Media. 2 Apr 2020 Spotlight on the Fastest Growing Renewables: Solar Power According to the latest report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), renewable capacity across the globe is set to increase by as much as 50% between 2019 and 2024. Solar power is projected to account for much of this growth, contributing around 60% to the [...]

Media. 2 Apr 2020 IHS Markit says China’s solar will bounce back after COVID-19 Image credit: Wallpaperflare.com Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in China in late 2019, solar manufacturing was severely disrupted in the first quarter of 2020 notes says research agency IHS Markit, but the sector has the potential to reach full capacity by [...]

Media. 1 Apr 2020 CEC: ‘Unlikely and difficult’ new solar installs classified as ‘essential’ With the Australian solar industry fast heading towards a significant downturn, the Clean Energy Council has reported that it will be “unlikely and difficult” for new rooftop solar installations to be classified as an essential service if restrictions are tightened. Despite [...]

Media. 1 Apr 2020 Covid-19 and dependence on China’s PV supply chain The Asian Development Bank says developing countries in Asia and the Pacific should consider developing their own solar industry supply chains as the Covid-19 pandemic has exposed their over-reliance on China to carry through the energy transition. Is the energy transition being held [...]

Media. 31 Mar 2020 BIPV relying on voltage source inverters for grid stabilization According to a Norwegian group of researchers, the reactive power capability of three-phase voltage source inverters can help to reduce problems caused by the intermittent nature of solar power on distribution networks. The scientists claim they are preferable to expensive grid infrastructure [...]

Media. 31 Mar 2020 Organic solar cell with new film morphology and 16.88% efficiency Chinese scientists have developed a single-layered organic solar cell based on non-fullerene acceptors with improved fill factor and short-circuit current density. They achieved their results with a new morphology that could be more suitable for vertical charge transport. A building of [...]

Media. 30 Mar 2020 How much PV is needed in an hybrid solar-diesel mini-grid? Researchers in Brazil have suggested using solar radiation databases and simulator software to scale PV-diesel mini-grid generators. The profiles of PV generation and mini-grid load demand are critical to finding the right balance, according to the academics. Knowing the likely amount [...]

Media. 30 Mar 2020 Chinese fishery hosting 260 MW of unsubsidized solar The solar plant was built with fixed structures on a 400-hectare water surface at a fishery in Anhui province. The project was the first unsubsidized plant approved by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) in 2019 and is selling power at a [...]

Media. 27 Mar 2020 Solar asks for ‘essential industry’ treatment as COVID-19 sweeps globe Spanish PV generated 2,354GWh of electricity in Q1 2020 and renewables account for more than 20% of Australia’s electricity production. Credit: Iberdrola Solar’s contribution to electricity generation has led associations in Spain and Australia to call for the sector to be [...]

Media. 27 Mar 2020 Researchers Develop New Graphene Solar Thermal Film to Absorb Sunlight with Over 90% Efficiency The researchers have developed a new graphene-based solar thermal film that can absorb sunlight with an efficiency of more than 90 percent, while simultaneously eliminates most IR thermal emission loss—the first time such a feat has been [...]

Media. 26 Mar 2020 Australia, Singapore to drive cooperation on low-emissions technologies The prime ministers of Australia and Singapore have agreed to work together on practical projects and initiatives in developing hydrogen markets and renewable electricity trade. Hydrogen from electrolysis is often described as the missing link in the energy transition. Image: Roy Luck/Flickr In [...]

Media. 26 Mar 2020 An organic solar cell with 25% efficiency The ‘best conversion performance in the world in a dark room’ is how the developers of a new organic PV device have described it. Such cells could be used as a wireless source of energy for internet of things applications or in gadgets such [...]