A team of students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has won US$225,000 for developing an integrated chip that can recover up to twice as much wasted energy from […]
Category: Solar Choice News
Solar Choice’s news service about local, national and global developments about solar photovoltaics and related technology.
New chemical breakthrough with stabilised lithium could enable safer, cheaper Lithium-ion batteries
While many contend that lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries may be replaced with other, more promising battery technologies in the long run, incremental improvements continue to keep Li-ion relevant with promises of […]
Dark times for PV may mean good things for Australian solar industry
Natcore Technology has taken one step towards enabling the commercial production of its low‑cost black silicon solar cells by conducting batch testing at one of the world’s largest photovoltaic manufacturers, […]
‘Solar Tree’ Carports and EV charging stations installed in USA rollout
Envision Solar International’s ‘Solar Tree’ PV mounting and tracking system will be deployed nationwide in all outdoor car parks for a major US department store chain. The name of the […]
Hazelwood coal plant operator’s RET submission says solar PV still uneconomical
The owner of one of Australia’s dirtiest coal-fired power plants has argued that the cost of solar PV is unlikely to fall in future years, due to falling profitability of […]
Aussie rooftop solar now 5% of total generation capacity: IEA
Rooftop solar PV now accounts for around 5 per cent of electricity capacity and 2 per cent of electricity generation in Australia, according to a report from the International Energy […]
Developing nations drive global renewables growth with strong policy
Developing nations are driving new global renewables growth, with increasing numbers of governments around the world adopting strong policy mechanisms to boost renewable energy uptake and innovation, a new report […]
Rooftop solar continues to grow in Queensland
Queensland‘s rooftop solar rush continues unabated, with the addition of 3,687 PV systems in May adding 16.2MW of new solar capacity to the grid. According to metering figures from Energex, solar […]
Energy storage at center of discussion at Intersolar Europe 2014
Energy storage has dominated discussion in the opening days of the world’s biggest solar conference, the Intersolar Europe 2014 in Munich, with industry leaders pinpointing it as a major component of the […]
Australian concentrating solar demo plant sets solar heat record
A CSIRO-developed Australian solar thermal project has achieved what is being described as a game-changing breakthrough, demonstrating the technology’s potential to compete with modern coal-fired plants. The CSIRO Energy Centre […]
Toyota to install 500kW rooftop solar array on Victoria manufacturing plant
One of Australia’s largest rooftop solar systems has been completed, with the successful installation of a 500kW array on Toyota Australia’s Altona North manufacturing plant, in Victoria. Backed by the […]
Queensland regulated residential electricity prices to increase 13% from 1 July 2014
The average Queensland home on a regulated electricity tariff will see its power bills increase by around 13% for the financially year 2014-2015, or $191 annually, according to the Queensland Competition […]
Speed of BIPV’s growth will depend on technological advances, types of materials: NanoMarkets
In the growing market for zero net energy buildings, Building integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) products are increasingly sought by designers and clients to provide energy production whilst fulfilling a required function. […]
Abengoa feasibility study could pave the way for solar thermal with storage in Australia
Spanish renewable energy giant Abengoa has secured $450,000 in funds from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to conduct a feasibility study into building a 20MW solar thermal tower plant with […]
NSW government backs RET but recommends substantial changes
The NSW government has fallen short of calling for Australia’s Renewable Energy Target be scrapped, instead recommending significant changes to the legislation, including delaying its large-scale component, and clamping rooftop […]
Silex Systems says Mildura CPV plant on track despite ARENA worries
Australian company Silex Systems has sought to reassure investors that its flagship 100MW concentrating solar PV power project in Victoria is still on track despite changes to Australia’s clean energy […]
Regional Queensland solar feed-in tariff set for 6.5¢/kWh
The Queensland Competition Agency (QCA) has released its final determination on the 2014-2015 solar feed-in tariff for regional Queensland (i.e. the Ergon Energy network), raising the rate slightly from 6.3¢/kWh to […]
Renewable energy projects to get funding as USAid’s Power Africa initiative kicks into gear
A $7 billion fund through the United States Agency for International Development (USAid) will pave the way for greater deployment of energy projects in Africa, many of which will be […]
Lithium what? Know your Lithium Ion battery technologies
The solar world is abuzz with the advantages that energy storage systems can bring to solar owners. In Germany alone, their support for solar storage has resulted in more than […]
RET cuts would result in increased power bills for consumers, windfall profits for coal generators: BNEF
A new report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance suggests that scrapping or winding back Australia’s Renewable Energy Target would simply result in increased utility bills, and a multi-billion dollar windfall […]
Midsummer achieves record 16.2% production efficiency for CIGS on stainless steel
Stainless steel is not something one typically associates with solar cells, but Swedish solar equipment manufacturer, Midsummer, is hoping to change that soon. Midsummer, a thin film equipment supplier, recently […]
Government attacks Australian solar SMEs
The Murdoch Press are clearly well aligned with our Government’s transparent desire to destroy the renewable energy industry in Australia. Spouting the alarmist headline “Solar panels are time bombs”, the […]
Robotic tracking manufacturer QBotix attracts $12 million in new investment
QBotix, developer of robotic tracking systems for PV systems, has attracted close to USD $12 million in capital in its second funding round. QBotix is expected to use the funds […]
Newly elected Indian Prime Minister vows solar power for every home
India’s newly elected Prime Minister has pledged to use solar power to ensure that every home in the energy deficient nation would be able to run at least one light […]
Construction begins on Australia’s first concentrating solar plant with storage
Construction of Australia’s first stand-alone concentrated solar thermal power station with integrated storage is underway in NSW, with a project that promises to deliver electricity on demand, for around the […]
Cape York to be home to Australia’s first solar-powered mining operation
The first large scale solar plant for an Australian mining operation is to be built at the Weipa bauxite mine and processing plant in north Queensland. The remote mining facility, […]
Ambri’s liquid metal battery edges closer to commercialisation
Promising grid-scale battery technology startup Ambri has recently completed its third round of funding, bringing its unique liquid metal battery closer to full-scale commercialisation. Ambri raised a total of USD […]
Glass sphere concentrator offers creative solution to improving solar PV efficiency
Greater sunlight-to-energy conversion efficiency is something that solar photovoltaic technology manufacturers and researchers alike strive for, and cost-effective efficiency improvements are something of a Holy Grail in the PV industry. […]
AGL’s submission to RET review urges incentive reductions
Leading Australian utility AGL Energy has been accused of joining the electricity sector “dark side” after it called for the small-scale component of the Renewable Energy Target, currently under review […]
China to aim for 70GW solar by end of 2017, USA & India also plan big on clean energy
China is looking to more than triple its solar capacity by the end of 2018, as the US and India also look to boost their renewables and solar capacity. The […]
IEA: Solar to account for 27% of global energy generation by 2050
Solar power looks set to become the world’s dominant energy source, with new data from the International Energy Agency predicting a combination of PV and concentrating solar thermal and storage […]
