stores and 95 Food 4 Less stores throughout Southern California.

Aug 12, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, California, USA, Solar Panels, PV solar, Ralphs, Kroger Company, Mike Murphy

Keesler Air Force Base breaks ground on 1.5-MW solar carport

Design-build company NORESCO has broken ground for a 1.5-MW solar carport at Keesler Air Force Base (AFB) in Mississippi, part of a $32.7 million guaranteed energy savings performance contract (ESPC).

Aug 12, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, USA, NORESCO, Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi, ESPC, Marcia Quigley, Shawn Walsh

A close look at nature could lead to cheaper hydrogen

Scientists at the Australia National University have observed a key stage in the process of photosynthesis which could be copied to greatly increase the efficiency of sunlight-powered water splitting processes used to produce hydrogen.

Aug 12, 2019 // Technology, Solar to Fuel, USA, Germany, Australia, Europe, hydrogen, Switzerland, Oceania, Australia National University, sunlight-powered water, Max Planck Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Maria Chrysina, North America, Solar to Fuel, Solar to Hydrogen, Producing Hydrogen, Hydrogen from renewable, Renewable fuels

The bearable lightness of solar

The weight of a thin-film rooftop PV installation at Netherlands football club AZ Alkmaar has been highlighted in media reports as a possible cause of a stadium roof collapse. However, a full investigation is yet to be launched and one German specialist said studies have shown flush-mount PV panels do not increase static wind loads on rooftops.

Aug 12, 2019 // BIPV, Technology, Germany, rooftop, Netherlands, AZ Alkmaar’s stadium, Andries Broersma, Hanergy system, Thorsten Kray

Ethiopia aims to set up formula for the calculation of mini-grid tariffs

Ethiopia is currently trying to set up a methodology for the calculation of electricity tariffs for mini-grid systems. Should the government’s work come to fruition, it can provide much-needed certainty to mini-grid investors.

Aug 12, 2019 // Grids, Tariffs, mini-grid systems, Ethiopia, Africa, Hizkyas Dufera, Scaling Solar

Flanders provides incentives for residential storage

Since the beginning of August the Flemish government has granted a €250/kWh rebate for the purchase of domestic batteries. The program is set to run until the end of next year.

Aug 12, 2019 // Markets & Finance News, Storage, Europe, domestic batteries, Flanders, Belgium, Engie-Electrabel, Lydia Peeters

Vattenfall to build large scale wind-solar-storage plant in the Netherlands

The energy company will build a 38 MW solar, 22 MW wind and 12 MW battery project on one site. The first fully renewable hybrid power plant could be a blueprint for post-subsidy Germany. Vattenfall has an eye on German coalfields in particular.

Aug 12, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Storage, storage, Germany, Netherlands, hybrid power plant, wind-solar-storage, Vattenfall, Haringvliet Zuid Energy Park, ground-mounted, Claus Wattendrup

Car industry copper demand to surge 250% due to EVs

By considering use of the metal in charging infrastructure, analyst Wood Mackenzie has found higher demand from the mobility sector than is the case if only the volume of the material required for vehicle construction is examined.

Aug 12, 2019 // Technology, Transport, Wood Mackenzie, Global electric vehicle, UBS Evidence Lab, Henry Salisbury, Aluminum, ads-tec GmbH, HPC Booster, battery

PV system prices fell 8.9% in Brazil in the first six months of the year

The cumulative capacity of 5 MW-or-smaller solar systems has reached 958 MW in Brazil, according to consultancy Greener. Around a third of that capacity was installed in the first half of this year, with projects relying on half-cell and PERC modules making up the largest share.

Aug 12, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Inverters, South america, Brazil, Greener, PV system prices, PERC modules, Polycrystalline modules, ANEEL

Deutsche Bank attempts to wind up Singyes Solar

The German lender has issued a winding up petition over a $6.27 million debt and could scupper the manufacturer’s plans to restructure its defaulted payments and be taken over by a Chinese state-backed entity.

Aug 12, 2019 // Manufacturing News, Plants, Markets & Finance News, Singyes Solar, Germany, Hong Kong, Deutsche Bank AG, Water Development HK, Comtec Solar

New US study finds renewable energy storage costs need to drop 90%

Researchers in the US have published a study that brings 20 years of renewable energy (solar PV and/or wind plus storage) generation into line with historical energy-demand profiles, to ascertain at what storage cost point renewables can cost-effectively consistently meet 100% demand.

Aug 12, 2019 // Technology, Storage, Tariffs, USA, storage, solar pv, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, BESS, PHES, CAES, Jessika Trancik

Agrivoltaics good for agriculture and panel efficiency

A U.S. research team has found the most efficient locations for agrivoltaics include western America, southern Africa and the Middle East. The researchers found crop land, grasslands and wetlands were the best environments for PV projects linked to agriculture. Conditions suitable for crops are ideal for improving solar module efficiency.

Aug 12, 2019 // Technology, USA, Japan, PV panels, plants, Netherlands, Oregon State University, agrivoltaics

Oman launches tender for 146 MW of solar-diesel-storage projects

The Rural Areas Electricity Company wants to build hybrid plants in 11 non-interconnected areas of the sultanate. The projects will have a total of 48 MW of solar power generation capacity and 70 MW of diesel and the storage component will have total installed power of 28 MW and a storage capacity of 14 MWh.

Aug 12, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Storage, storage, tender, plants, Asia, Rural Areas Electricity Company, Tanweer, Oman Power and Water Procurement Company, United Arab Emirates

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