Government to launch Solar Energy Harnessing Centre at IIT Madras
Union Minister for Science & Technology, Dr Harsh Vardhan will launch the solar technology centre at IIT Madras on January 25, 2019. The Centre will focus on a wide range of research and development activities such as silicon solar cells that promise high efficiency and are suited for Indian conditions.
Vikram Solar commissions 20 MW solar projects for WBSEDCL
The plants at Patni and Lalgarh in West Bengal are expected to generate 1.55 million units of electricity per megawatt (MW) annually.
BHEL and Libcoin to build India’s first lithium-ion battery gigafactory
Government-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited and Australian business Libcoin are in talks to form a joint venture to build a 1 GWh production capacity lithium-ion battery plant in India that would eventually be scaled up to 30 GWh.
The long read: Why are we not making the most out of big data analysis?
Although the solar industry sees itself as young, its assets are aging. Owners still struggle with the complexity of making the best use of big data analysis to improve plant efficiency and profitability. Ragna Schmidt-Haupt, of Everoze, examines why this has not changed, and what can or should be improved. Artificial intelligence, advanced data analytics, automated assessments and smart monitoring software – holistic solar asset management starts here.
Solar pump testing and research lab coming up at TERI
The test facility, to be set up by the Maxop Research and Testing Institute, will be capable of testing solar water pumping systems and other solar products in compliance with Bureau of Indian Standards guidelines and international standards.
China unveils an ambitious new push on grid parity solar
Beijing has outlined a series of policies mandating local and provincial authorities, state-owned banks and grid operators to pull out the stops to drive the rapid escalation of subsidy-free PV projects. The announcement has seen Chinese solar stocks on the rise.
Sodium-nickel-chloride battery could fit the bill for India
The new ‘cerenergy’ system that has been developed in Germany can operate without air conditioning by using vacuum insulation even in extreme temperatures. With no rare earths required for manufacture, the product’s basic material is salt.
Indian panel data could transform PV monitoring processes
Researchers say the use of clustering-based computation could remove the need for on-site inspections of panels by instead enabling real-time monitoring of degradation using only meteorological data.
Adani to build 5 GW data center parks in Andhra Pradesh
The Gujarati multinational will invest Rs700 billion to set up world’s first 100% renewable powered data center parks in the state.
Focus on scalability of energy storage – minister Suresh Prabhu
In his keynote address at a Make in India session at the Energy Storage India 2019 event in New Delhi, the minister for commerce and industry urged the storage sector to make products that are useful in an Indian context.
