Solcast, a DNV company, reports that the first half of 2025 has delivered favourable solar conditions across several key solar generation regions around the globe, with many population centres experiencing above-average irradiance.

Australia is making record-breaking investments in battery energy storage systems, with $2.4 billion committed in the first three months of 2025 alone. These systems are proving to be vital for meeting renewable energy targets and strengthening energy reliability across many critical industries. That includes mining operators, who are increasingly ramping up BESS deployments to replace diesel generators, cutting costs and emissions.

As the world looks for ways to tackle climate change, Australia has invested heavily in green hydrogen, which is shaping as the best option to strip carbon emissions from some industrial processes, such as iron-making and ammonia production. But making the dream a reality in Australia is proving difficult.

Australia’s data centre sector is booming, driven by AI and digital growth – but so too are the energy and regulatory challenges.

Green hydrogen is touted by some as the future – a way for Australia to slowly replace its reliance on fossil fuel exports. The energy-dense gas has the potential to reduce emissions in sectors challenging to decarbonise, such as steelmaking and fertiliser manufacturing.

A Western Australia researcher has found large-scale solar farms impact migratory routes of wildlife due to polarised light pollution but could be improved with nano-coated solar panels.

ClearVue Technologies says its solar facade solutions, that combine the company’s solar glazing units into a fully integrated energy generating building envelope, have achieved a payback period of less than three years in a Hong Kong government trial.

Printed solar technology startup Kardinia Energy, photoluminescence imaging specialist BT Imaging, and modular solar array manufacturer 5B are among 13 companies awarded more than $26 million in funding by the New South Wales government to support the commercial development of their clean energy tech.

New data from Rho Motion shows that more than half of June’s battery energy storage installations were concentrated in China, maintaining the country’s dominance in the global energy storage market.

Planning and transmission delays top the list of development challenges for renewable energy investment in Australia with a new survey showing almost 50% of investors rate the country as only “somewhat attractive” for future projects.

To evaluate the outdoor performance and stability of perovskite solar cells using contactless and noninvasive methods, an Australian and Chinese research team found a way to use photoluminescence imaging as well as demonstrating a proof of concept for implied open-circuit voltage imaging. Their research relied on cost-effective equipment that operates under direct sunlight.

Tenaga Nasional Berhad says the newly-announced hybrid hydro floating solar hub and green hydrogen hub will position Malaysia as a regional leader in the green hydrogen value chain.

New large-scale solar farms in Australia’s southeast could be forced to curtail up to two thirds of their power generation by 2027 due to delays in energy transmission infrastructure projects, according to new analysis from the Australian Energy Market Operator.

Australian renewables developer Edify Energy has unveiled plans for a major 2.4 GWh solar and integrated battery energy storage facility in northwest Victoria, adding to its growing portfolio of power generation and storage projects.

Researchers have combining advanced AI techniques with First Nations seasonal data and discovered a 14.6% more accurate way to predict solar power generation, with potential to improve renewable energy planning.

Mining giant BHP has struck early-stage agreements with two of the world’s largest battery manufacturers to explore the application of battery technology and electrification across its global operations.

Researchers in Singapore have milled solar panel glass waste for use in cathodes in solid-state lithium metal batteries. When used as a functional filler in solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) material, the resulting battery performance was maintained over 80 charge cycles with an 8.3 % improvement over the reference device.

Li-S Energy has produced Australia’s first lithium metal foils at its cell production facility in Victoria, a milestone the company says supports its broader mission to commercialise high-performance lithium-sulfur and lithium metal batteries.

Chinese companies made up nine of the 10 largest global inverter suppliers in 2024, with total inverter shipments reaching 589 GW (AC), according to Wood Mackenzie.

A United States-based collaboration between the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and CubicPV has yielded a perovskite minimodule with certified efficiency of 24.0%. The two noted that it is the first time a U.S. effort has set a record in the perovskite mini module category.

Testing conducted by the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin in Germany has shown that perovskite solar cells operating at high latitudes in Europe may suffer from higher performance losses in winter compared to conventional PV devices. The scientists warned, however, that at lower latitudes this seasonality may be less pronounced.

In a new scientific paper published in nature, the Chinese manufacturer presented a new tandem perovskite-silicon solar cell based on a bottom cell with a heterojunction design. It also used a new type of self-assembled monolayer that reportedly reduces non-radiative recombination and increases cell efficiency.

AGL Energy has acquired the 150 MW solar, 90 MW thermal, and 720 MWh of storage Yadnarie Project from Dutch developer Photon Energy, and follows the project’s development approval received in June.

The Australian government has announced $60 million in new funding for research and development projects that promise to accelerate cost reductions for PV technology and help meet the stretch target for “ultra low-cost” solar production.

Scientists in India have proposed to design new tandem solar cells using transition metal dichalcogenide as an absorber material for the bottom PV device. Their simulations showed these tandem cells may reach an efficiency of more than 35%.

The Victorian government has launched its third and final round of grant funding through the 100 Neighbourhood Batteries Program, offering $400,000 per battery through multiple streams of eligibility to a pool of nine council regions.

Community Power Agency has released a guide for regional communities hosting multiple renewable energy projects to promote benefit sharing strategies that ensure a stake over the next 25 years in an estimated $1.9 billion opportunity.

Seven regional Victoria battery storage projects, all at the commissioning phase, will be the first to connect to Victorian distributor Powercor’s high voltage distributed energy resource management system, adding stability to the grid.

While attempting to address suparradiance in Dicke quantum batteries to leverage their fast charging qualities, researchers at RMIT University and the CSIRO have developed a method to extend the lifetime of quantum batteries by 1,000 times.

Zen Energy’s plan to build a 100 MW solar project and 200 MW battery with up to eight hours of storage capacity in southeast Queensland has been waved through the federal environmental approvals process.