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The Khavda solar park in India’s Rann of Kutch salt marsh. When completed, it will be the world’s largest solar installation. Punit Paranjpe / AFP via Getty Images
While China’s push to modernize sparked a surge in burning coal, India is turning to increasingly cheap solar to meet its booming energy needs. Though it faces big hurdles, including a rickety grid, India’s solar buildout could soon be a model for other emerging economies.
By Fred Pearce • May 21, 2026
A sea of solar panels is rapidly engulfing one of the world’s largest salt deserts. By 2029, nearly 60 million panels will cover 280 square miles of India’s Rann of Kutch, extending right up to the border with Pakistan. The Khavda solar park is set to be the world’s largest and most powerful supplier of electricity from the sun, with a generating capacity of 30 gigawatts — 30 times the size of a typical coal or nuclear power station and enough to power Austria. 
With India’s economy now growing faster than China’s, Khavda epitomizes the country’s breakneck rush to electrify with solar power. Installed solar capacity in India has been growing by 40 percent a year. In March, it passed 150 gigawatts, and by 2030 is set to double again. 
Analysts say the world’s most populous nation is on the verge of becoming the first major country to power its industrialization predominantly with solar energy. 
Cheap solar is “enabling India to develop without the long fossil-fuel detour taken by the West and China,” says Kingsmill Bond, energy strategist and director at Ember, a U.K.-based think tank that tracks the world’s transition to renewable energy. “China built on coal; India is building on sun,” he says. “And what India is doing could also be mirrored in other emerging economies.” 
India’s solar revolution comes as a surprise. Just a decade ago, apart from rooftop installations and a few microgrids serving remote rural villages, solar power was virtually unknown. The government seemed hell-bent on industrializing with coal, unleashing a rising tide of carbon dioxide emissions and supercharging climate change. 
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In 2015, shortly after taking office, Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to double coal output by 2020. And at successive international climate negotiations, his ministers pushed back angrily against demands that the country renounce the fossil fuels that drove industrialization in Europe and North America. 
“How can anyone expect that developing countries make promises about phasing out coal [when they] still have to deal with poverty reduction?” environment minister Bhupender Yadav asked angrily at COP26 in Glasgow five years ago, before sabotaging the conference’s planned declaration on eliminating coal from the global economy. 
But back home, policy was already changing. The country’s sunny climate made it a natural home for solar energy, and the cost of solar panels was falling fast. Ever since the Glasgow conference, India has been introducing solar energy at an accelerating rate. Last year, for the first time, more than half its installed generating capacity was from non-fossil fuel sources. 
Sources: Ember, Energy Institute. Yale Environment 360 / Made with Flourish
As booming India’s electricity demand continues to grow by more than 6 percent each year, the solar trend is set to continue. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), about half the growth anticipated between now and 2030 will be met by solar power, and another 25 percent from other low-carbon sources, mostly wind, hydroelectric, and nuclear. 
Leading the solar surge is the country’s largest private power producer and the world’s second largest solar developer, the Adani Group. Founded in 1988 initially as a commodity importer, by Gautam Adani, a long-time confidante of prime minister Modi and reputedly now Asia’s richest person, it is widely regarded as having benefited from Modi’s patronage. 
Eyebrows were raised in 2023 when long-standing military protocols banning all construction within 6 miles of the border with Pakistan were set aside weeks before Adani gained control of that land for the Khavda project. And in 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice accused Adani executives of paying hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to Indian government officials to obtain lucrative supply contracts for its solar energy and hiding this from potential investors. The case was dropped this month after Adani made offers to invest in the U.S., though U.S. officials denied any link. 
Still, the fast-growing Khavda solar park, which had installed capacity of 9.4 gigawatts as of April, is the jewel in the Adani crown. Its panels are attended by robots that dry-clean them at night to remove desert salt and dust without requiring precious freshwater. The project also includes wind turbines in the windy coastal region on the shores of the Arabian Sea, which should secure nighttime power for the grid. 
India still has a long way to go to break its dependence on fossil fuels. Coal still delivers most of the country’s baseload and fuels about 70 percent of total power generation. It helps make India the world’s third largest carbon dioxide emitter, after China and the U.S, and is a major cause of the country’s urban smogs, which are the worst in the world. But the target to double coal mining output has been quietly forgotten, and construction of coal-fired power stations is much reduced. Coal’s share in the energy mix is set to fall below 50 percent by 2035, according to the IEA.
Still, with its enormous generating capacity, coal remains deeply entrenched. And there are other constraints on how much solar power can contribute to keeping the lights on in India. While solar last year made up 28 percent of the country’s total installed electricity generating capacity, it accounted for only 9.4 percent of the electricity put into supply. 
Why the difference? There are two reasons. 
Transmission lines carry power from the Pavagada Solar Park in Vollur, India. Abhishek Chinnappa / Getty Images
The first is that the country’s outdated grid cannot yet transmit all the solar power being captured in the deserts of western India to where it is needed in the urban heartlands. At times last year, almost 40 percent of the country’s solar power output did not reach customers. 
Charith Konda, an India-based energy researcher for the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, attributes this to the rapid growth of solar facilities, which has outstripped grid development. “Solar plants typically take 18 to 24 months to build, while transmission projects usually take about five years… The grid is trying to catch up.” To that end, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has committed to spending more than $100 billion on expanding the national grid by 29 percent by 2032, through a series of Green Energy Corridors linking solar hubs to major industrial and population centers.
But a revamped grid is only part of the answer, says Debajit Palit, who researches the country’s energy transition at the Chintan Research Foundation in New Delhi. Solar also under-delivers because India lacks the infrastructure to store renewable energy to meet demand after the sun goes down and during the cloudier monsoon season.
One solution being hurriedly adopted is to use water as a battery — so-called pumped storage. This involves linking two storage tanks or reservoirs, one higher than the other.  When the grid has surplus power, that electricity is used to pump water from the bottom tank to the top tank. Then, when the grid needs extra power, that can be generated by dropping the water through turbines to the lower tank. 
Pakistan’s solar revolution is bringing power to the people. Read more.
Starting later this year, a 1.4-gigawatt project is expected to pump water from one of India’s largest hydroelectric reservoirs, the Gandhi Sagar on the Chambal River in the state of Madhya Pradesh. Another, with a capacity of 3 gigawatts, is set for completion near Mumbai in 2030. In January, the country’s Central Electricity Authority identified 120 potential pumped-storage sites with a combined capacity of 180 gigawatts.
Another solution to the storage problem is lithium-ion batteries. World battery prices are falling dramatically — down 58 percent since 2023, says Ember’s global electricity analyst Kostantsa Rangelova, “making round-the-clock solar electricity increasingly viable.” 
Recognizing this, the Indian government has since last year required new solar farms to install battery storage so they can supply more constant power to the grid. Adani is currently assembling the country’s biggest battery storage system at the Khavda complex — enough to discharge over a gigawatt of power to the grid for three hours every evening. 
A worker inspects photovoltaic cells at a solar factory in Mundra, India. Shammi MEHRA / AFP via Getty Images
An additional concern is that India remains heavily dependent on China for the technology behind its solar push. While it now manufactures most of its solar panels, the silicon materials that make the photovoltaic cells largely come from China, as do three-quarters of the lithium-ion batteries essential for energy storage. 
The Indian government is working to address this reliance on its northern neighbor for the supply chain for its renewables technologies by boosting domestic manufacture. A more long-lasting constraint may be land. 
Solar panels require a lot of space — a difficult issue in a densely populated country that has more people than China on little more than a third of the land area. In a few places, solar companies are offering farmers the option to continue cultivating below raised solar panels, so-called agrivoltaics. But elsewhere solar facilities are evicting peasant farmers, creating angry protests. 
Occupying areas empty of people, such as the desert salt flats of Khavda, avoids disturbing people but may put wildlife at risk. The Khavda complex abuts the Rann of Kutch Wildlife Sanctuary in Pakistan, which is home to threatened species such as striped hyenas, desert lynx, jackals, and desert foxes, as well as critically endangered great Indian bustards and migrating waterfowl following the Central Asian Flyway from Siberia to the Indian Ocean. 
Despite such drawbacks, optimists believe that mass deployment of batteries should one day allow India to meet 90 percent of electricity demand from solar energy. “The question is no longer whether solar can power India’s electricity system,” says Rangelova, “but how quickly it can scale.”
Not all of India’s booming industries can easily banish coal and hook up to solar-powered electricity, however. One logjam is the steel industry, which requires coal to produce the intense heat needed for blast furnaces and to convert iron ore into pig iron and then steel. India has the most ambitious plans of any country in the world for increasing steel manufacturing, aiming to double production in the coming decade. “Steel is the elephant in the room for India’s decarbonization,” says Palit. 
But in other sectors, the news is better. The country is electrifying its transportation system, for instance. The 42,000 miles of broad-gauge track in India’s vast railway network have been almost entirely electrified in the past decade. Meanwhile, electric road vehicles are moving into smoggy city streets. Most rapidly, India’s ubiquitous motorised rickshaws, often called tuk-tuks, are being electrified. Some 60 percent of sales of motorized rickshaws are now electric, making India the world leader. 
Rooftop solar arrays in Ahmedabad, India. Ashish Vaishnav / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images
The choking of oil and gas supplies from the Middle East in recent months will only further accelerate the country’s shift to electrify its transportation sector, says Konda. 
Whatever the drawbacks, the rapid advance of Indian solar power continues, and marks a sharp difference from the energy path chosen by China and, until now, what has been seen by many countries as essential for their economic development. 
For years booming China was notorious for building a new coal-fired power station every week. But India is avoiding that path. Its coal use is only 40 percent of that in China at a similar stage of economic development, according to Bond. Instead, it is installing solar generating capacity at almost the same rate as China once built coal plants. 
As it boosts renewables, China still can’t break its coal addiction. Read more.
With India’s leaders aiming to complete the country’s transition into a modern industrial economy by 2047 — the centenary of its independence from Britain — this matters for the world. India’s current per capita use of electricity is only a third of the global average, a fifth of that of China, and less than a tenth that of the U.S. Closing that gap by burning coal would be ruinous for the world’s climate. Achieving it with solar power could go a long way toward saving the planet.
Fred Pearce is a freelance author and journalist based in the U.K. He is a contributing writer for Yale Environment 360 and is the author of numerous books, including The Land Grabbers, Earth Then and Now: Amazing Images of Our Changing World, and The Climate Files: The Battle for the Truth About Global Warming. More about Fred Pearce →
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JMK Research & Analytics Private Limited, an India-based research firm, has reported March 2026 installed capacity data for India. Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu accounted for ~92% (~4.9 GW) of the ~5.7 GW utility-scale solar capacity installed during the month. Maharashtra had the highest rooftop solar capacity at 221.1 MW, while Gujarat followed with 214.7 MW. Tamil Nadu had installed 196.8 MW of rooftop solar capacity, according to the March 2026 data. Maharashtra also contributed the entire ~36.9 MW capacity installed under the off-grid solar segment. Gujarat had the highest wind installations at ~445 MW during the March 2026 state-wise reporting period. Karnataka followed with 229.6 MW, while Rajasthan had added 120 MW of wind installations. JMK focuses on Renewables, E-mobility, Energy Storage, and Green Hydrogen across India and Asia Pacific markets.

