Winter air pollution weighing on solar generation in India
Solargis says that Indian solar operators have experienced below-average PV panel performance due to air pollution in each of the past five winters. Northern India experienced the worst air quality in decades this January, with data showing a 30% to 50% dip in solar irradiance due to high aerosol levels.
South Korea plans 120 GW space solar project
Two Korean research institutes are designing the 2.2 km × 2.7 km Korean Space Solar Power Satellite project with the aim of providing approximately 1 TWh of electricity to the Earth per year. The proposed system should use 4,000 sub-solar arrays of 10 m × 270 m, made out of thin film roll-out, with a system power efficiency of 13.5%.
Coupling heat pumps with roll-bonded photovoltac-thermal collectors
Researchers in Sweden have analyzed how roll-bonded PVT collectors can act as secondary heat sources in ground-source heat pumps and have found they provide a better performance than conventional PVT panels. Their techno-economic analysis also showed roll-bonded PVT systems can be up to 9% more expensive than conventional installations based on sheet and tube absorbers.
High interest rates challenge global shift to renewables
A new report from Wood Mackenzie examines how the global shift to higher interest rates to combat inflation is squeezing the energy transition.
German startup planning vertical floating PV plant
Germany-based Sinn Power plans to build a 1.8 MW floating PV system with vertically deployed solar modules. Construction is expected to start this summer.
Large-scale solar, battery storage hybrid starts operations in South Africa
Norwegian PV developer Scatec ASA has switched on a hybrid solar and battery storage facility in the Northern Cape province of South Africa.
Photovoltaic water pumping based on open-ended winding induction
Indian scientists have designed a water-pump drive system that is powered exclusively by photovoltaics. The proposed system configuration reportedly ensures effective use of both the solar modules and the motor.
Oman’s solar transition roadmap
SolarPower Europe says in a new report on solar development in Oman that the nation will need to install a minimum of 13 GW of solar by 2030 to meet its ambitious net-zero targets.
Australia targets 6 GW of new renewables in ‘largest ever’ tender
Australia’s “largest-ever” tender for renewable energy will open in May, with the federal government targeting 6 GW of new solar and wind projects.
Agrivoltaics for fir trees
German researchers are studying using an overhead solar PV system, designed to be removable and reusable, as a sunshade for young fir trees. The pilot, located at a quartz sand excavation site, will be monitored to compare growth and water consumption with an adjacent unshaded tree plot.
