Power Plants

Ghana will soon update its feed-in tariff (FiT) programme for solar to include the possibility of having contracts last for 20 years, according to Wisdom Ahiataku-Togobo, director of renewables and alternative energy at the Ministry of Power Ghana.

Ghana could be a frontrunner for clean energy integration and energy exports across the West African power pool, according to a United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report.

Energy giant Total has said it wants to be a top three player in the solar energy industry within the next 20 years.

Significant increases of utility tariffs in Nigeria and Ghana are improving the business case for solar by providing money to utilities and bringing competition to the power market, according to energy developers.

A glut of solar-based products failing across Nigeria has been caused by a lack of clarity around ownership and alleged cases of corruption, according to member of the World Energy Council (WEC).

Difficulties in financing Indian solar projects with extremely low tariffs and the wobbling of major solar player SunEdison will not impact the long-term prospects of India’s PV market, according to two senior banking and finance representatives.

New York-based utility company Con Edison is now generating over 100MW of renewable energy for customers in New York City and Westchester County.

Chinese integrated PV manufacturers Renesola and Jinko Solar have announced module supply deals of 81.5MW and 49MW respectively for projects in their domestic territory.

Pune-based wind turbine supplier Suzlon has announced today its acquisition of five solar firms for future project implementation in India.

Using PV, wind and CSP, a ‘Supergrid’ interconnecting North Africa and Europe could take both regions close to 100% renewable energy by 2050, but would require political will and ambitious market design, an expert at Fraunhofer ISE has said.