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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against CAM Solar Inc., a San Antonio-based company accused of using fraudulent and deceptive practices to sell solar panel systems to consumers across the state.
The lawsuit alleges that CAM Solar violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act by misleading customers through its marketing and failing to provide the products and services it promised, according to a May 21 press release from the Office of the Attorney General.
The action stems from a broader investigation announced in April 2026 that targeted CAM Solar and several other solar panel companies. That probe was launched after the attorney general’s office received more than 100 consumer complaints.
Complaints involved misrepresentations regarding energy bill savings, the performance of the solar panel systems, equipment installations, and the company’s terms and policies. One complaint described solar panels that detached from a consumer’s roof less than a year after installation, damaging both that consumer’s property and a neighboring property.
Paxton’s investigation identified “nonexistent or significantly reduced energy savings, defective or nonfunctioning systems, improper installations, unanswered service requests, undisclosed warranty and maintenance fees, misrepresented tax-credit eligibility, and continued financing obligations for systems that failed to operate as promised,” according to the news release.
“This solar panel company lied to and deceived Texans with its fraudulent and deceptive sales tactics. My office will ensure justice is served,” Paxton said. “Far too many Texans have been misled into purchasing expensive and complex solar systems under the guise of ‘green energy.’ That ends now. I will aggressively pursue any bad actor in the solar panel industry that attempts to cheat Texans.”
The lawsuit seeks to halt CAM Solar’s business practices, recover restitution for affected customers, and obtain civil penalties under the DTPA.
The attorney general’s office said it will continue to examine other solar panel companies and pursue action against businesses found to engage in fraud or deception targeting Texas consumers.
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On-site solar photovoltaic (PV) systems can be made more resilient to severe weather events by leveraging lessons learned from field examinations of weather-damaged PV systems and from engineering guidance resources.
According to a National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) report, Solar Photovoltaics in Severe Weather: Cost Considerations for Storm Hardening PV Systems for Resilience, some measures to improve durability will result in higher upfront costs. However, these costs need to be weighed against the benefits of a more robust system with lower outyear costs for maintenance, administrative burdens, repair, and downtime/loss of production.
PV technologies are highly reliable. Analysis of performance data from 100,000 PV systems concluded that over 80% of systems performed within 10% of predicted production. 
The estimated initial costs of 13 storm hardening measures are listed in Table 1.
0.05 ¢/W (2%¹)
2.5 ¢/W (100%²)
0.05 ¢/W (2%)
2.7 ¢/W (100%)
¹ If 2% of the fasteners in a system are torque checked.
² If 100% of the fasteners in a system are torque checked.
Severe weather events strong enough to cause damage to a solar PV system occur in nearly every region of the country. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) produces a National Risk Index (NRI) which details 18 weather and environmental parameters at a county level. Use the NRI tool to look up weather risks at your site. If the results show at least “relatively high” rating for a weather event, then the technical specifications shown below should be added to solicitation and contract documents (see Step 2).
Apply the Recommended Actions by adding specifications to the solicitation and contract documents. Easy-to-copy specification language is provided in callout boxes. 
The Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) provides the following recommendations to inform the technical requirements of a solicitation and contract.
Use these design and engineering guidance documents when the FEMA NRI indicates at least a “relatively high” risk of “Strong Winds” at a given site. Confirm that the guidance is utilized by project engineers during the design review process.
American Society of Civil Engineers/Structural Engineering Institute (ASCE/SEI) 7-22 Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures
Structural Engineers Association of California (SEAOC) Solar Photovoltaic Systems Committee PV2-2017 Wind Design for Solar Arrays 
Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI) Solar Under Storm Part I and II
When exposed to wind, all objects vibrate, and depending on several characteristics of the array structures, arrays may experience violent resonance or severe frame member deflection, which could lead to catastrophic losses. Ensure that the racking design is engineered to withstand highly turbulent wind forces.
Due to the turbulence generated by wind flowing over parapets and around roof penthouses, solar PV roof systems should not be fully ballasted. Use mechanical attachments at strategic locations to prevent catastrophic loss.
Racking designs with vertical frame members need bracing to prevent lateral movement.
Require that racking designs anticipate lateral movement and are properly braced. One simple indicator of a racking system’s ability to resist lateral movement is the presence of cross-bracing in design drawings.
Racking system specified shall be designed to withstand lateral forces from all wind approach angles.
 
Rack frame elements comprised of light gauge structural channels have been shown to lack torsional strength and tend to flex in wind events. Torsional movement and significant flexing create a load path to the mounted modules and fasteners. This can damage the fasteners holding the modules in place or even fracture the modules in extreme cases.
 
A proposed design shall incorporate design features that can accommodate dynamic wind loading from any direction and prevent torsional movement and/or significant flexing.
Fastened joints are bolts, clips, and brackets designed to hold two or more parts together. Fastened joints are found throughout a solar PV system to mount solar modules to racking systems, hold racking frame elements together, and provide a means of mechanical attachment to foundations (for ground and carport arrays) or to a building structure (for roof arrays). Critical fastened joints are defined as the assembly of fastened components whose failure will result in a catastrophic outcome. For example, if fastened joints used to mount the module to the racking framework fail, modules could become dangerous airborne debris. Module mounting and racking assemblies typically have many critical fastened joints.
Many failures observed in the field have been the result of issues with fastened joints and components. There are broad common categories of failures seen with fastened joints: 
To reduce likelihood of fastened joint failures, use the following design guidelines:
Contractor shall utilize racking designs that allow module frames to be directly fastened to the mounting rails through the factory predrilled frame holes. Utilize DIN 25201-rated locking fasteners to ensure that modules stay mounted under wind-induced vibration.
If top-down clamp systems are unavoidable, use only top-down clamps with large surface area that have been independently tested for strength rating sufficient to hold modules in place under extreme wind forces found at the project site.
 
