Manufacturing

Solar installers and resellers can now access up to $250,000 on interest-free terms to increase their stocks of Australian-made solar panels after PV module manufacturer Tindo Solar teamed with business financer Moula Pay.

Scientists in the United States have developed a new model to allow utilities to use grid-forming inverters in order to better manage renewable energy intermittency. They describe the inverter main circuit representation, the droop control, and the fault current limiting function.

Swiss module manufacturer Megasol has unveiled a novel rooftop PV system in two variants — full-black and translucent. The installation consists of vertical supports, a ridge profile, and solar modules.

Buildings-integrated photovoltaics maker Mitrex plans to deploy highway noise barriers with integrated solar that have 1.2 MW of capacity per kilometer. The technology is currently in the pilot phase at government entity locations in North America.

The Korean manufacturer launched a new bifacial module based on M10 wafers and is planning to produce bigger modules based on M12 wafers starting from the third quarter.

Scientists in Sweden have developed a wide-gap ACIGS solar cell with hydrogen-doped indium oxide (IOH) transparent back contacts and silver alloying to increase the absorber bandgap energy. The device achieved an efficiency of 12.0%, an open-circuit voltage of 835 mV, a short-circuit current of 22.1 mA cm2, and a fill factor of 65.2%.

United States-based manufacturer Briggs & Stratton offers the storage solution with a 6kW inverter, a 4.9kWh battery, and a proprietary monitoring system.

Long-overdue safety and compliance regulation increases came into effect in May. US-based Enphase Energy claims its technology’s exemption from much of nation-wide regulations means installers across the country are opting for its products exclusively.

Singapore-headquartered solar manufacturer Maxeon Solar Technologies, which sells in Australia under the SunPower Maxeon brand, announced in May that it was launching its new holistic energy management system in Australia in the third quarter of 2022. pv magazine Australia sat down with Maxeon Solar Technologies’ chief revenue officer Mark Babcock in Munich, Germany, at Intersolar 2022.

The new prototype uses a triple-junction compound design, which sandwiches the solar cell between layers of film. The module is expected to be used in a variety of vehicles, an application that demands high efficiency and lightweight construction. Its conversion efficiency bests that of a similar Sharp module developed in 2016, which notched an efficiency of 31.17%, at the time a world record.