Sunrise brief: Solar supply chain issues–from duties to tariffs to COVID-19 and the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act

Upgrading transmission lines could enable 27GW more renewable power per year “Advanced conductors” can deliver more electricity than conventional transmission lines, using existing transmission towers. Renewables trade group ACORE calls for greater use of advanced conductors, “to accelerate low-cost decarbonization.”

Solar-powered data server network developed to frame the internet as a natural resource The website maps solar exposure across the globe, activating data cloud centers when the sun shines. Developed by the NYU Tandon School of Engineering, the project intends to draw attention to the energy intensity of data processing, and to offer a more climate-friendly solution.

Making sense of solar supply chain issues From duties to tariffs to COVID-19 and the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, a look at the supply chain issues threatening the solar module supply market.

Hawaii Supreme Court upholds PUC’s approval of power purchase agreement Despite a Maui community group’s allegation of potential harm caused by a proposed solar facility, the project between Maui Electric and Paeahu Solar moves forward.

Newer and larger solar plants perform better, while older plants pick up steam with repowering US government lab sees utility scale solar fleet degrading faster than projected at 1.2% a year, while newer and larger plants are degrading at only 0.7% a year. Older plants appear to be getting repowered in year seven, yielding lasting performance increases.

Global tracker provider FTC Solar posts 130% growth in 2021 The company announced the launch of a turnkey operation for sub 20MW projects and reported revenues of $101.7 million in the fourth quarter.

Stanford University now running on 100% renewables Flipping the switch on the 88MW array this week is a major milestone toward its goal of net zero emissions by 2050.