Tracker manufacturers have developed controls strategies that drive rows of modules into a stow position if high wind is indicated. This stow position is typically near horizontal but with a slightly negative angle of attack with respect to the wind. This feature could be specified for tracking systems in areas with high wind risk.
Wind pressure can put substantial loads on the front and back of modules and lead to micro-cracking of the solar cells and even fracture of the module glass.
For modules placed in service at a site where the FEMA NRI tool shows relatively high risk of a strong wind event, specify modules with front and back pressure ratings. PV modules should be tested per ASTM E1830-15 prescribed test parameters for loading (snow and wind) of solar modules (front and back). This test also covers several other stress factors relevant to high winds such as the “twist test.” 
 
Poorly secured or routed wire can be damaged from weather events and cause electrical faults. Plastic wire ties (regardless of rating or material composition) can fail from exposure to heat, ultraviolet light, and moisture. There is general concern that even exterior-grade wire ties rated to be ultraviolet-resistant are inadequate for longevity in field use. If plastic ties fail, wind can cause the loose wire to rub against sharp edges or abrasive objects, resulting in electrical faults.
To prevent electrical faults, do not use plastic wire ties to secure string wiring. Instead, use purpose-built metal wire clips and ties and avoid versions that are plastic coated.
 
Most electrical switchgear is shipped with default cabinet options which are not suitable for areas with marine misting, high winds, or wind-driven rains. The default cabinets can collapse when exposed to heavy wind, driven rain can bypass door gasketing, and a standard door latch can blow open in high wind.
For sites where the FEMA NRI tool indicated “relatively high” risk of a strong wind event, electrical enclosures should have a minimum rating of NEMA 3, and if exposed to marine environments, should utilize NEMA 3RX. Sites in hurricane prone areas shall utilize NEMA 4X-rated enclosures. Fasteners should secure the perimeter of the door, not just the door handle, to keep the door closed.
 
According to test lab engineers, most modules currently pass the IEC 61215 hail test standard, yet field experience has demonstrated that hail exceeding this standard can occur frequently in areas where FEMA indicates at least a “relatively high” risk of a hail event.
Learn more about how to determine and limit damage to PV systems. 
Consider including one of these additional, extensive hail test standards to your solicitation and contract documents:
For sites at risk of moderate to severe hail, contractor shall select a module that meets either the FM Global “Very Severe Hail Rating” (FM 4478), or Renewable Energy Test Center Hail Durability Test, or the Photovoltaic Evolution Labs hail test standards.
 
Tracker manufacturers have developed controls strategies that drive rows of modules into a stow position if a hailstorm is predicted. This stow position is typically the maximum vertical tilt the tracker system allows, which should decrease the angle of impact of most hail balls. Some manufacturers have lab-tested these stow strategies using hail cannons and have demonstrated good results. Consider requiring the use of tracker technologies if the FEMA NRI resource indicates that hail is rated as a “relatively high” risk or greater for your site even though this may add cost.
Weather events that produce standing water and/or wind can flood underground pull boxes and conduit. Water can then flow into electrical cabinets that house inverters, switchgear, controls, meters, and transformers. Array fields that are either uphill from or at about the same elevation as supporting electrical equipment are at risk of unintentional flooding through pull boxes and conduit.
Require project engineers to place equipment at higher elevations than the array field and route conduit to prevent flooding. Cabinets shall be equipped with purpose-built one-way drain plugs to allow water to evacuate.
 
Include contract terms that require a design review and approval process to ensure that technical requirements have been incorporated into drawing sets. Design reviews and approvals typically occur at a few intervals, such as 25% (schematic), 75% (full draft), and 95% (pre-final).
Contact FEMP for assistance with on-site solar PV systems.
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Credits: Statkraft
A floating solar plant quietly snuck up on a reservoir in Albania last year.
Its panels rested on an odd platform that used water itself as a cooling surface.
Engineers hoped the design would improve efficiency during hot summer conditions.
But suddenly, twisted sections littered the reservoir only days after installation crews downed tools.
The collapse confused observers. Nothing suggested an explosion or major equipment failure.
But weather records pointed toward something far stranger.
What took out the floating solar plant?
Banja hydropower reservoir in Albania is the home of what was meant to be a smart solar solution.
Developers wanted a floating array that could work alongside existing hydroelectric infrastructure. 
The plan came across as a good one—on paper, that is.
It may seem contradictory, but solar panels lose efficiency when they become too hot.
So cooling them with water naturally located underneath is smart, right? In theory, the cooling effect will improve electricity production.
The floating installation also avoided farmland or forested terrain.
So Statkraft engineers anchored the platform directly onto the reservoir surface.
Crews from one of Europe’s largest renewable energy producers finished assembling the solar arrays. All seemed calm as the water.
Then conditions shifted unexpectedly.
Wind speeds rose quickly over the reservoir basin.
Within hours, parts of the floating structure began breaking loose.
Disturbing photographs showed damaged sections folded into the water like paper.
Drifting everywhere except where they should have been.
Investigators looked to an anchoring system failure first.
The culprit turned out to be beyond the usual suspects.
Early inspections found no evidence of electrical malfunction.
The platform itself had been designed for rough outdoor conditions.
Attention soon moved toward the atmosphere above the lake.
Meteorologists reviewing local conditions discovered signs of a powerful rotating wind event crossing the reservoir.
Witnesses described violent gusts striking the floating structure without warning.
Engineers later concluded the solar plant had likely been hit by a small tornado or waterspout.
That mattered because floating platforms behave differently from ground-mounted systems.
The panels sat on connected pontoons that shifted with wave motion.
Once strong rotational winds pushed against one section, stress spread rapidly across the structure.
Anchoring cables tightened unevenly.
Parts of the floating array twisted sideways.
Several sections detached completely.
The reservoir itself may have intensified the instability.
Warm air moving across cooler water can sometimes create localized atmospheric rotation under the right conditions.
Statkraft believes the unusual wind event overwhelmed the floating system before operators could react.
Investigators concluded the plant collapsed after a sudden tornado-like wind vortex crossed the Banja reservoir.
The rotating gusts tore through the floating structure only days after installation work had finished.
Panels shifted out of alignment first. Then, sections of the platform separated as anchoring forces became uneven across the reservoir surface.
A renewable energy project that was changing the environment around it, dramatically at that.
Floating solar systems are normally designed to handle heavy rain and changing water conditions.
But violent rotating winds create different stresses entirely.
Unlike ground-mounted panels, floating arrays move constantly with the water beneath them.
That flexibility becomes dangerous during abrupt crosswinds.
The Banja incident quickly drew attention because floating solar projects are expanding worldwide.
Reservoir-based systems are now appearing across Europe, Asia, and South America.
The collapse highlighted how little data engineers still have about extreme weather impacts on large floating platforms.
For now, the damaged Albanian project remains a warning.
A solar plant designed to stay cool on water ended up destroyed by the same environment supporting it.
© 2026 by Ecoportal
© 2026 by Ecoportal

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Augmenting energy storage capacity is becoming an urgent need
May 20, 2026
Follow Mercom India on WhatsApp for exclusive updates on clean energy news and insights
India is meeting new energy peaks during the day this summer, but come sundown, power shortages are becoming more frequent.
Consider this: On May 19, 2026, at 3.40 PM, energy demand surged to a new high of 260.45 GW and was met with no shortage. Coal-based thermal power contributed the most to meeting demand, at over 162 GW. Renewables followed with 74 GW (solar 57 GW and wind 17 GW), with hydroelectric and nuclear making up the rest.
The morning trough was at 216 GW at 7 AM, indicating a 44 GW swing in demand during the day.  For the first time, non-solar hour peak crossed the 250 GW-mark at 10.38 PM when the energy demand soared to 251.54 GW.
The day’s energy peak preceded similarly high energy demand days when India’s electricity system met 250 GW plus without a sweat. An intense heat wave, which started earlier than expected, is contributing to higher cooling demand and the consequent rise in energy peaks.

