Markets & Policy

A West Australian vanadium explorer, Technology Metals, has signed an agreement with a prominent Japanese company to explore the possibility of manufacturing vanadium electrolyte in Australia – a key component of the increasingly popular vanadium redox flow batteries.

Iron ore giant Fortescue Metals Group has brought forward its net zero emissions target a decade to 2030 by advancing a raft of green hydrogen and ammonia projects. The mining company believes it’s green energy ambitions will demonstrate how the two “missing links” in the battle against climate change can decarbonise supply chains.

Redflow has signed its biggest global battery deal yet after agreeing to supply Californian biowaste tech firm Anaergia with a 2 MWh energy storage system. Redflow is hoping the US$1.2 million agreement for 192 of its zinc-bromine flow batteries will serve as a foundation for US market expansion.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency is helping to fund a trial by Distributed Energy Resources firm UPowr which will monitor solar customers interested in incorporating a home battery system. The aim of the project is to better incorporate customer experience insights into the design of DER products.

This annual 1.8 GWh of green power came out of a long-nurtured passion project, and can now provide a successful template for other community groups to think big in their renewable energy aspirations.

Foresight Solar Fund’s 2020 annual report puts the travails endured and fixes deployed for four now powerful Australian assets in context.

Tensions are heating up throughout the world over the issue of forced labor. Calls are increasing for supply chain transparency, and recently published EU draft legislation on corporate due diligence and accountability should improve upon the currently available voluntary measures, which have been described as largely ineffective. With this in mind, pv magazine’s UP Initiative will spend the second quarter of 2021 looking at what solar and energy storage companies can do to lead by positive example when it comes to the workers who are involved in the production of their products and services.

Enhanced module appearance and power output can be achieved by a smart cell interconnection technique Longi is employing in its Hi-MO5 module series. But as with all new technologies, there are potential pitfalls.

The first stage of Neoen’s gigantic $3bn Goyder South Project in South Australia has received planning approval on the same day the French renewables company set out ambitions to exceed 10 GW in capacity by 2025, expansion largely planned in leading markets such as Australia.

Market analyst Fitch Solutions has raised its expectations for renewables in Australia, citing the country’s unrivalled green hydrogen project pipeline and its commercially viable large-scale battery storage sector.