Bloomberg NEF

In its 3Q 2024 global market outlook, Bloomberg forecast the world will install 592 GW in 2024, up one 33% from last year.

Analyzing a global dataset of 125 GW of PV systems, drone operator Raptor Maps marked a rising trend of system underperformance.

Given the rapid decrease of the solar electricity cost, pv magazine explores the drivers and obstacles behind switching off coal and embracing photovoltaics and other renewable energy technology in Asia. The good news: things are moving in the right direction.

Use of the term “circular economy” is growing in virtually every industry worldwide – solar included. As noted throughout Q3, in the UP initiative’s focus on circular manufacturing, work is already underway to integrate circular principles into all areas of business, from internal operations and supply chain management to manufacturing and installations. In a recent analysis of PV recycling, BloombergNEF detailed six conclusions for the solar industry and those who are trying to make it more circular. Cecilia L’Ecluse, solar associate, and Julia Attwood, head of advanced materials at BloombergNEF share these conclusions as part of our quarterly theme on PV module recycling.

Solar manufacturing’s recent move toward larger wafer/cells throws into focus the need for effective cell-cutting techniques to handle the processing of these cells into half cut or even smaller formats. pv magazine looks at the landscape for cell cutting, as the technology reaches maturity and moves into the mainstream of cell/module production.

The Internet of Things, cloud analytics and artificial intelligence will find their way into battery management too, enabling OEMs to precisely measure and improve the life of their deployed assets. Lower battery costs and increased adoption in high-power commercial electric vehicles and grid support are the other trends shaping the market.

The benchmark levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for lithium-ion batteries has fallen to $187 per kilowatt-hour since the first half of 2018. The overwhelming cost improvement is making batteries paired with solar or wind projects challenge coal- and gas-fired generation for grid stability, according to BloombergNEF (BNEF).

India has become the world’s largest market for new renewable energy auctions and the second-largest destination for attracting clean energy investments, according to the latest Climatescope 2018 report by BloombergNEF.

The global installation of photovoltaics is expected to reach the terawatt level within just five years, according to Bloomberg NEF. And with more than 99.1 GW of grid-connected solar installed in 2017, switching on to the importance of storage is key.