It is a different story altogether when the sun stops shining. On May 19, the non-solar hour shortage was 698 MW. On May 18, 257 GW plus was the demand met at around the same time in the afternoon. However, the non-solar hour shortage was 1.3 GW. Two days earlier, the non-solar hour shortage was slightly short of 800 MW.
On April 24, the non-solar deficit was as high as 5.4 GW. The solar hour demand reached 252 GW that day.  The next day was only slightly better, with the shortage dropping to 4.2 GW, while the solar hour demand of over 256 GW was met.
These figures suggest that India’s challenge is not generation during the day. The problem is in shifting surplus solar power into the non-solar hour peak. The grid’s vulnerability is shifting toward the hours after sunset, underscoring the urgent need to augment battery energy and pumped storage capacity.
New demand from upcoming data centers and AI is likely to further increase pressure on the grid. The Central Electricity Authority has projected that peak demand will grow from 289 GW in 2026-27 to 459 GW by 2035-36.
India added nearly 547 MWh of battery energy storage capacity in 2025, around 26% year-over-year increase from over 433 MWh, according to the 2H & Annual 2025 India’s Energy Storage Landscape Report by Mercom India Research. India’s cumulative installed battery energy storage capacity reached almost 1,082 MWh as of December 2025. The cumulative installed capacity of pumped storage projects stood at around 7 GW, of which almost 6 GW is operational.
While operational energy storage capacity has not yet reached significant levels, installations are likely to grow substantially as tender volumes rise.
According to Raj Prabhu, CEO at Mercom Capital Group, energy storage is expected to play a critical role in India’s clean energy future, helping maintain grid reliability, enabling flexibility, and ensuring stability as renewable penetration continues to rise.
B.S. Nagaraj
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© 2026 by Mercom Capital Group, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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Sunrise, sunset: Lessons from Cambodia’s solar panel industry  Khmer Times
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European photovoltaic systems have generated enough electricity since early March to avoid an estimated EUR10 billion in gas imports, according to SolarPower Europe. The savings have averaged approximately EUR110 million per day, the European PV association reported.
Gas prices rose notably due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and damage to fossil fuel infrastructure. European gas futures peaked at over EUR60 per megawatt-hour in March, double the average of preceding months, before falling to around EUR38/MWh by mid-April and then rising again to about EUR52/MWh.
SolarPower Europe noted that EUR10 billion would be enough to install around 8 gigawatts of photovoltaic capacity in the EU, roughly 12% of total new capacity installed in 2025.
In 2025, photovoltaics met 12.5% of Europe’s electricity demand, up from 10.3% the previous year, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service. The service attributed the increase mainly to expanded photovoltaic capacity, which reached 65 GW in 2025, supported by above-average solar radiation in Northwest, Central, and Eastern Europe. Lower atmospheric aerosol concentrations, reflecting the impact of air quality regulations, were also cited as a contributing factor.
Renewable energy sources collectively met 46.4% of Europe’s electricity demand in 2025, similar to the prior year. Wind energy’s contribution declined from 18.4% to 18%. For the first time, combined wind and solar generation exceeded output from coal- and gas-fired power plants.
Interactive table based on the Store Companies dataset for this report.
This report provides a comprehensive view of the solar cells and light-emitting diodes industry in European Union, tracking demand, supply, and trade flows across the regional value chain. It explains how demand across key channels and end-use segments shapes consumption patterns, while also mapping the role of input availability, production efficiency, and regulatory standards on supply.
Beyond headline metrics, the study benchmarks prices, margins, and trade routes so you can see where value is created and how it moves between exporters and importers within European Union. The analysis is designed to support strategic planning, market entry, portfolio prioritization, and risk management in the solar cells and light-emitting diodes landscape in European Union.
The report combines market sizing with trade intelligence and price analytics for European Union. It covers both historical performance and the forward outlook to 2035, allowing you to compare cycles, structural shifts, and policy impacts across countries and sub-regions.
For the regional report, country profiles provide a consistent view of market size, trade balance, prices, and per-capita indicators across European Union. The profiles highlight the largest consuming and producing markets and allow direct benchmarking across peers.
The analysis is built on a multi-source framework that combines official statistics, trade records, company disclosures, and expert validation. Data are standardized, reconciled, and cross-checked to ensure consistency across time series.
All data are normalized to a common product definition and mapped to a consistent set of codes. This ensures that comparisons across time are aligned and actionable.
The forecast horizon extends to 2035 and is based on a structured model that links solar cells and light-emitting diodes demand and supply to macroeconomic indicators, trade patterns, and sector-specific drivers. The model captures both cyclical and structural factors and reflects known policy and technology shifts within European Union.
Each country projection is built from its own historical pattern and the regional context, allowing the report to show where growth is concentrated and where risks are elevated.
Prices are analyzed in detail, including export and import unit values, regional spreads, and changes in trade costs. The report highlights how seasonality, freight rates, exchange rates, and supply disruptions influence pricing and margins.
Key producers, exporters, and distributors are profiled with a focus on their operational scale, geographic footprint, product mix, and market positioning. This helps identify competitive pressure points, partnership opportunities, and routes to differentiation.
This report is designed for manufacturers, distributors, importers, wholesalers, investors, and advisors who need a clear, data-driven picture of solar cells and light-emitting diodes dynamics in European Union.
The market size aggregates consumption and trade data at country and sub-regional levels, presented in both value and volume terms.
The projections combine historical trends with macroeconomic indicators, trade dynamics, and sector-specific drivers.
Yes, it includes export and import unit values, regional spreads, and a pricing outlook to 2035.
The report provides profiles for the largest consuming and producing countries in European Union.
Yes, it highlights demand hotspots, trade routes, pricing trends, and competitive context.
Report Scope and Analytical Framing
Concise View of Market Direction
Market Size, Growth and Scenario Framing
Commercial and Technical Scope
How the Market Splits Into Decision-Relevant Buckets
Where Demand Comes From and How It Behaves
Supply Footprint, Trade and Value Capture
Trade Flows and External Dependence
Price Formation and Revenue Logic
Who Wins and Why
Where Growth and Supply Concentrate
Commercial Entry and Scaling Priorities
Where the Best Expansion Logic Sits
Leading Players and Strategic Archetypes
Detailed View of the Most Important National Markets
How the Report Was Built
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Historically significant in both PV and LED production.
Major PV manufacturer part of GCL Group.
Specialist in N-type TOPCon solar cells and modules.
Historic PV leader, continues manufacturing.
Leading LED chip manufacturer, part of Ennostar.
Major LED packaging company for lighting & display.
Leading Chinese LED packaging and component supplier.
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Solar Energy
According to Ecohome, transparent solar panels, also known as photovoltaic glass or BIPV, Building-Integrated Photovoltaics, are among the most promising solar technologies in 2026. In December 2025, Panasonic and YKK AP began testing office windows with perovskite panels applied to glass, with customizable transparency.
These panels function as a thin film over conventional glass, allowing for semi-transparent, decorative, graduated privacy, or almost fully transparent configurations. At the same time, they capture part of the sunlight and transform the glazed surface into an energy-generating area.
The commercial efficiency of photovoltaic glass available in 2026 varies between 5% and 12%, depending on the level of transparency. In the lab, semi-transparent perovskite cells already exceed 14% to 15% efficiency with visible light transmission above 70%, a range in which the glass still appears transparent to the observer.
The era of silicon alone in solar energy comes to an end with the arrival of perovskite, a material that captures a broader light spectrum, is applied as a thin film, and, together with silicon, reaches a theoretical limit of 45% efficiency in tandem modules.
Fernando de Noronha begins unprecedented energy transformation with a R$ 350 million solar plant that promises to replace diesel generation and change the island’s sustainable future by 2027.
While Europe and the United States rush to save their own solar chains, China already dominates more than 80% of the global manufacturing of solar panels and has turned the sun into an industrial machine controlled by Beijing that is redefining the global energy transition.
The Municipality of Montes Claros is investing in solar energy to benefit waste pickers, cut operational expenses, and strengthen recycling cooperatives with renewable technology capable of generating continuous savings and having a direct social impact on various families.
The conventional solar panel solved part of the clean generation problem on rooftops, but left unused the largest available area in modern cities: glass facades, skylights, greenhouses, stations, shopping malls, and commercial buildings.
A tall office building usually has much more facade area than roof area. Common solar panels cannot occupy these surfaces without blocking light, compromising the architectural design, and altering the original function of the glass.
Photovoltaic glass precisely solves this limitation. They allow windows and facades to continue illuminating spaces while also starting to generate electricity.
The direct comparison with traditional solar panels may seem unfavorable, as silicon modules reach 20% or 23% efficiency, while commercial photovoltaic glass ranges between 5% and 12%.
But this comparison ignores the function of each technology. The conventional solar panel occupies rooftops or open areas; photovoltaic glass replaces a window that, without this technology, would continue not generating energy.
In dense cities, where rooftops are limited and facades dominate the landscape, the gain is in the available area. Even with lower efficiency, thousands of square meters of glass can become a distributed solar power plant integrated into the building.
Buildings account for a significant share of global energy consumption, especially when considering air conditioning, lighting, elevators, equipment, and electricity used daily.
Glass facades are common in financial centers, hotels, airports, hospitals, shopping malls, and corporate towers. Today, most of these surfaces only let light and heat pass through, without generating electricity.
With transparent solar glass, the logic changes. The building’s own skin can help reduce grid demand, without requiring new areas, large rooftops, or aggressive visual changes.
Photovoltaic glass is not a single technology. At least three paths compete for space: luminescent solar concentrators, organic photovoltaics, and semitransparent perovskites.
The Luminescent Solar Concentrators, or LSC, use fluorescent dyes or quantum dots embedded in the glass. They mainly absorb ultraviolet and infrared light, reemit this energy to the edges, and send the light to solar cells in the frame.
The advantage of LSC is maintaining a very transparent appearance. However, commercial efficiency is still lower, generally between 2% and 5%, which limits applications where higher generation is needed.
The second technology is organic photovoltaic, known as OPV. It uses organic compounds applied as a thin film, capable of absorbing part of the sunlight while maintaining good visual transmission.
OPV is lightweight, flexible, and relatively cheap to manufacture. This allows applications on curved surfaces, special facades, building retrofits, and projects where weight and flexibility are more important than maximum efficiency.
The limitation lies in durability. Organic films tend to degrade faster with ultraviolet radiation, humidity, and prolonged exposure, requiring advances in encapsulation and lifespan.
The third technology is semitransparent perovskite, considered one of the most promising in efficiency. It uses thin layers of photovoltaic material adjusted to capture part of the light and allow the passage of the visible range.
Perovskite has an important advantage over silicon: its chemical composition can be adjusted to change the bandgap. This allows it to absorb more ultraviolet and blue light, letting part of the visible light perceived by the human eye pass through.
This control is essential for solar windows. The more transparent the glass needs to be, the lower the generation tends to be; the higher the desired generation, the lower the light transmission can be.
The biggest technical challenge of photovoltaic glass is balancing clarity and energy generation. An office window needs to maintain high visual comfort, while a skylight or secondary facade can accept lower transparency.
In windows that require maximum clarity, visual transmission can be above 70%, with efficiency between 5% and 8%. In skylights or areas where slight shading is acceptable, transmission can drop to 50%, raising efficiency above 10%.
This balance allows for customized application. The same building can use more transparent glass in work areas and more generating glass in facades less sensitive to internal lighting.
The test announced by Panasonic and YKK AP in December 2025 shows the current stage of the technology. The companies have started evaluations with office windows made with perovskite panels applied to glass.
The project in Kokubunji, Tokyo, uses four windows with different levels of transparency and decorative patterns, installed in treated wood frames. Each unit measures 723 mm by 1,080 mm.
The initial focus is to test installation and operational viability, not just energy generation. This stage indicates that the technology has moved from the laboratory to the validation phase in real construction environments.
Widespread adoption should still start with commercial buildings, airports, business centers, shopping malls, and corporate projects. In these cases, the cost per square meter can be justified by aesthetics, innovation, and partial reduction of the energy bill.
In the residential market, the options are still more limited and expensive. Common houses have less glass area and greater sensitivity to the initial price, making the financial return more difficult in the short term.
Even so, the trend is for gradual expansion between 2026 and 2027. As perovskite improves efficiency, durability, and scale production, solar glass tends to become more competitive.
Photovoltaic glass is not expected to replace conventional solar panels on roofs. The two technologies occupy different spaces and solve different problems.
The silicon panel remains more efficient for roofs, solar plants, and areas where opacity is not an issue. Meanwhile, photovoltaic glass is used where the common panel cannot be installed: windows, facades, skylights, and greenhouses.
This complementarity is the central point. The future of urban solar energy may combine roofs with traditional panels and facades with transparent photovoltaic glass.
Graduated in Journalism and Marketing, he is the author of over 20,000 articles that have reached millions of readers in Brazil and abroad. He has written for brands and media outlets such as 99, Natura, O Boticário, CPG – Click Petróleo e Gás, Agência Raccon, among others. A specialist in the Automotive Industry, Technology, Careers (employability and courses), Economy, and other topics. For contact and editorial suggestions: valdemarmedeiros4@gmail.com. We do not accept resumes!
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SpaceX Has Huge Solar Ambitions. The Challenges Are Vast.  Barron’s
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Researchers at the SCoPE Lab for Green Metals, School of Chemical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, assessed a laser-based end-of-life solar panel recycling process. The study compared three scenarios: landfilling, partial recycling, and full recycling. Using ReCiPe 2016 (H) under a gate-to-gate life cycle assessment framework, the full recycling process showed approximately 84% greater environmental benefits than partial recycling. Material recovery included aluminium, silicon, glass, and silver chloride (AgCl). Endpoint analysis reported improvements in human health (70.8%), resource depletion (134.5%), and ecosystem quality (365.87%) per tonne processed. Techno-economic analysis found processing 8,000 tonnes annually, equivalent to around 340,426 panels, produced only a slightly positive net present value. Researchers concluded the laser-based route remains constrained by technical limitations and current market conditions.

