Chinese PV heavyweight Canadian Solar has announced an offtake deal for its Gunnedah solar project in New South Wales signed with e-commerce giant Amazon.

A feasibility study will explore a new option for producing and using renewable hydrogen with the help of funding provided by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA). If the study supports the business case, the project run by Stanwell Corporation will deliver the largest hydrogen electrolysis plant in Australia.

In its world-first application, hydrogen energy storage technology developed at UNSW Sydney will be installed in the regional town Manilla, which is set for one of Australia’s major community-owned solar farms. The storage deployment will be backed by an NSW government grant as part of a funding round that has awarded seven solar and battery community projects across the state.

The researchers have achieved 27.7% efficiency for mechanically-stacked perovskite-silicon tandem cells.

The South Australian Government’s subsidy under the $100 million Home Battery Scheme will have its first planned reduction in five weeks’ time.

A massive solar+storage project nearby Uralla in the New England region of New South Wales has been given the tick of approval from the Independent Planning Commission. Project developer UPC/AC Renewables Australia says construction is likely to commence towards the middle of the year.

Grupo Energia is the latest renewable energy company to set up shop in Australia and it has chosen Melbourne for its local headquarters.

Despite a sizable pipeline of big PV projects, many EPCs have found it difficult to escape the pitfalls of Australia’s notoriously competitive market. The turmoil in the solar construction sector became evident with the collapse of the nation’s leading contractor RCR Tomlinson. It was further emphasized by Tempo Australia’s problems and last month’s withdrawal of Sydney-based contractor Downer Group. As the survival of the fittest continues, Mumbai-based EPC juggernaut Sterling and Wilson Solar (SWSL) is confident it has found a way to adapt and thrive.

Researchers at the Queensland University of Technology have compiled a detailed overview of the use of diketopyrrolopyrrole organic pigments in driving the future of electronic devices, including wearable technology and solar cells that could be made at a fraction of the current costs.

UK-based infrastructure investor John Laing will make no further investments in standalone solar and wind, following the write-downs taken on its European and Australian projects.