APAC Energy Buzz: Could coal and renewables put the squeeze on gas?
Rising gas prices, increased energy security and economic recovery at all costs pose risks to Asia’s power sector gas demand growth.
Bigger and better: Technology
The SNEC 2020 PV Power Expo opened on Aug. 8 in Shanghai. Unlike previous editions, the world’s largest solar trade fair was mostly attended by Chinese participants this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. While the trade fair used to offer insights into global market trends, volumes were low this year due to a buyer/seller standoff amid rising prices caused by the recent accidents at polysilicon plants in Xinjiang. Also, there was little change in technologies. PV InfoLink’s Corrine Lin offers insights into cells and modules at SNEC 2020.
Adani becomes world’s largest solar developer
The world’s sixth-largest solar player in 2019 has risen to the top spot by securing a contract from Solar Energy Corp. of India to develop 8 GW of PV capacity.
Inverted pyramid-based PERC solar cell with 21.4% efficiency
A Chinese research group has developed a PERC cell on a commercial 180-μm-thick monocrystalline silicon wafer with a standard size of 156 × 156 mm2. The cell has an open-circuit voltage (VOC) of 0.677 V, a short short-circuit current (ISC) of 9.63 A, and a fill factor of 80.30%.
Power Ledger and BCPG team up to launch SE Asian REC marketplace
Western Australian tech startup Power Ledger and Thai renewable energy company BCPG are expanding their partnership with the creation of a Renewable Energy Certificate marketplace for SE Asia on Power Ledger’s peer-to-peer blockchain platform.
Energy storage investment to approach $10bn in 2025
Analyst IHS Markit has predicted storage will rebound this year following its first year-on-year decline in 2019. The technology is being rolled out at pace despite Covid-19 with state-level policies set to keep the US the global capital for the next five years.
Construction begins on 60 MW floating PV plant in Singapore
The plant will sell power to Singapore’s Public Utilities Board under a 25-year PPA. The project is located at the Tengeh Reservoir.
JA Solar launches 800 W solar panel
The new product, currently the most powerful panel on the market, was showcased at the SNEC PV Power Expo in Shanghai. Also presented at the fair was a 780 W product from Tongwei and a 660 W module from Trina.
Low-cost, durable catalyst for hydrogen production
Researchers from India’s Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences have developed a coordination polymer-based catalyst for hydrogen production that exhibits exceptionally high durability for 70 hours at a high current density of −300 mA/ cm2.
Jinko unveils new 610 W solar panels
The Chinese manufacturer introduced new PV modules this weekend at the SNEC solar exhibition in Shanghai.
