Solar to continue rapid rise over this decade but lack of foresight with grid planning could mix with ultra-low prices and waste management troubles to set obstacles in the short and long term.
Energy giant Shell has increased its global solar footprint with the acquisition of a 49% stake in Cleantech Solar, a Southeast Asia and India-focused solar company.
Malaysian state-owned oil and gas giant Petronas has become the latest fossil fuel major to show intentions to move into the renewable energy space, with a focus on solar power.
A pair of oil and gas giants, Algerian state-run company Sonatrach and Italy-based firm Eni, have inaugurated a 10MW solar PV project to power an oil field in Bir Rebaa North (BRN) in Algeria.
With Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) as its sole offtaker, the 100MW project in Amin, Oman, is said to be the world's first utility-scale PV project to have an oil and gas company as the sole wholesale buyer of power.
French power giant Total has signed an agreement with the controlling shareholders of another France-based power firm Direct Energie to acquire a 74.33% stake in the company for roughly €1.4 billion.
Shell has suggested it will become the next major oil firm to enter the new build solar market after it was reported over the weekend that the Dutch giant plans to build solar farms in Britain.
Solar companies will have to find a strategic sweet spot in which to operate as big oil majors return to the sector, a panel of operators has concluded.
