Federal grants aim to spark investment in U.S. solar manufacturing
Seven early-stage solar manufacturing firms have won U.S. Department of Energy grants to develop prototypes, which they could use to help attract private investment. DOE’s 21 PV research and development grants may hold more interest for established manufacturers.
Saving water with solar and wind
Scientists at Princeton have found solar and wind energy offer the added environmental benefit of reducing water usage, by comparison with hydroelectric dams. Their findings, say the researchers, could have a positive impact on groundwater sustainability in drought-prone regions such as California, where they conducted a case study.
Do you take this battery, through degradation and replacement, till death do you part?
DNV GL has released its 2019 Battery Scorecard, looking at various factors weighing on battery degradation, with a focus on the financeability of energy storage projects.
Solar (and efficiency) are driving down peak demand in New England
The impacts of solar on New England’s grid are transforming the needs of the system, and this is new ground for the region.
Grid solutions: An interview with Greg Tremelling of Oztek
In this interview, pv magazine sits down with Greg Tremelling, VP of business development at Oztek Corp, to talk about his company’s solutions and where he sees the energy storage industry going.
First Solar advises contracting for solar capacity, not MWh, to enable flexible operation
Flexible solar plant operation can save a utility money. First Solar says it’s time for solar power purchase agreements to catch up to that fact.
Hardware brief: Module pricing falling, Enphase at 450W, sexy solar panels get $3.2 million, more!
We were gone till November, now we’re here. The US Air Force is researching space based solar power, SimpliPhi has discounts on energy storage products for Californians, and ESS Inc has raised $30 million to help roboticize a 1 GWh/year capacity factory to build flow batteries in Oregon!
A penny for your powerlines
Research by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory suggests that overall costs of transmission needed to integrate variable renewables is between 0.1-1¢/kWh, on top of the 2.9-4.6¢/kWh utility scale wind and solar power costs.
Back to the battery future
Rocky Mountain Institute’s new predicts unprecedented battery storage development in the next decade and beyond. And, while li-ion will remain to be the tech that’s hot in the streets in the short term, the future is diverse.
America’s largest floating solar project completed
Ciel & Terre USA has completed a 4.4. MW floating solar array in Sayreville, New Jersey, the largest of such a project in North America. This is an important step for a technology that NREL predicts could reach 9.6% of current electricity generation.
