Sunrise brief: First Solar plans to add still more production capacity as global demand grows

Also on the rise: Startup invents battery breakthrough, Arizona is tapped for a Li-ion battery plant, solar PV shipments were up 33% in 2020 as demand rose and prices fell, and groups press DOE to move TVA off of fossil fuels.

July 30, 2021 David Wagman

Image: NASA

Arizona chosen as site for 12 GWh lithium-ion battery facility. Kore Power plans to bring a manufacturing facility to the state, marking one of the first lithium-ion battery manufacturing facilities wholly owned by a U.S. company.

First Solar plans to add still more production capacity. All totaled, the company said that its nameplate manufacturing capacity will double to 16 GWdc in 2024.

Startup invents breakthrough non-toxic battery electrolyte that’s cheaper ‘by factor of 100’. It’s a breakthrough so simple that the Australian patent office needed convincing it counted as an invention.

Solar PV shipments were up 33% in 2020 as demand rose and costs fell. The EIA said that PV module shipments in 2020 totaled nearly 21.8 million peak kilowatts and had a total value of more than $8.2 billion.

Groups call on DOE to draw a roadmap for TVA to shift to renewables. TVA currently has no plan to achieve emission-free power and that is frustrating advocacy groups and a handful of member companies.

CATL claims to have made sodium-ion batteries a commercial reality. Researchers have been keen to make the technology work as it offers a cheaper, more environmentally friendly alternative to lithium-ion products.

TC Energy advances 1 GW pumped hydro energy storage project. The pumped hydro project aims in part to reduce the amount of electricity that is exported from Ontario to several U.S. states at a loss.

U.S. clean power is growing at a sprinter’s pace, and there’s room to run. The U.S. has passed 170 GW in installed utility solar, battery storage and wind power, with 26 GW of clean energy projects brought online in 2020.

NREL releases a financial analysis tool for energy storage technologies. The model allows users to specify up to 15 parallel technology assessments that can span completely different storage types or focus on a single technology.

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