Solar Plants News

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).

Chile is home to a massive 10.3 million tons of lithium reserves, most of which is found in the Atacama Desert in the northern part of the country. With some of the highest solar irradiation levels on Earth, this region also boasts the perfect conditions for generating solar power. Developments in the photovoltaic market, alongside implementation of more efficient energy storage systems, are positioning Chile as a regional leader in this field. So what does the future hold for battery energy storage systems (BESS) in Chile, and what obstacles lie in their way?

The nation’s Ministry of Energy and Water is seeking developers for a plant on an industrial park at the center of a previous 40 MW procurement exercise.

The Norwegian developer has opened plants in Ukraine and Egypt. Scatec Solar recently announced it managed to triple energy production in the last year.

The country is steadily expanding solar generation capacity as it aims for 5 GW by 2022, helped by an influx of foreign investment from China’s Belt & Road infrastructure program and World Bank capital.

The managing director of London-based energy infrastructure company Statera has told pv magazine a clean energy grid in the U.K. will require as much flexible gas plant capacity as battery storage.

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.

Inverter company ABB supplied equipment for a second PV plant at the Artigas base. Its collaboration with the Uruguayan Antarctic Institute helps facilitate climate change research.

The Chinese giant has argued its 166mm M6 product should be the new iteration used worldwide, even though larger products have been launched by rivals. Longi says the fact existing cell and module production lines can be adapted for the M6 means rising demand for solar worldwide can be swiftly satisfied.

With the benefits solar panels can bring to cropland being considered in Europe, PV and aquaculture are working in tandem in Vietnam. Shrimp and fish farming requires land and lots of water but solar panels are helping mitigate those demands.

The state government of Victoria has approved three projects in the Shepparton region which have a combined generation capacity of 175 MW. However, some residents are upset at the loss of prime agricultural land and now-redundant irrigation equipment which had been upgraded using government grants.

The wind power generator also has a 930 MW solar portfolio but did not take big steps in unsubsidized PV during the first six months of the year.

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.

Two sponsors of one of Spain’s iconic subsidy-free plants have sealed a deal to deploy a smaller successor in the same area, planned again without support from government money.

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).