Utility Scale PV

A small number of utility-scale PV arrays of an entirely different nature are taking shape Down Under. Over the past six years, Aussie solar startup 5B has been developing and deploying its pre-assembled and relocatable Maverick mounting structures “on a shoestring budget.” But with a major solar developer having joined as a strategic investor, the company is now looking to make prefabricated arrays a mainstream option for utility-scale PV.

Australia has cemented its place at the vanguard of the solar energy industry with a new International Energy Agency (IEA) report confirming the nation has the highest installed solar PV capacity per capita in the world.

Vena Australia has reached financial close on its 100 MW and 150 MWh Wandoan South Big Battery thanks to ING Australia. The international bank is increasingly financing green energy projects but this is the first standalone battery project it has financed in the Asia Pacific. Vena Energy Australia says this phase is just the beginning of a project that is to feature 650 MW of solar PV and 450 MW of battery storage.

The Chinese leader has revealed some details of his nation’s commitment to go carbon neutral by 2060. That solar and wind power promise could even prove to be a conservative estimate, according to the nation’s solar industry.

Hydrogen demand in South Korea is expected to reach 17 million tonnes by 2050. An ambitious solar PV project in the heart of Queensland’s unconventional-gas country, plans to be an early green supplier of the manufacturing nation’s hydrogen needs.

Renewable energy investors have shattered the Queensland Government’s expectations with the state’s Renewable Energy Zones (REZs) attracting more than $90 billion in project proposals.

Oz Minerals has long said that it was looking at a hybrid fossil fuel-solar-wind solution to power its massive West Musgrave Project. This week the miner has announced that it is now developing a roadmap to power the project with 100% renewables with the addition of a battery in what the company says could be one of the world’s largest fully off-grid renewably powered mines.

Solar Philippines is planning to deploy several unsubsidised solar plants in the provinces of Batangas, Cavite, Nueva Ecija, and Tarlac.

Small-footprint solar farms can get a purchase on distribution lines, they’re virtually pop-up in terms of construction time, and a smart development model can be easily repeated. The Solarion Renewable Fund wants to let investors into its clean little secret.

Australian engineering firm UGL ends the week on a high having landed a series of renewable energy sector contracts with a combined value of more than $112 million.