While renewables procurement is more challenging for SMEs with smaller power demands and less energy sector expertise, PPA aggregations offer a solution. Meghan McIntyre of Schneider Electric explores the deal structures for such aggregations and how project developers can benefit from them.
Spanish multinational electric utility giant Iberdrola has created something not only unique to Spain, but also to the wider European continent: Europe’s largest solar PV plant. Situated in the central-western region of Extremadura, the ‘Francisco Pizarro’ project, named after the renowned Spanish conquistador, has a generation capacity of 590MWp and came into operation in August 2022. The plant has nearly 1.5 million PV modules installed.
As the floating solar sector becomes more mature, larger projects are being deployed in a range of water bodies, presenting a host of construction challenges. Jonathan Touriño Jacobo talks to project developers about how the latest technology is driving growth.
In early December, the Dutch government announced a €130/MWh revenue cap on solar and wind generation. The decision to lower the cap draws eyes, and potentially spells trouble for the country that installed Europe’s fourth largest solar capacity in 2022.
Presenting findings on the exposure of PV panels to the harsh environment of the Arabian Desert, a team from the Qatar Environment & Energy Research Institute details the multiple mitigation approaches to solar soiling.
The largest climate package in US history promises to turbocharge the country’s solar sector, but considerable uncertainty remains around the impact the Inflation Reduction Act will have and how it will be enforced by authorities, writes Sean Rai-Roche.
Rarely does the planning and design phase of solar farms consider the subsequent operational management and its costs. Jörn Carstensen, managing partner at greentech, explores how unforeseen effects from development, procurement and construction can have a significant impact on the economic viability of PV plants.
As solar becomes more sophisticated, the industry is leaning on more advanced software and AI to determine the best sites and optimum system designs. Molly Lempriere explores the role AI and other advanced techniques are playing in solar development.
Using an in-house tool and PVsyst simulation software, a team from Chint New Energy Technology Co. analyse the LCOE of utility-scale solar systems in various countries based on three technologies: PERC, TOPCon and HJT.
