Middle East

Scientists from Saudi Arabia have proposed a new PV panel cooling technique which employs an atmospheric water harvester. The device uses waste heat from the PV panel to collect atmospheric water at night and then releases it during the day to cool down the module. The researchers claim the device may also be improved to produce liquid water, which could be used for the cleaning of the modules.

German production equipment provider Schmid and Saudi chemical group Sabic are planning to begin activities at a new factory in Saudi Arabia, with production being expected to begin in 2021.

The Dubai-headquartered Ecolog has inked a memorandum of understanding with the Centre for Organic Electronics at the University of Newcastle to commercialize its low-cost, lightweight and portable solar energy technology.

Abu Dhabi-based renewable energy group Masdar is sailing into the southeast Asian market with its, and Indonesia’s, first floating solar power plant. The project is to be the largest of its kind in South East Asia.

Comet-ME has developed a solar-powered submersible borehole piston pump for off-grid communities and smallholders to use for irrigation and domestic purposes. The device, compatible with PV systems from 300-900 W in size, can pump water from 45m with as little as 50 W of continuous solar power.

A new partnership is seeking to build a world-first off-grid greenhouse which will use solar glass to maintain optimal temperature and regulate irrigation by condensation inside the facility.

The Israeli inverter manufacturer saw its net profit decline 4% year-on-year to $33.1 million in the second quarter, despite shipping 1.3 GW and seeing a 43% increase in turnover. Gross margins were affected by the increase in U.S. tariffs on China made products.

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.

As pv magazine has learnt, the Saudi energy giant lowered its offer to $0.02752/kWh at the last minute, beating the bid lodged by Spain’s Fotowatio, which offered $0.02791 per kWh.