North America

Japan’s fourth solar auction concludes with lowest bid of $0.098/kWh
The tender produced lower bids than previous rounds but again allocated less generation capacity than planned. The Japanese government initially accepted bids for a combined 589.9 MW but ended up assigning only 195.8 MW of capacity. The final average price for procured solar power was $0.1222/kWh.
Sep 3, 2019 // Manufacturing News, Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Markets & Finance News, USA, First Solar, tender, North America, METI, Toyota Motor Corporation, Japan Asia Group, Ciel et Terre Japan
Coating could lead to commercial lithium-metal batteries
A new coating developed by scientists at Stanford promises to bring lithium metal batteries ‘closer to reality’, by significantly extending their operational lifetime and limiting the occurrence of dendrites at the anode, which can cause short circuiting and fires.
Sep 3, 2019 // Technology, California, USA, battery, North America, Stanford University, SLAC, Lithium metal, Zhiao Yu, Yi Cui
Canadian researchers have done the math on optimizing PV output
Mathematicians at Canada’s University of Waterloo who turned their attention to solar power have developed an algorithm they say offers better control over PV plant output. The researchers estimate the algorithm could improve the output of a 100 MW power plant by almost a million kilowatt-hours per year.
Sep 3, 2019 // Technology, Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Residential, Canada, North America, University of Waterloo’s Department of Applied Mathematics, Milad Farsi
USF completes acquisition, financing of 128MW PV project in Utah
The US Solar Fund (USF) has closed on both the acquisition and financing of 100% of the cash equity interests in the 128MW Milford Solar Project, located in Beaver County, Utah.
Sep 3, 2019 // Markets & Finance News, USA, First Solar, Utah, North America, usf, longroad energy, Gillian Nott, Liam Thomas
Fifth Third Bancorp, SunEnergy1 open 120MW PV project in North Carolina
Fifth Third Bancorp and SunEnergy1 have opened the 120MWdc/80MWac Aulander Holloman Solar Facility in Hertford County, North Carolina. The facility, developed by SunEnergy1, is expected to generate clean power that is more than or equal to the total that Fifth Third uses in a year, which is enough to cut out 143,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases and power 25,000 households.
Sep 1, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, USA, North Carolina, North America, Fifth Third Bancorp, SunEnergy1, Greg D. Carmichael, Amy Davidsen
SEIA: US renewable purchase reform must not entrench utility dominance
The pressure building for the US to water down decades-old federal energy policy risks further tilting the scales in utilities’ favour, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).
Sep 1, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Storage, Policy, USA, SEIA, FERC, solar-plus-storage, Jimmy Carter, North America, Abigail Ross Hopper, NARUC
Mini series: The evolution of testing
Tara Doyle started her career in the solar energy industry more than 15 years ago, and today serves as the chief commercial officer at PVEL, which claims to be one of the first testing laboratories to focus on bankability for the downstream PV buyer community. The lab serves developers, financiers, O&M companies, asset owners, and insurers.
Sep 1, 2019 // Storage, Inverters, Opinions, California, USA, storage, Inverters, PV module, North America, pvel, DNV GL, Tara Doyle
IHS Markit: Trackers to account for a third of PV installations
New analysis predicts more than 150 GW of tracker capacity will be installed in the next five years – around a third of all ground mount projects up to 2024. Rapid growth in Europe, the Middle East and Africa; and the better cost structures possible from combining trackers and bifacial modules are singled out as key trends.
Aug 29, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, USA, India, China, Australia, IHS Markit, Europe, Asia, Convert, Oceania, Trina Solar, North America, Soltec, bifacial modules, PV Hardware, Ideematec, Nextracker, Array Technologies
Balancing solar with agriculture in the US Midwest
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.
Aug 29, 2019 // Markets & Finance News, Policy, USA, Australia, Oceania, North Dakota, North America, Sara Bergan, Thomas Braun, Stoel Rives LLP
Mini series: ‘Today, it’s not just the energy that you produce’
While based in Munich in Germany’s south, renewable asset management software provider 3megawatt’s first major clients were in the United States. However, as the European markets have transitioned beyond feed-in tariffs to the complexity of subsidy-free solar and wind arrays, the understanding of the need for asset management tools is rapidly increasing, says 3megawatt founder and CEO Edmee Kelsey.
Aug 29, 2019 // Tariffs, Software, Opinions, USA, Germany, Europe, North America, tariffs, Munich, Edmee Kelsey, 3megawatt
Trump ratchets up tariffs on Chinese products – including batteries
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.
Aug 29, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Markets & Finance News, Storage, Inverters, Tariffs, USA, Lithium-ion batteries, TESLA, Sungrow, Trump, Inverters, Huawei, North America, tariffs, PV cells, modules, Enphase, Flex, USTR, Kelly Speakes-Backman
SEIA: US renewable purchase reform must not entrench utility dominance
The pressure building for the US to water down decades-old federal energy policy risks further tilting the scales in utilities’ favour, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).
Aug 29, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Policy, USA, FERC, solar-plus-storage, PURPA, Solar Energies Industry Association, North America, Abigail Ross Hopper, US utilities
PVEL adding new solar module testing regimes including backsheet durability and LeTID sensitivity
PV Evolution Labs (PVEL) is including a number of key module reliability tests to its PV Module Product Qualification Program (PQP) that is more responsive to downstream market needs.
Aug 29, 2019 // Manufacturing News, USA, PV Tech, pv modules, c-si manufacturing, North America, pvel, top performer, pv module reliability scorecard, letid, backsheet, microcracks, DNV GL
Canada’s self-styled largest PV project gets provincial approval
A solar project likely to become Canada's largest to date has received provincial approval, paving the way for construction of the 400MW operation to start next year.
Aug 29, 2019 // Plants, Large-Scale, Commercial, Canada, North America, greengate power, calgary, alberta, Dan Balaban
Industry: Seizing LatAm solar potential requires busting myths
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.
Aug 29, 2019 // Markets & Finance News, Policy, Amazon, South america, Latin america, Brazil, jair bolsonaro, Mexico, North America, Absolar, latam, bolsonaro, Rodrigo Sauaia, AMLO