Manufacturing

South Australian-based company Reclaim PV estimates it will open Australia’s first commercial solar-panel recycling plant in mid 2019. Its high-energy founders also have a broader mission — to inform better environmental practices throughout the solar value chain.

SolarEdge has recently purchased an Italian EV system manufacturer, a South Korean battery maker, an Israeli UPS producer, internally developed a virtual power plant grid service, and now they’re working with Google to integrate energy management tools into Google Assistant.

High solar irradiance and few cloudy days are ideal for solar. Fine dust and extreme heat is not – particularly when it comes to power electronics. As the distributed generation market segment emerges in the MENA region, it’s a challenge that inverter suppliers are grappling with.

Crystal-ball gazing is dangerous in a sector as fast moving as PV. But that hasn’t stopped pv magazine’s international team of solar reporters from compiling a list of the top 14 solar PV and energy storage trends expected to characterize 2019. What do you think? Have we missed anything?

pv magazine is pleased to announce the winners of our inaugural Annual Award. Winners will be recognized in a ceremony alongside the Middle East Solar Industry Associations’ Solar Awards, during the World Future Energy Summit.

SMA Solar technology AG has announced that around 425 full time jobs or 12.8% of its global workforce will be lost as part of its restructuring efforts. The PV inverter manufacturer will also discontinue operations in China, preferring to refocus its efforts on Germany.

The U.S. module maker projects 5.4 to 5.6 GW of solar module shipments next year, more than double its current projected 2018 volumes of 2.6 to 2.7 GW.

The federal government has launched a strategy seeking investment to unlock Australia’s potential in lithium-ion battery manufacturing. Noting that the nation’s mineral reserves cover 90% of the elements required in li-ion battery chemistry, the new Austrade report underlines that Australia is well-positioned to become a world leader in this fast growing market.

High levels of rooftop PV penetration, an informed public, small seasonal irradiance variation, and market structures that favour maximising solar self consumption: Australia is ideally situated to see the adoption of the smart home. So says SolarEdge founder Lior Handelsman who spells out how the company is expanding its Aussie operations and offering a growing range of solutions to put rooftop PV to its best use.

Hanergy and Environmental Technology Solutions (ETS) will partner to introduce the HanWall BIPV solution to Australia. The companies have signed a cooperation agreement, which targets 4.3 MW of HanWall installations.