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Madison County Board Does Not Grant Special Use Permit to Proposed Glen Carbon Solar Farm  RiverBender.com
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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — News5 is continuing our “Convos and Coffee” segment by simply visiting local coffee shops and speaking with people about what they would like to see covered in the news. Many times, the feedback we get from people results in news coverage, and sometimes there are stories within the walls of the coffee shop we are visiting.
Solar Roast Coffee, which opened its Pueblo location in 2007, offers customers more than just a cup of coffee. The business takes pride in the fact that they roast their coffee beans,s using solar power. The business was founded by two brothers who built a homemade roaster from everyday materials, including a satellite dish, mirrored panels, and a broccoli strainer. A grant later helped them develop a high-tech solar-powered roaster. Click here to read the full story.
“The roaster is located in Pueblo because Pueblo gets about 350 days of sunlight a year — pretty ideal for roasting beans,” manager Aimee Bourdier said with a smile.
Today, Solar Roast operates two shops in Pueblo, one in Pueblo West, and the Colorado Springs location.
One of the first things we noticed when walking into the downtown Colorado Springs shop was records for sale. John Bueno, who handles graphic design and social media for Solar Roast, explained that their sister business is Analogue, where they sell books and records. As more services move online, Bueno said there is nothing like the feeling of vinyl.
“I think physical media is important and it’s tangible, you know, I think in a world where there’s less and less tangible goods, um, stuff like, you know, you can really feel,” Bueno said.
Analogue also features live music weekly and showcases local artists on a regular basis.
The full history of Solar Roast Coffee from their website can be read below:
In the summer of 2004, limited only by their imaginations and the contents of their parents garage, the Hartkop brothers set to work. Using solar concentrated energy, which had only been recently exploited by young boys with magnifying glasses, they had a plan. With their parent’s old satellite dish, one hundred plastic mirrors and a broccoli strainer they built their first solar powered coffee roaster. The Helios I , named after the Greek god of sun, was able to roast about a pound of coffee at a time. The brothers knew this was the start of something special.
While still working at their “real” jobs, they built the Helios II in the summer of 2005 and began attending festivals and events throughout the state to market and generate buzz for their new and unique product.
Continuing their passion, in 2006 they went mobile with the Helios III. The new roaster could roast up to five pounds of coffee at a time, was constructed onto a trailer and easily folded up to take their solar roasting experience on the road. The mobility of the roaster wasn’t just for convenience, but necessity, as they had realized they had a sustainability issue. Southern Oregon only afforded about three months of sunshine a year and made it virtually impossible for a solar powered business to survive, let alone thrive. Mike and David continued to attend events, making stops in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado, looking for a new home to grow their young start-up.
Hitching up their roaster in 2007 the brothers began their trek east, chasing the sun to Pueblo, CO. They settled on Pueblo due to it’s small to medium size and affordability, excellent solar exposure and the fact that it has its own university. That same year they opened their first retail coffee shop, aptly named Solar Roast Coffee, in downtown Pueblo with the help of their parents who believed in business so much they became the brothers’ first investors. Their dream had finally become a reality.
The Helios III was set up off site under a plastic dome to protect it from the unpredictable weather that Colorado can afford. Once the shop was established, Mike remained in Pueblo while David went back to Oregon to create a new large- scale solar roaster, what would become the Helios IV. It would be their most ambitious iteration yet.
The Helios IV went into operation in early 2008. It measured 35 feet across and could rotate and elevate to track the sun, piping heated air to the roaster located behind it. It was capable of producing up to 30 pounds of coffee at a time, with a batch taking around 20 minutes. With the increased capacity the Helios IV provided Mike and David were able to expand their product and message well outside of Pueblo. By the end of 2009, the company was serving over 40 regular wholesale customers spanning most of the western states. In just five short years the brothers took their simple idea and turned it into a commercial success, however they continued to innovate.
In 2010, Solar Roast Coffee received a business development grant from the city of Pueblo through the Pueblo Economic Development Corporation (PEDCO.) The grant was slated to be used by the company to create a new generation of solar coffee roaster, the Helios V and was put into production in July of 2012 on the roof of the coffee shop. The Helios V departed from previous designs, rather using a grid-tied photo-voltaic array that powered an electric heater for the roaster and provided electricity to the building when the roaster was not in use. This new system also allowed all their business operations to be done at one location.
Since establishing their business, the brothers have made a commitment to Pueblo and have been active members of their community. Their presence has not only improved the look of their retail location, they support the arts by hosting art walks and consistently use and support local businesses, even reviving a ‘Buy Pueblo’ marketing campaign. Since moving to Pueblo Mike and David have started their own families and want to reinvigorate the town with the charm that comes with living in a smaller community.
The brothers are proud of their commitment to serving only the highest quality coffee to their customers while also making sure those who grow the coffee continue to receive fair compensation for their hard work.
And to think this all started with a satellite dish, plastic mirrors and a broccoli strainer.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Colorado Springs Utilities CEO Travas Deal is requesting a pay raise over the course of the next seven months that would make his annual salary $700,000.

