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Okra Solar, the Aussie startup we last saw delivering solar mini-grids to remote communities via a shared ping-pong table, is emerging from Covid-19 lockdown with new investors and two new pieces of tech that will better enable solar energy access to the 900 million people around the world still lacking power.

An additional $2.9 million from the Australian Government’s Outer Islands Renewable Energy Project (OIREP) is making its way across the sea to the kingdom of Tonga in the form of solar power plants and energy storage. The project is helping Tonga to achieve its target of generating 50% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020 and 70% by 2030. 

New research by digital services company, Accenture, finds global energy-utility executives feeling underprepared for the increasing frequency of extreme weather events caused by climate change. It’s time to expand the definition of reliability.

The ACT Government has allocated funding to undertake solar and sustainability upgrades on public and community housing and install solar batteries for two public schools as part of its fast-tracked infrastructure projects to support the local economy.

The Victorian Government’s Solar Homes program once threatened to cut a swath through the state’s solar installer base; now it’s found its feet and forms the framework for delivering $15.3 million in new funding to reduce emissions and costs to the state’s constituents.

Solar wholesaler BayWa r.e. is partnering with industry trainer Global Sustainable Energy Solutions (GSES) on training provision seeking to ameliorate a noticeable lack of quality control within the rapidly growing solar industry.

Risen Energy Australia has been confirmed as a solar panel partner on the Resilient Energy Collective bushfire relief campaign, which aims to install stand-alone solar and Tesla battery systems at up to 100 sites around Australia.

QIC-owned Pacific Energy has bought solar and battery microgrid specialist Hybrid Systems in a bid to tap the off-grid and edge-of-grid growth in Western Australia.

Sydney-based pre-fabricated solar array manufacturer 5B has selected Enphase IQ 7+ microinverters for the Resilient Energy Collective bushfire relief campaign. The initiative is looking to install stand-alone solar and Tesla battery systems at up to 100 sites around Australia affected by bushfires and floods.

Researchers in Brazil have suggested using solar radiation databases and simulator software to scale PV-diesel mini-grid generators. The profiles of PV generation and mini-grid load demand are critical to finding the right balance, according to the academics.