Technology

The platform will help to promote the adoption of rooftop solar PV systems, particularly in the residential consumer segment, as it will incentivize consumers for trading among themselves, in addition to selling to the distribution utility—according to the sustainability thinktank which has also come out with innovative use cases of blockchain for electric vehicles and distributed battery storage.

Spanish researchers have developed an analytical model to optimize the operation of PV water pumping systems. They say simultaneously irrigating different parts of a farm could help minimize costs and maximize energy use. The model was tested on an olive farm divided into four zones in the Spanish province of Almería.

Solar installations in year 2020 are set to exceed 10 GW after a year hit by political uncertainties, module price increases associated with safeguard duty and a fewer number of awarded tenders. The outlook for battery energy storage installations for solar projects, however, is bleak as such combinations in India can cost 3-5 times more in 2020 than standalone renewable projects.

Only Indian manufacturers are eligible to bid for supply of 4.5W, 4.6W and 4.67W multicrystalline silicon solar cells. Quantities to be supplied are 500,000, 500,000 and 300,000, respectively. Bidding closes on January 6.

January 4 is the last date to bid for the plants that are to be developed in capacities of 10 KWp to 50 KWp atop government buildings. Bids must be accompanied with bank guarantee of Rs 750,000.

The university researchers will provide expertise in the operation and management of lithium-ion batteries, environmental test facilities for battery modules and advanced battery analysis techniques.

Touted to be one of India’s largest rooftop installations, the captive plant uses 25,770 photovoltaic panels covering 63,000 sq.m of available roof space and producing 12.2 million KWh of electricity annually.

Developers have until December 30 to bid for the grid-connected plants that shall come up on the land within or around the premises of Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited’s substations. The plants are to be developed on turnkey basis.

According to a new study by Finland’s LUT University, solar PV consumes between 2% and 15% of the water that coal and nuclear power plants use to produce just 1 MWh of output; for wind, this percentage ranges from 0.1% to 14%. Under the researchers’ best policy scenario, water consumption could be reduced by 75.1% by 2030, compared to 2015 levels.

Under KUSUM scheme, the state government will help farmers in setting up an aggregate 75 MW capacity of grid-connected solar plants—in capacities of up to 2 MW—on their barren or cultivable land.