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The SMA Sunny Boy inverter turns rooftop solar DC into usable AC power. Learn how it works, where it fits in US home systems, and what to know before choosing it.
The SMA Sunny Boy inverter family has become a familiar name for converting rooftop solar power into usable AC electricity in residential systems around the world, including in the United States SMA, 03/14/2024. It sits between your solar panels and your home wiring and manages how solar energy is fed into household circuits or the grid.
As of: 05/21/2026 | Reading time: approx. 10 minutes
By the AD HOC NEWS editorial team – specialized in product-focused market coverage.
Buy SMA Sunny Boy inverter on Amazon
Check current price and availability for SMA Sunny Boy inverter on Amazon.
Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
SMA Sunny Boy inverter is a family of grid-tied string inverters that take the direct current from groups of solar panels and convert it into alternating current at standard grid voltage and frequency for homes and small businesses SMA, 02/20/2024.
The Sunny Boy lineup covers multiple power ratings so installers can match inverter capacity to roof size and expected production. Units integrate maximum power point tracking to optimize the operating point of the connected PV strings, improving energy harvest across changing sunlight and temperature conditions.
In day-to-day operation, the Sunny Boy measures grid conditions and synchronizes the AC it produces with the utility grid. In normal grid-tied mode, the inverter stops feeding power if grid power fails, which is a safety requirement in many markets to protect line workers and equipment NREL, 04/08/2023.
For US homeowners, an SMA Sunny Boy inverter is one of the core building blocks of a rooftop solar system, together with modules, racking, and monitoring. It influences energy yield, reliability, and how easily the system integrates with utility interconnection rules across states US DOE, 01/10/2024.
Because Sunny Boy is a string inverter platform, it is typically paired with several panels wired in series per input channel. This configuration can be efficient in sunny, unobstructed locations, commonly found in many US Sun Belt suburbs. Installers consider shading patterns, roof layout, and local permitting requirements when designing systems around this inverter family.
From an industry perspective, residential rooftop solar continues to expand in states like California, Texas, and Florida, supported by a mix of incentives, net metering structures, and rising retail electricity prices SEIA, 03/07/2024. Sunny Boy inverters participate in this installed base as one of several string inverter options used by US installers.
SMA Solar Technology, the manufacturer of the Sunny Boy inverter, supplies products into residential and commercial PV markets in Europe, North America, and other regions SMA, 01/24/2024. In the United States, Sunny Boy units are available through solar distributors and installer networks rather than direct consumer channels in most cases.
In the broader solar hardware landscape, Sunny Boy competes with other string inverters and with module-level power electronics like microinverters, which place conversion hardware on each panel. Each architecture carries trade-offs in cost, monitoring granularity, and behavior in partial shading, which installers evaluate case by case NREL, 06/15/2023.
For US readers, one practical implication is that a Sunny Boy system often uses standard AC wiring practices, standard disconnects, and established interconnection procedures. That can make it familiar territory for inspectors and utilities that have decades of experience with string inverter systems on rooftops.
Reactions and Discussions on SMA Sunny Boy inverter
YouTube PostsLinkedIn Discussion
Official Source
The official product page offers the most direct source on SMA Sunny Boy inverter.
Is SMA Sunny Boy inverter suitable for US grid standards?
Sunny Boy models are produced in versions that support standard grid voltages and interconnection requirements in markets including North America. Installers select variants that carry appropriate certifications for their jurisdiction SMA, 03/14/2024.
Can SMA Sunny Boy inverter provide backup power during outages?
Typical grid-tied Sunny Boy versions shut down during grid outages for safety, as required by many interconnection rules. Some system designs add separate backup or storage solutions. Homeowners should consult installers about specific backup options and components.
How does SMA Sunny Boy inverter compare with microinverters?
Sunny Boy uses a string architecture, which can offer cost advantages at scale, while microinverters place electronics on each panel for module-level optimization. The best choice depends on shading, roof layout, and installer preferences, based on site assessment and code compliance.
Read More
Additional reports and developments around SMA Sunny Boy inverter are available in the overview.
More on SMA Sunny Boy inverter
SMA Sunny Boy inverter is produced by SMA Solar Technology, a German company focused on photovoltaic system technology. For US readers, this inverter line is part of the hardware ecosystem that underpins many residential rooftop systems offered by installers.
The issuer behind SMA Solar Technology shares is identified by the ISIN DE000SMA1718 in capital markets contexts. This identifier is used in financial reporting and trading systems but does not affect how the Sunny Boy inverter functions in solar installations.
Disclaimer: This article does not constitute investment advice. Stocks are volatile financial instruments.

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by Editorial Staff

Italy’s electricity demand continued its upward trend in April 2026, reaching 23.9 billion kWh, a 1.9% increase compared with the same month in 2025. According to data published by Terna, the rise reflects not only higher temperatures and one additional working day, but also a structural transformation in the country’s industrial and renewable energy systems.

After adjusting for calendar and temperature effects, electricity demand still recorded a 1.5% increase, confirming a broader growth trajectory that has characterised the Italian market since the beginning of the year. Between January and April 2026, national electricity consumption rose by 2.8% compared with the same period last year.

The increase was geographically widespread, although southern Italy and the islands showed the strongest growth at 3.3%, followed by central regions at 1.7% and northern Italy at 1.3%. Analysts associate this trend with stronger economic activity, higher cooling demand and the accelerating electrification of industrial processes.

A particularly significant element emerging from the data concerns the behaviour of energy-intensive industries. During several days in April characterised by low electricity demand and exceptionally high renewable generation, industrial operators adapted their production schedules to support grid flexibility. Through Terna’s Instantaneous Upward Modulation Service, companies maintained operations during holidays and weekends, helping stabilise the system while maximising renewable energy integration.

Industrial flexibility supports renewable integration

The IMCEI index, which monitors electricity consumption among approximately 1,000 energy-intensive industrial companies, rose by 8.8% in April, marking the eighth consecutive month of growth. During periods of strong renewable generation, industrial electricity demand exceeded levels recorded on equivalent days in 2025 by more than 60%.

This flexible consumption model is increasingly viewed as essential for balancing Italy’s electricity system as renewable penetration expands. The ability of industrial facilities to modulate demand in response to solar and wind generation reduces grid instability and lowers the risk of renewable curtailment.

In cumulative terms, the IMCEI index recorded a 5.2% increase during the first four months of 2026. Nearly all industrial sectors showed positive growth, with the exception of the chemical industry, which registered a contraction.

Meanwhile, the services sector remained broadly stable. Terna’s IMSER index, based on consumption data from Italian distribution operators including E-Distribuzione, UNARETI and Edyna, showed a marginal decline of 0.4% in February 2026, while the first two months of the year still recorded an overall increase of 1.4%.

Photovoltaics become Italy’s leading renewable source

April 2026 marked a milestone for the Italian energy transition as photovoltaic generation became the country’s largest renewable electricity source. Solar production exceeded 5 billion kWh, increasing by 23.7% compared with April 2025.

