Europe is installing more solar panels than ever before, thanks to a flood of cheap Chinese solar panels, driving installations by 40% last year. But it comes at a hefty cost: Local solar manufacturers are on the brink of a total collapse that could happen within weeks.
Sarcos Technology and Robotics (Nasdaq: STRC and STRCW) plans to commercially launch its autonomous robot that installs solar panels in 2024 after achieving final validation for the US Department of Energy (DOE).
Enphase Energy (ENPH), the world’s leading supplier of microinverter-based solar and battery systems, announced Thursday its latest innovation – a bi-directional EV charger. The technology allows EVs to power your home during an outage or support the grid during peak demand.
The best part is that it establishes a solar-powered, all-in-one home energy system to give users complete control over their energy.
Solar electric vehicle startup Sono Motors has announced a purchase contract with European refrigerated trailer expert CHEREAU to codevelop a solar-powered version for fleet trucks and trailers. Together, the companies hope to leverage Sono’s solar technology to reduce both fuel costs and CO2 emissions. The new solar-powered refrigerated vehicle is expected to debut at IAA Transportation 2022 in September.
St. Petersburg, Florida-based Climate First Bank, which claims to be the world’s first FDIC-insured community bank founded to fight the climate crisis, today launched an online solar lending platform for Florida residents.
If there’s one thing I love as much as playing with batteries, it’s charging them up from the sun. And when it comes to my electric bikes, which are kind of outdoor toys by definition, being able to charge in the field is a pretty darn neat trick for extending range when camping or just spending all day in the great outdoors. I recently had the chance to test out QuietKat’s all-in-one electric bike solar charger for just that purpose, and I can tell you that this is a really cool piece of gear to bring on your next e-bike trip.
Today Ultra-Yacht announced its first-ever All-Electric Duffy Boat featuring a solar charging option at the St. Petersburg Power and Sailboat Show in Florida. The Duffy Bayshore 18 is a zero-emission, low-maintenance boat that offers up to 12 hours of fun on the water.
It’s been a big week for Taco Bell fans who don’t want to admit they’re Taco Bell fans. Just days after the restaurant chain announced a first-of-its-kind taco subscription service, EV charging startup ChargeNet announced plans to bring a comprehensive charging solution to one of the restaurant’s south San Francisco locations later this month.
Researchers presented a new road map to create perovskite semiconductors that can be used in solar cells and LEDs. Perovskite could provide many advantages over purely silicon-based semiconductors, specifically due to its fault tolerance in manufacturing.
Sin City is going solar, thanks to MGM Resorts International ($MGM), who just launched a new 100-megawatt (MW) solar array capable of offering up to 90% of daytime power to the company’s 13 resorts scattered across the Las Vegas Strip. This includes hotels like Aria, MGM Grand, and The Mirage. The solar array will support the hospitality company’s climate-conscious goals set for 2030.
Singapore-based Maxeon Solar Technologies has announced that it will commercially release its Maxeon Air solar panels this summer. The company says the Air solar panels are frameless, thin, lightweight, and conformable, with efficiency and performance the same as standard solar panels.
The growth in building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) – solar PV modules that are flush with the existing roof and perform the waterproofing function of shingles or tiles – since Tesla announced its solar roof in 2016 has been largely disappointing. Since then, BIPV has been a niche part of the residential solar industry, perceived as too expensive or experimental compared to the cost of separately installing solar on top of a traditional roof.
But big drops in solar cost and an increase in panel efficiency over the past few years, combined with innovation in business models, mean that BIPV could become the most popular residential solar option soon.
Electrek‘s Michelle Lewis spoke with Martin DeBono, president of GAF Energy, about BIPV and the future of residential solar. GAF Energy is part of Standard Industries and is a sister company to roofing manufacturer GAF, the largest roofer in North America.
LG Business Solutions USA today announced the release of two new solar panels with even higher output. According to LG, they are the company’s most powerful and highest-performing modules to date.
Vote Solar, the Coalition for Community Solar Access, and solar provider Sunrun (Nasdaq: RUN) conducted a study that found that if just a quarter of US households were powered by local rooftop and community solar and storage, Americans would benefit financially and environmentally overall in a very big way.
Aurora Solar, a San Francisco-based SaaS company that develops tools that enable solar professionals to design and sell solar remotely — rather useful in a pandemic, eh? — announced yesterday that it has raised $50 million in Series B, bringing the company’s total investment to more than $70 million. This round, which Aurora says is the largest single investment in this market, was led by ICONIQ Capital.
Many new EV owners (and solar customers) need to upgrade their electrical panel. That panel, which is so critical to your home’s energy, uses antiquated technology. It’s mostly a big dumb circuit breaker. Well, that was until Arch Rao came along to turn that panel into an intelligent, app-controlled energy gateway.
The 2018 Super Bowl winners the Philadelphia Eagles have been leaders in sustainability among professional sports teams for years.
And the team’s latest move is to partner with technology company PDC Machines, who will provide Lincoln Financial Field with a SimpleFuel hydrogen refueling unit to power vehicles and material handling equipment.
Researchers at the University of California, Davis, have published a new paper in the journal ACS Photonics that says “anti-solar panels” can generate night solar electricity.
Every now and again my news feed pushes something weird my way, and I’m always glad when it does. Today’s weird bit of news is a cool new product from a company called Motosola. They have developed a solar charging sun canopy for electric scooters that looks like it can actually put a significant amount of charge back into a vehicle.
According to the IEA, the spot price for ‘mono crystalline’ solar panels fell from 72¢/W to 45¢/W over 2017. That 27¢/W drop represents a 37.5% fall.
Mono crystalline solar panels offer at least 10% more efficiency than poly crystalline in the same hardware package/size/weight, and today – in key markets – are only 6% more expensive.
The solar panel industry is fighting physics’ stubborn hold on the secrets of photons exciting electrons – and the results of this atomic level focus are showing up for regular people.
A trio of solar efficiency records have been brought forward recently: Hanergy’s thin film unit developed a 25% solar panel, Trina Solar broke 25% with an IBC solar cell, and a lab in Europe has set an amazing record of a 26% solar cell using a standard, simple ‘p-type’ technology.
Panasonic has announced their new HIT KURO (black) solar panel. The panel sports a black backsheet and a black frame, plus it hits a 19.4% efficiency, totaling a peak production value of 325W.