Utility Scale PV

Italian energy giant Enel will implement an experimental agrisolar program at its 34 MW Cohuna Solar Farm in Victoria with data from the research project to be used to help formulate a “best practice” template for utility scale solar PV sites in other countries.

16-months after construction began in northern Victoria the 149 MWp Glenrowan West Solar Farm has finally been completed and commissioned despite the extenuating circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic.

State-owned electricity generator Stanwell has secured land in Aldoga, west of Gladstone, to build a large-scale 3 GW hydrogen electrolysis plant as part of its partnership with Japan’s Iwatani Corporation, well established in the hydrogen production industry.

A U.S. scientist has developed a computational framework that assesses how well a hypothetical agrivoltaic project would perform in achieving desired outcomes such as the volume of PV electricity produced, and energy-to-agriculture. The method considers the high-frequency decomposition of solar irradiance into multiple rays and analyzes how these rays are propagated forward in time, to assess multiple reflections and absorption for various system configurations. It also takes into account panel inclination, panel refractive indices, sizes, shapes, heights, and albedo.

Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, and the Australian Energy Market Operator have found even when factoring in additional ‘integration’ costs such as storage and new transmission infrastructure, solar and wind continue to be the cheapest sources of new-build electricity generation in Australia.

South Australian transmission company ElectraNet on Monday announced it will invest $457.4 million to deliver the its section of the Project EnergyConnect, the high-voltage electricity transmission interconnector between South Australia and New South Wales.

Australian technology company RayGen Resources has received funding to build a 3 MW/50 MWh ‘solar hydro’ power plant. Described by ARENA as the “first of a kind,” it is being lauded as one of the largest and lowest cost storage projects undertaken in the country. Energy giant AGL has also come onboard and will assess whether the technology would be suitable for its soon-to-retire Liddell facility.

The new product has an efficiency of 98.8% and a European efficiency of up to 98.5%. It features 10 independent maximum power point tracking (MPPT) inputs, with MPPT voltage ranging from 180-1000 V.

By understanding the challenges that impacted the solar industry, battery material manufacturers will be better equipped to scale next-generation technologies from the lab to have a real-world impact.

Lightsource bp, the solar arm of oil major BP, has reached financial close on its 107 MW West Wyalong Solar Farm in New South Wales and its 214 MW Woolooga Solar Farm in Queensland, bringing the company’s Australian pipeline to over 1.5 GW (DC) and exhibiting the strength of green investment strategies.