The growth was driven primarily by new installed capacity, which expanded by 2,161 MW since the beginning of the year. According to Terna, solar energy contributed an additional 1,029 GWh compared with last year, including 747 GWh linked directly to new installations and 282 GWh associated with improved solar irradiation conditions.

Overall, renewable sources covered 49.5% of Italy’s electricity demand in April, remaining broadly aligned with the 50.3% recorded in the same period of 2025. However, while solar generation expanded significantly, other renewable technologies experienced declines. Hydroelectric generation fell by 22.8%, wind power declined by 0.6%, geothermal energy contracted by 2.3% and thermal generation decreased by 8%.

By the end of April, Italy’s total installed renewable capacity had reached 85,928 MW, including 45,674 MW of solar and 13,865 MW of wind power. Storage infrastructure also continued to expand rapidly, with more than 930,000 storage systems installed nationwide, corresponding to 19,015 MWh of storage capacity and 7,840 MW of nominal power.

Domestic electricity production covered 81.2% of total demand, while imports accounted for the remaining 18.8%. Although national generation declined by 2.2%, higher imports and reduced exports led to a 32.4% increase in the foreign electricity balance.

The data confirms that Italy’s energy transition is entering a new phase in which photovoltaic generation, industrial flexibility and storage systems are becoming central pillars of national energy security and decarbonisation strategy.

 

Cover: image by Envato

Italy’s electricity demand continued its upward trend in April 2026, reaching 23.9 billion kWh, a 1.9% increase compared with the same month in 2025. According to data published by Terna, the rise reflects not only higher temperatures and one additional working day, but also a structural transformation in the country’s industrial and renewable energy systems.
After adjusting for calendar and temperature effects, electricity demand still recorded a 1.5% increase, confirming a broader growth trajectory that has characterised the Italian market since the beginning of the year. Between January and April 2026, national electricity consumption rose by 2.8% compared with the same period last year.
The increase was geographically widespread, although southern Italy and the islands showed the strongest growth at 3.3%, followed by central regions at 1.7% and northern Italy at 1.3%. Analysts associate this trend with stronger economic activity, higher cooling demand and the accelerating electrification of industrial processes.
A particularly significant element emerging from the data concerns the behaviour of energy-intensive industries. During several days in April characterised by low electricity demand and exceptionally high renewable generation, industrial operators adapted their production schedules to support grid flexibility. Through Terna’s Instantaneous Upward Modulation Service, companies maintained operations during holidays and weekends, helping stabilise the system while maximising renewable energy integration.
The IMCEI index, which monitors electricity consumption among approximately 1,000 energy-intensive industrial companies, rose by 8.8% in April, marking the eighth consecutive month of growth. During periods of strong renewable generation, industrial electricity demand exceeded levels recorded on equivalent days in 2025 by more than 60%.
This flexible consumption model is increasingly viewed as essential for balancing Italy’s electricity system as renewable penetration expands. The ability of industrial facilities to modulate demand in response to solar and wind generation reduces grid instability and lowers the risk of renewable curtailment.
In cumulative terms, the IMCEI index recorded a 5.2% increase during the first four months of 2026. Nearly all industrial sectors showed positive growth, with the exception of the chemical industry, which registered a contraction.
Meanwhile, the services sector remained broadly stable. Terna’s IMSER index, based on consumption data from Italian distribution operators including E-Distribuzione, UNARETI and Edyna, showed a marginal decline of 0.4% in February 2026, while the first two months of the year still recorded an overall increase of 1.4%.
April 2026 marked a milestone for the Italian energy transition as photovoltaic generation became the country’s largest renewable electricity source. Solar production exceeded 5 billion kWh, increasing by 23.7% compared with April 2025.
The growth was driven primarily by new installed capacity, which expanded by 2,161 MW since the beginning of the year. According to Terna, solar energy contributed an additional 1,029 GWh compared with last year, including 747 GWh linked directly to new installations and 282 GWh associated with improved solar irradiation conditions.
Overall, renewable sources covered 49.5% of Italy’s electricity demand in April, remaining broadly aligned with the 50.3% recorded in the same period of 2025. However, while solar generation expanded significantly, other renewable technologies experienced declines. Hydroelectric generation fell by 22.8%, wind power declined by 0.6%, geothermal energy contracted by 2.3% and thermal generation decreased by 8%.
By the end of April, Italy’s total installed renewable capacity had reached 85,928 MW, including 45,674 MW of solar and 13,865 MW of wind power. Storage infrastructure also continued to expand rapidly, with more than 930,000 storage systems installed nationwide, corresponding to 19,015 MWh of storage capacity and 7,840 MW of nominal power.
Domestic electricity production covered 81.2% of total demand, while imports accounted for the remaining 18.8%. Although national generation declined by 2.2%, higher imports and reduced exports led to a 32.4% increase in the foreign electricity balance.
The data confirms that Italy’s energy transition is entering a new phase in which photovoltaic generation, industrial flexibility and storage systems are becoming central pillars of national energy security and decarbonisation strategy.
 
Cover: image by Envato

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Solar Power World
By Billy Ludt | May 21, 2026
As urban density increases and commercial real estate becomes more constrained, so too can the space for solar PV in those settings. But by switching solar to a vertical orientation, it can still generate electricity in narrower project footprints.
Credit: Sunzaun
Earlier this year, racking manufacturer Sunzaun completed what it believes to be the first vertical bifacial solar installation in an urban commercial environment in the United States at Bodhi Hot Yoga & Fitness in San Rafael, California.
Co-owners Beau Keeve and Katie Egan built a business, and along with it a community, centered on wellness and movement. They run an all-electric business and have dealt with the mounting pressures of rising energy costs. Their monthly electricity bills climbed from a few hundred dollars to over $2,000 as infrared heating and humidity systems drew entirely from the grid.
With a structurally complex rooftop and a parking lot where every space mattered, conventional solar wasn’t an option. Sunzaun proposed rethinking their parking perimeter as a power source to transform a business liability into a sustainable asset through vertical bifacial solar.
The project is 16 bifacial panels, each standing between 8 to 9 ft tall, installed vertically along the perimeter of the studio’s back parking lot.
Rooftop space on urban commercial properties can be limited and structurally complicated. Zoning restrictions, shared building ownership and city permitting requirements add further friction. The result is that many urban businesses that want to go solar simply cannot access conventional installation pathways.
Vertical bifacial solar is a proven concept in agricultural contexts in Europe, where panels are mounted vertically along field perimeters for dual land use. The technology works because bifacial panels capture light from both faces — direct irradiance on one side and reflected or diffuse irradiance on the other. Oriented on a north-south axis, they can generate meaningful energy throughout the day, with peak output shifted toward morning and evening hours rather than concentrated at noon.
What had not been demonstrated was whether this approach could work in a dense urban environment where buildings, trees and paved surfaces affect irradiance, and city permitting makes it more complex.
In Bodhi’s case, a section of the studio’s exterior wall adjacent to the panels was painted white to test whether surface reflection could meaningfully increase yield on the rear face of the bifacial modules. Early data on this variable will inform future urban installations where reflective surfaces — building facades, paved lots, painted walls — could be deliberately incorporated into system design.
“We’re the first, I believe … in an urban environment to do it in the U.S.,” Keeve said.
The solar project at Bodhi was built in about 10 days, which was slightly longer than the original five-day estimate. The crew managed city permitting, utility coordination and site logistics without requiring significant involvement from the property owner.
“Designed to offset energy costs in a constrained urban setting, the system required precise integration with existing electrical infrastructure and careful site logistics,” said Craig Dinsdale, chief performance officer at Sunzaun. “Despite these considerations, construction progressed smoothly with minimal challenges.”
A key concern for any urban parking lot installation is space preservation. In this case, no parking spaces were lost. Protective bollards were added around the panel bases, and the final installation was described by the owners as an aesthetic improvement to the lot, functioning visually as a modern perimeter fence.
Projected annual savings for the studio from solar are estimated between $5,000 and $10,000.
Urban commercial properties represent a largely untapped segment for solar deployment precisely because conventional approaches don’t fit their physical or regulatory constraints. Vertical bifacial systems offer a different pathway, one that uses perimeter space rather than rooftop space and can be deployed without disrupting day-to-day operations.
San Rafael is in Marin County north of San Francisco, and it is a community with strong environmental values, active fire season risk and a commercial corridor that’s becoming denser.
“We’re in this community for the longevity, and to see it prosper and grow,” Egan said. “Sunzaun helped put us on the map of putting our foot forward with that.”
Over the next 12 months, Sunzaun will monitor the Bodhi Hot Yoga, with particular attention paid to bifacial gains from the reflective wall surface, seasonal production variation and real-world savings against the pre-installation electricity baseline. That data will be published and shared with the industry.
Vertical bifacial solar is not a replacement for conventional rooftop or ground-mounted systems. But for commercial urban buildings, it represents a viable alternative.
The Bodhi Hot Yoga installation is proof of concept. The data will tell the rest of the story.
Billy Ludt is managing editor of Solar Power World and currently covers topics on mounting, inverters, installation and operations.

