News

The latest World Nuclear Industry Status Report shows that the world’s operational nuclear capacity grew by just 400 MW in 2020, with generation falling by 4%. By contrast, renewables grew by 256 GW and clean energy production rose by 13%. “Nuclear power is irrelevant in today’s electricity capacity market,” the report’s main author, Mycle Schneider, told pv magazine.

The Australian-Singaporean group behind a proposed 20 GW solar PV farm and 42 GWh battery energy storage project under development in Australia’s remote far north has hinted that other, similar-sized projects are already in the pipeline.

Rooftop solar growth in India has so far largely been driven by a few large creditworthy organizations in the commercial and industrial sector. However, if accessible financing options are made available, growth can also be replicated in micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) as well, says a new report.

Mumbai-headquartered Virescent Infrastructure, set up by US investor KKR to own and operate renewable energy assets in India, has raised INR 4.6 billion (US$62 million) through its renewable energy-focused infrastructure investment trust (InvIT). Canada’s Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) led the funding.

An Indian research group has built a perovskite cell that has a metal contact based on copper, instead of expensive gold. The device showed almost the same efficiency as a cell developed with gold metallization but its stability was much lower. In order to overcome this issue, the scientists suggest using a metal contact made of a thin layer of gold and a thicker, overlying copper layer.

India’s open-access solar installations in the first half of 2021 were 1,230% up from 47 MW installed in 1H 2020. Uttar Pradesh led the installations, followed by Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

The IEC/EN61215 and IEC/EN61730-certified panel features 144 half-cells based on M10 wafers and a 10-busbar design. Its operating temperature coefficient is -0.341% per degree Celsius and its power tolerance reaches up to 5%.

The Indian government has created a strong balance between industrial policy as well as trade policy, which provides companies like First Solar an ideal opportunity to establish their manufacturing facilities in India, according to First Solar chief executive officer Mark Widmar.

The State-owned hydropower producer has landed one-fifth of the 5 GW grid-connected solar capacity tendered under the second phase of the Central Public Sector Undertaking (CPSU) Scheme. It won the project by quoting a viability gap funding (VGF) requirement of INR 44.72 lakh per MW.

Multiple factors can affect the lifespan of a residential battery energy storage system. We examine the life of batteries in Part 3 of our series.