Highlights

A report by Norwegian energy consultant DNV GL has considered the opportunity for long-term energy storage to play a role in balancing annual supply and demand fluctuations in a renewables-led grid. Using 58 years of Dutch weather and energy consumption data, the study found long-term solutions such as green hydrogen could make a valuable contribution – but perhaps not as much as some analysts believe.

An growing number of companies globally have set sustainability targets to address the climate emergency. More than 700 companies are taking action to reduce their carbon footprint, write Caroline Zhu and Jiayin Song of Rocky Mountain Institute, and over 200 companies have publicly made the RE100 commitment to procure 100% of their electricity from renewable energy.

An application seeking continued imposition of the safeguard duty for a further period of four years was filed by Mundra Solar PV, Jupiter Solar Power and Jupiter International, through the Indian Solar Manufacturers Association (ISMA).

Developers are also expected to drag their heels over project completion during the first half of the year as the safeguarding duty applied to imported Chinese and Malaysian solar products is due to expire at the end of July.

While China continues to be the top solar module exporter to India, Thailand doubled its module exports to India from $55.05 million in 2018-19 to $110.39 million during the first nine months (April-December) of the current fiscal. Vietnam’s module exports to India also rose sharply from $91.97 million to $127.21 million.

The International Water Management Institute is promoting the Solar Irrigation for Agricultural Resilience (SoLAR) initiative to expand the use of solar irrigation systems throughout Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan. Proponents of solar irrigation pumps say that they can have a strong positive impact on groundwater.

Fuel cell systems provide sustainable electricity using hydrogen gas without the need of grid power as required by conventional battery backup systems, making them highly useful for applications like Emergency Operation Centres which need to respond immediately during an emergency situation with state-of-the-art communication systems.

Contracted revenue, minimal volume risk and moderate-to-strong counterparties mitigate cash flow concerns in solar assets.

India, with 750 GW of solar potential, has also one of the highest transmission and distribution losses in the world. So, while there is immense scope in PV deployment, there is a need for greater investment in grid related projects also to help the country best utilise its renewable energy potential, says the latest report by SolarPower Europe and National Solar Energy Federation of India (NSEFI) which also makes recommendations to help accelerate investments in the solar sector.

Researchers in China have ranked some of the most commonly used battery chemistries according to parameters deemed important for grid-level storage. The team gave a score in each category and determined a winner – and it wasn’t lithium-ion.