Quality

A new report calculates the average power loss of 373 GW of utility-scale and commercial and industrial solar assets in the U.S. at 5.08%, more than double the level five years ago. The power loss average among projects deploying robotics and automation falls to 3%.

Survey results from the Solar and Fire Education (SAFE) training program — conducted in collaboration with Enphase Energy — show that 98% of firefighters would recommend microinverter systems based on their safety characteristics and all-AC architecture.

The devastating impact of Winter Storm Uri in February 2021 fundamentally transformed how the electric power industry approaches cold weather preparedness, exposing critical Bulk Electric System vulnerabilities and catalyzing sweeping regulatory changes, including new mandatory NERC standards, that renewable energy facilities must now navigate.

Renewable energy firm PowerUQ advocates for the use of Uncertainty Quantification (UQ) in solar project analytics to combat the widespread issue of performance shortfalls. By incorporating a wider range of variables and providing probability scenarios like P50 and P90, UQ aims to make solar generation forecasts more useful and accurate over a project’s long lifespan.

As older solar projects reach the end of their design life, the need for repowering, replacing or upgrading aging components, is becoming a crucial consideration for asset owners.

A recent report from battery intelligence firm Accure reveals that while most battery energy storage systems (BESS) operate reliably, nearly 19% of projects experience reduced returns due to technical issues and unplanned downtime.

HelioVolta analysis says bad wiring and connections are the most common source of significant problems.

With the early expiration of key US solar tax credits in 2026 and 2027, solar developers from the United States and Europe are looking to diversify, and the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region represents attractive prospects for many. But unpredictable site conditions can defy even the most experienced developers’ assumptions, causing delays and cost hikes. Upfront due diligence is vital, argue Clean Energy Associates engineers Nicholas Hudson and Evan Woolard.

Sandia National Labs researchers have created a new dataset on the rates and types of rooftop PV connector failures. Their analysis has shown that tight wire bending radius, extra dirty connectors, and loose nuts are the most common failure causes in 6,276 connectors deployed between 2014 and 2017 across seven U.S. regions.

A new test curve for determining solar panels’ breaking point from hail uses a broader spectrum of impact energies and testing products.