Spain

Developed by Spanish scientists, the proposed system design is said to be able to achieve water temperatures above 70 degrees Celsius and to cover around 85% of the annual sanitary hot water consumption of a household with six people.

A new study from researchers at the universities of Lancaster and Reading in the UK has managed to quantify the economic boost provided by the symbiotic relationship between solar farms and honeybee hives.

Fotowatio Renewable Ventures’ (FRV) Australian platform includes 637 MW (DC) in projects already operational or under construction, and a pipeline comprising 7 GW of solar projects and 1.3 GWh of battery storage.

Spanish company Axial Structural is introducing a new type of tracker for agrivoltaic installations. The product can be adapted to various ground conditions and gradients, with programmable to optimise light and shade for different crops in different climates.

Spanish energy giants Repsol and Enagás are planning to build an electrolyser based on photoelectrocatalysis at an industrial complex owned by the oil company in Puertollano in 2024. The device receives direct solar radiation and with a photoactive material it generates the electrical charges that cause the separation of the water molecule into hydrogen and oxygen.

Mónica LiraCantú leads a research group investigating nanostructured materials for photovoltaic energy at the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2). Recently, her group led a project that looked deep into the crystalline structure of a perovskite solar cell, revealing new information about the formation of defects in the material and how they could be engineered to improve both efficiency and stability. pv magazine caught up with the Barcelona-based scientist to discuss the state of the art in perovskite solar cells and remaining challenges on the road to commercialisation.

With projects in many PV markets ageing past the 10-year mark – with major leaps in technology having occurred in that time – revamping is a popular topic among asset owners. Pv magazine spoke with Asier Ukar, general manager of the Spanish subsidiary of German testing company PI Berlin, to uncover the benefits of revamping PV projects with new components and also to examine the challenges and risks involved.

Spanish renewable energy company Acciona is testing four second-life batteries with a combined capacity of 130 kWh at its 1.2 MW experimental solar park in Tudela, in the Spanish region of Navarra.

Australian financial group Macquarie Asset Management on Monday announced a €90 million (AU$141.5 million) debt investment in a portfolio of concentrated solar power (CSP) plants in southern Spain.

Spanish mounting system provider Alusín Solar has developed a solution to enable the transit of installers on roofs. It has recently commissioned a production line for this product, which it dubbed Carex.