Markets

The EV manufacturer with big solar ambitions has finally leveraged its expertise in power electronics technology and launched a solar inverter.

Throughout 2020, a fast-moving story played out in PV module technology, with the introduction of larger wafers and subsequently larger module formats seeing the industry break into two camps, backing either 182 mm or 210 mm wafers. It remains to be seen whether one or the other will become a new industry standard, and both sizes will likely be plentiful on the market for the next few years at least. pv magazine takes a look at how we got to this point.

The Australian Capital Territory’s latest Feed-in Tarrif report found that Canberrans are increasingly contributing to their territory’s 100% renewable energy supply thanks to the increasing uptake of rooftop solar.

Looking back over years of research into the topic of hybrid systems based on different combinations of solar, wind, hydro and other renewables, an international group of scientists found strong potential for strategies to exploit complementarity between the different sources integrate more intermittent renewables onto regional and national grids. The scientists present a series of conclusions and recommendations that aim to push research in hybrid renewables forward.

Wood Mackenzie’s Asia Pacific predictions for the energy market in 2021 are in. The firms analysts see wind and solar continuing to grow throughout the region driven by China, but notes that gas and coal aren’t going anywhere fast.

Origin Energy has announced the progression of plans for a 700 MW megabattey with a dispatch duration of four hours at the site of its Eraring coal generator in the NSW Hunter region. The ageing Eraring Power Station is Australia’s largest, supplying approximately a quarter of NSW’s energy needs, and set to retire in 2032.

Fortescue Metals Group Chairman Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest returned to Western Australia last week after a 4-month worldwide search for green energy projects and resources. One of the deals secured on the trip was a circular partnership with South Korean steelmaker Posco. The deal sees Fortescue supply Posco with iron ore, Posco use said ore to make steel, and Fortescue use said steel for renewable energy projects to make green hydrogen.

Newcastle Council operations may already be 100% powered by renewables, but the Hunter Region’s first mega storage asset, boasting 28 MW capacity, will support the entire region’s expanding green energy ambitions.

The nation is set to have added 40 GW of solar in 2020 and that figure will rise again this year, to 45-50 GW, according to one of the year’s first industry predictions.

The Australian Energy Market Commission’s latest annual Residential Electricity Price Trends report shows costs reducing as renewable build out replaces inefficient coal-fired generation, and more lowest-cost renewable supply is on the way.