Utility Scale PV

Solar Energy Corp. of India (SECI) has invited bids to set up 1.2 GW of solar PV projects linked to 600 MW/1,200 MWh of energy storage systems on a build-own-operate basis anywhere in India. Power procured by SECI from these projects has been provisioned to be sold to the different buying entities of India. Bidding closes on April 30.

Gensol Engineering Ltd has secured the engineering, procurement, and construction contract for a 100 MW AC/135 MWp ground-mount solar PV power project in Maharashtra. The project, awarded by an undisclosed power generation utility, has a total order value of INR 520 crore ($62.4 million).

In addition to the cost of electricity, the price of hydrogen depends largely on the up-front investment cost of the electrolyzer. The lower the full-load hours, the greater the impact. Analyst BloombergNEF (BNEF) sees a number of different possible pathways for the market to develop.

PV Hardware (PVH) will supply solar trackers for a 1 GW PV project at Ar Rass 2 Solar PV Park in Saudi Arabia. The project is being developed by ACWA Power with Larsen & Toubro (L&T) as EPC contractor.

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) released a new report on the sidelines of the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue this week describing the actions needed so the world complies with targets set at the recent COP29 conference in the United Arab Emirates. IRENA President Francesco La Camera says renewables are the only energy sources with the speed and scale to achieve the ambitious targets set in Dubai.

The prospective developers will set up wind-solar hybrid power projects, connected to the interstate transmission system, to supply the power generated to NTPC.

The solar auctions concluded recently by NTPC and SECI have yielded an average final price of $0.031/kWh.

Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (GUVNL) has invited bids to set up 250 MW/500 MWh of standalone battery energy storage systems connected with the State grid. It has also tendered for the development of up to 1 GW of solar power projects.

GameChange Solar has secured the PV tracker supply contract for ACCIONA Energía’s new 412.5 MWp solar PV project in Rajasthan. The PV plant is being executed by Waaree Renewable Technologies. 

A Spanish group of researchers has investigated how much agricultural production may be hosted by existing ground-mounted PV plants using dual-axis trackers. They outlined a new methodology that reportedly enables to quantify how much space around and beneath the panels can be uses for agricultural purposes.