PV Tech Power Papers

Over the past 12 months, the US solar business has been on a rollercoaster ride, with the high-profile bankruptcy of SunEdison and the merger of SolarCity and Tesla stealing the headlines. Danielle Ola talks to the experts about some of the key trends shaping the world of solar finance and investment in the US.

Potential-induced degradation can cause significant power loss in modules if the appropriate precautions are not taken. In the first part of a new series in PV Tech Power on module failure, Peter Hacke and Steve Johnston assess the current state-of-the-art in detecting, avoiding and mitigating the worst effects of PID.

Energy storage in the US is being propelled forward by falling costs and increasingly favourable markets and policy. But for the full value of storage to be realised, numerous regulatory and fiscal barriers must still be surmounted, writes Matt Roberts.

The latest developments from solar’s newest markets.

Community solar is emerging as a promising new source of demand in the US, opening up access to solar among previously excluded groups. John Parnell reports on the prospects for a new market segment whose time seems to have come.

Rising levels of PV penetration mean increasingly sophisticated forecasting technologies are needed to maintain grid stability and maximise the economic value of PV systems. The Grid Integration working group of the European Technology and Innovation Platform – Photovoltaics (ETIP PV) shares the results of its ongoing research into the advantages and limitations of current forecasting technologies.

In a relatively short space of time, single-axis trackers have become the mounting technology of choice in utility-scale PV plants. Danielle Ola reports on the technological and economic drivers that have fuelled their meteoric rise and look set to ensure continued growth around the world for some time to come.

The European solar industry has followed the lead taken by its counterparts in the US by developing best practice guidelines for the burgeoning O&M business. Stefan Degener, senior director of O&M at First Solar, who led a group to develop the guidelines, speaks to Ben Willis about their significance and aims.

Several rounds of auctions for large-scale projects and a favourable policy environment for distributed systems have helped create the right conditions for PV to flourish in Brazil. Rodrigo Sauaia and Juliana Vasconcelos explore the biggest areas of opportunity for foreign firms looking to access this promising new market.

The maturing of the solar operations and maintenance business has shone a spotlight on the need for some universally accepted standards and practices across the industry. Vassilis Papaeconomou explains why such a step forward will be vital to ensuring the full value of solar assets is realised.