Envertech says it has developed microinverters for PV systems supporting up to 60 modules, allowing up to four modules per unit with separate maximum power point tracking.

State and federal governments are being urged to ramp up deployment of long-duration energy storage after a new report found significant capacity additions would result in 38% lower system costs than alternatives while playing a critical role in maintaining reliability as coal plants retire over the next decade.

SmartHelio has developed an AI solar forecasting tool with 98.5% accuracy, using socioeconomic details and climate data for predictive analytics.

Shipment volumes are growing in the global solar tracker market as innovation in project development drives demand. Joe Steveni, of S&P Global Commodity Insights, takes a look at the factors shaping the commercial landscape for trackers, from agrivoltaics and undulating terrain to Indian ambition and the United States’ Inflation Reduction Act.

The quality of solar racking is essential for the structural integrity and longevity of PV projects. Clean Energy Associates colleagues Jörg Althaus and Dutt Du discuss some of the most common defects that can derail tracking system quality and make the case for quality control throughout the supply chain.

Australian PV equipment specialist BT Imaging will supply its advanced photoluminescence imaging tool for solar module maker Emmvee’s 1.5 GW TOPCon cell manufacturing facility in India.

Chinese solar module maker Tongwei has presented a CNY 5 billion ($1.06 billion) offer to acquire rival manufacturer Runergy. If successful, the transaction will be the largest merger and acquisition deal in the PV sector this year.

The Swiss Army knife qualities of lithium-ion batteries have helped scale the technology. Now their ubiquitous nature means they are ideally placed to help electricity system operators balance the grid, argues Gerard Reid, co-founder and partner of Alexa Capital.

As bifacial modules proliferate, estimations of albedo are becoming more important and with developers not prepared to install weather stations to assess solar resource, a popular option has become third-party, on-site measurements over periods as short as a day. Is this an acceptable compromise between costly on-site measuring and less accurate satellite data? Everoze’s Stefan Mau discusses the potential benefits and limitations of this approach.

Longi says it expects a net loss of CNY 4.8 billion ($980 million) for the first half of 2024, while Tongwei is bracing for a CNY 3 billion loss. Aiko Solar and TCL Zhonghuan, meanwhile, are predicting losses of CNY 2.9 billion and CNY 1.4 billion, respectively.