DNV company Solcast reports that solar generation in parts of eastern Australia is set to face significant disruptions as Tropical Cyclone Alfred hits the Queensland coast. Other areas may benefit from enhanced solar irradiance due to stabilising atmospheric conditions on the cyclone’s periphery.

As any industry goes through an evolution, its workforce needs to do the same. Australia’s energy sector is going through major changes. Fueled by strong government and private sector investment along with rising community demand and expectations, the industry needs to ensure it has the skills our future energy network requires. And the only way it is going to do that is by attracting more women into the industry.

The solar energy industry continues to push the boundaries of efficiency and reliability. However, as innovative photovoltaic cell and module technologies emerge, they also bring a new set of challenges in durability and performance. A new report from IEA PVPS Task 13, titled “Degradation and Failure Modes in New Photovoltaic Cell and Module Technologies,” offers a comprehensive analysis of degradation and failure mechanisms in current photovoltaic technologies.

Our cars sit unused most of the time. If you have an electric vehicle, you might leave it charging at home or work after driving it. But there’s another step you could take. If you have a bidirectional charger, you can set it to sell power back to the grid when demand is high.

Photovoltaics continues adding capacity at a rapid pace, and 2024 was another record year for solar PV deployment. In the meantime, despite recent hurdles to widespread adoption in some countries, electric vehicle uptake grew 25% last year. Assuming a 10 kWh/day energy requirement for every new EV, the 17 million new EVs sold in 2024 would have added another 50-70 GW of new PV generation worldwide.

West Australian Indigenous-owned and operated Yindjibarndi Energy Corporation has had two of its projects prioritised for regulatory approval on the federal government’s national renewable energy priority list.

Ark Energy, the Australian subsidiary of Korea Zinc Company, has signed a supply agreement with Hanwha Energy for the battery energy storage system at Ark’s proposed Richmond Valley hybrid solar battery project in New South Wales.

Edify Energy’s proposed solar power station in Queensland will supply 90% of its power and battery storage capacity to mining giant Rio Tinto’s Gladstone aluminium operations, following the signing between them of two hybrid services agreements.

Australian renewables contracting firm ACLE Services has been awarded the construction and balance of plant contract for the 130 MWh Smithfield Battery Energy Storage System being developed west of Sydney by Spanish energy giant Iberdrola.

An 1,850-hectare portion of a grazing property in Queensland’s southeast is being offered as leasehold for the development of a renewable energy project as the landowner looks to tap into the generational opportunities presented by the clean energy transition.

To make it easier to adopt building integrated PV as a glazing material, a group within the IEA Photovoltaic Power Systems Program (IEA-PVPS) has tackled the solar heat gain coefficient calculation for BIPV. It is part of IEA PVPS Task 15 international standardisation efforts.

Construction of the Maryvale Solar and Energy Storage project is set to begin in the coming weeks with renewables developer Gentari pressing go on the DC-coupled hybrid project being built in central western New South Wales.

Researchers in Western Australia have reviewed 36 mobile inspection robots for ground-mounted PV plants and have identified six commercial ground robots that are systematically used for this task. Their work presents the robots according to different types of locomotion, navigation technologies, communication technologies, and market status.

Philippines-based energy company Acen Corporation is preparing to sign off on a $20 million investment in multiple solar PV projects with a combined capacity of about 80 MW in Malaysia as part of its joint venture with a unit of German solar developer ib vogt.

More than 16 GW of solar and wind generation and approximately 6 GW of energy storage projects could benefit from an accelerated environmental approvals process as the Australian government works to deliver critical infrastructure needed to achieve its clean energy targets, including 82% renewable electricity by 2030.

Electricity generated by water moving across a surface can be 10 times more powerful than previously thought, according to Australian researchers who say their finding could boost energy storage and charging rates and improve safety in fuel-holding systems.

Italian energy storage company Energy Dome is scouting potential sites across Victoria to deploy its carbon dioxide battery technology as it works to establish a foothold in the Australian energy market.

Voltage control specialist EcoJoule Energy has banked $15 million in capital it says will underwrite the company’s global expansion and support the wider deployment of technology designed to help stabilise the electricity grid as it adjusts to increasing levels of solar capacity.

The merits of Australia’s growing electric vehicle fleet are on display in Queensland and northern New South Wales where hundreds of thousands of residents remain without power in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Alfred.

China supplied three-quarters of a 1 TWh global battery market in 2024 and its domination enabled steep cost savings and a possible switch to lithium ferro-phosphate technology, according to the International Energy Agency.

The battery features four MPPTs and can take up to 2,600 W of PV input. It also has an AC nominal output power of 800 W.

Sungrow’s new residential battery energy storage system features a compact 182 mm design and is capable of handling a maximum charge/discharge current of 50 A.

University of New South Wales researchers are part of an international team that has assessed the impact of soldering flux on heterojunction solar cells and has found that the composition of this component is key to prevent major cracks and significant peeling.

Australian solar panel manufacturer Tindo has donated $10,000 worth of solar panels to the Tanunda Cricket Club in South Australia, to aid the club’s environmental targets and reduce bills.

Longi has released a back-contact solar module with 24.8% efficiency, featuring a power output of up to 670 W and a temperature coefficient of -0.26% per degree Celsius.

As a federal election draws nearer, the ways in which much-needed batteries in Australia’s electricity distribution network are incentivised is becoming highly political. With the rollout of community battery projects supported by the federal government underway, industry insiders are hoping that politicians settle on measures that will make distributed battery adoption mainstream.

National transport and logistics company Centurion has added 20 battery-electric trucks from Daimler to its fleet with the new heavy vehicles powered using energy from a 4.4 MW rooftop solar installation and 10.3 MWh battery.

Electricity distributor SA Power Networks will begin the installation of the first of eight community batteries being rolled out across regional South Australia, to build energy resilience in local communities.

The Australian government has announced its first project through the Pacific and Timor-Leste off-grid renewable energy project investment fund, RENew Pacific, which will provide clean energy to Solomon Islands’ remote communities.

South Australian energy and infrastructure company Vibe Energy and Victorian regional water authority GWMWater, have announced the successful energising of their joint venture, the Nhill renewable energy facility.