Installations

Better known for its large-scale exploits, global solar module supplier and project developer Risen Energy Australia has lodged a development application to build a 5 MW utility-scale solar PV farm at Wagga Wagga in southern New South Wales.

According to Asia Europe Clean Energy (Solar) Advisory Co. Ltd, demand for solar PV in China could “effortlessly” surpass 100 GW in 2022, following a year of “flat” demand in 2021. It adds that a “massive overcapacity” situation in the production sector is looming. Meanwhile, the distributed solar PV market is on track for huge growth, with potential for annual demand to reach upwards of 20 GW+ from next year.

With projects in many PV markets ageing past the 10-year mark – with major leaps in technology having occurred in that time – revamping is a popular topic among asset owners. Pv magazine spoke with Asier Ukar, general manager of the Spanish subsidiary of German testing company PI Berlin, to uncover the benefits of revamping PV projects with new components and also to examine the challenges and risks involved.

Unprecedented capacity expansions and massive technology changes, all happening at a frantic pace, signal that PV is entering the terawatt era. However, challenges in supply and demand imbalances across the value chain, combined with emerging technical and quality risks, require detailed analysis and due diligence from buyers to avoid pitfalls, according to George Touloupas, Joseph Johnson, and Aditya Vardhan from Clean Energy Associates.

Floating PV is a growing market, especially in Asian countries with land pressures. However, like many promising niches, it is growing faster than the standards surrounding it. With installed floating PV capacity set to double in 2021, a raft of various and sometimes competing standards are being floated, but the question remains – what is truly the best way forward?

Adelaide-based module maker Tindo Solar has notched a win for the Australian manufacturing sector, delivering the panels for a $2.4 million solar PV and battery energy storage program rolled out by the Queensland government.

A 63 MWp solar project has been completed in the Philippines by Modern Energy Management (MEM) for AC Energy. The Gigasol project is part of the latter’s plan to roll out 5 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2025.

Smart Power India (SPI), a subsidiary of US-based impact investor Rockefeller Foundation, has supported the setting up of more than 300 renewable energy mini-grids cumulating to 9.2 MW of capacity across Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand, the largest such cluster in India. Jaideep Mukherjee, chief executive officer at SPI, spoke to pv magazine about the role of mini-grids in rural upliftment and the barriers to overcome.

The right product, with the right size, and at the right time represents a “holy trinity” and has been achieved in a new power electronics solution available in the Australian marketplace today. With rapid growth in the development of sub-5 MW utility scale PV projects currently underway, Fimer’s PVS980 Compact Skid appears ideal to meet an urgent market demand.

The small town of Yackandandah in northeast Victoria is one step closer to being powered by 100% renewable energy with the state’s first behind-the-meter, community-owned solar PV and battery energy storage system the latest addition to its community’s energy generation strategy.