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Global Solar Vehicle Market Size to Reach USD 7,423.0 Million by 2034, Growing at 29.88% CAGR  openPR.com
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Indian renewable energy company SAEL has commissioned 600MW of solar PV capacity in Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh. 
The projects named SAEL Solar MHP1 and SAEL Solar MHP2, were developed with an investment of nearly INR30 billion (US$311 million), spanning over 2,400 acres. 
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Each 300MW project is operated under separate special purpose vehicles – SAEL Solar MHP1 Private Limited and SAEL Solar MHP2 Private Limited. The facilities achieved commercial operations earlier this year. 
The plants collectively deploy more than 1.2 million tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) bifacial solar modules, most of which were assembled at SAEL’s manufacturing facilities in Punjab and Rajasthan. 
Power generated from the projects will be supplied to the national grid under a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI). During construction, more than 1,000 workers were engaged directly and indirectly. 
The development was executed under SAEL’s integrated engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) and operations and maintenance framework, in coordination with the Andhra Pradesh government and local authorities for land acquisition, clearances and grid connectivity. 
The commissioning comes as Andhra Pradesh advances its Integrated Clean Energy Policy 2024, under which the state targets INR10 trillion in investments across renewable energy, storage, green hydrogen, transmission and manufacturing by 2029. 
SAEL Industries, which operates across solar generation, module manufacturing and agri-waste-to-energy, reports a portfolio of 8,299MWp of solar-plus-storage capacity in India, alongside 3,625MW of module assembly capacity. 
The company signed two PPAs totalling 880MW of solar capacity with the Indian states of Gujarat and Punjab last year. In Gujarat, SAEL subsidiaries – SAEL Solar P Sixteen Private Limited and SAEL Solar P Seventeen Private Limited – signed a PPA with Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (GUVNL) for 480MW of solar projects, comprising an initial 240MW allocation and a further 240MW under the greenshoe option. 
The company also announced a 5GW solar cell and 5GW module manufacturing facility in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh. SAEL, through its subsidiary SAEL Solar P6 Private Limited, invested INR82 billion (US$954 million) in the project.

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Fairfax County local news
Land in Lorton that once served as a waste disposal site has been transformed into Fairfax County’s largest solar power project so far.
After about a year of construction, a completed 5-megawatt solar array now sits on 37 acres in a closed portion of the I-95 Landfill Complex at 9850 Furnace Road, the Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services (DPWES) announced Wednesday (May 19).
The county and project developer Madison Energy Infrastructure will celebrate the milestone with a ribbon-cutting ceremony open to the public next Thursday, May 28 at 10 a.m.
“This ribbon cutting event is more than a ceremonial moment — it’s proof that climate action and fiscal responsibility can go hand in hand,” Fairfax County Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination (OEEC) Director John Morrill said. “By turning a capped landfill into a productive solar array, we’re cutting energy costs for taxpayers, strengthening the resilience of our energy supply, and creating a model for future clean energy projects on county land.”
Previously owned by D.C., the I-95 Landfill Complex stopped accepting municipal waste once Fairfax County acquired it in 1995. It now primarily serves as a disposal site for ash generated by a waste-to-energy facility operated by Reworld, though it also offers recycling and disposal services to residential and commercial customers.
Fairfax County had targeted the closed portion of the landfill as a potential solar panel site since at least 2017, but the project was slowed by a need for the Virginia General Assembly’s approval — finally granted in 2020 by the Solar Freedom Act — and vendor complications.
The Board of Supervisors unanimously voted in September 2022 to lease approximately 40 acres of the county-owned landfill to Sun Tribe Solar, one of three companies that the county had partnered with in 2019 for a solar power purchase agreement initiative expected to bring arrays to more than 100 municipal, park and school facilities.
While the I-95 landfill project ended up being undertaken by a different vendor, the arrangement remained essentially the same. Under a power purchase agreement, Madison Energy is responsible for building, operating and maintaining the solar array, while the county pays for the electricity produced by the site over the deal’s 30-year term.
According to DPWES, the array will generate enough electricity annually to power approximately 1,000 homes and reduce carbon emissions by an estimated 136,000 metric tons. The county anticipates saving $12 million in energy costs over the next 30 years.
“This solar array in combination with our ongoing methane gas capture, bird habitat management, rooftop solar, and other site improvements clearly demonstrate our commitment to creating and preserving a sustainable Fairfax County,” DPWES Director Christopher Herrington said.
The county captures methane gas produced by the closed landfill and converts it to energy. Solar arrays have also been installed at the I-95 Landfill Complex’s administrative building, the I-66 Transfer Station on West Ox Road and the Newington Solid Waste Facility.
According to the 2025 Climate Action Progress report released by OEEC earlier this month, the county now has rooftop solar panels operating on 13 of its buildings, generating 1.8 megawatts of electricity.
Even without counting the newly completed I-95 array, there are over 5,600 solar installations on public and private land across Fairfax with a collective capacity of 49 megawatts — surpassing the goal of 46 megawatts by 2030 set by the Community-Wide Energy and Climate Action Plan adopted by the Board of Supervisors in 2021.
Coupled with energy efficiency improvements, the increased use of electric vehicles and other initiatives, the expansion of solar energy has helped reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the county by 28% or 4.2 million metric tons since 2005, though emission levels rose slightly from 2020 to 2023 as vehicle travel bounced back from the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a press release highlighting the progress report’s release, Morrill said the county is continuing to work toward its climate and sustainability goals “despite a challenging policy and funding environment at the federal and state levels.”
“The progress we’ve made is the product of strong partnerships across county agencies and alongside community organizations, businesses, and residents,” Morrill said.
Angela Woolsey is the site editor for FFXnow. A graduate of George Mason University, she worked as a general assignment reporter for the Fairfax County Times before joining Local News Now as the Tysons Reporter editor in 2020.

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Solar EVs could largely power themselves, researchers suggest  Euractiv
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A decision on plans for a solar farm stretching across 19 agricultural fields in Cornwall has been deferred.
Cornwall Council's Strategic Planning Committee has been considering an application from French energy company EDF Power Solutions for the site in Trelion, St Stephen. The company wants to build the 49.9MW solar array across 82.5 hectares (204 acres) of land.
Campaign group Stop Trelion Solar gathered outside the meeting to demonstrate opposition to the plans. Member Rose Barnecut said the land should be used for growing food.
The committee agreed to defer voting on the plans until after a site visit.

Cornwall Council's strategic planning committee had been advised to approve the application, despite opposition from the local council member, St Stephen-in-Brannel Parish Council and more than 100 people.
The council's planning department said the weight attached to the provision of renewable energy development was significant, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
But committee members said they were unable to vote in favour and decided to defer for a site visit by committee members and officers to view the "possible cumulative impact on the area".
The meeting heard the application received 137 comments on Cornwall Council's planning portal, with two in support. But councillors were told by officers they could only turn down the application if it was found to have "significant harm to the environment".
They were warned the council had lost the last six appeals against solar farms due to government policy and its promotion of renewable energy sites.
But Rose Barnecut, from Stop Trelion Solar, said her family had been farming land opposite the proposed site for more than 100 years.
"For us this is our countryside that's the backdrop to our lives," she said. "This is our land that's producing food for us.
"We risk losing all of this for it being taken over by a foreign multinational company that's actually chosen this area for solar development because it's easier, more accessible and therefore more profitable."
She added: "Of course we need renewable energy but it's a question of where we place those renewable answers and what the cost is.
"You can't just dump everything on the middle of Cornwall, you know, there have got to be other solutions to this."
Elaine Kist, the Reform UK councillor for the area, added: "This is not just another renewable energy scheme, it will spread across 19 fields on a prominent ridge overlooking the heart of our parish."
Cllr Nigel Spragg, of St Stephen-in-Brannel Parish Council, said the solar farm would cause "unacceptable harm to the rural landscape" and the surrounding infrastructure would be "industrial in scale and materially alter the character of the countryside".

Musa Choudhary, of EDF Power Solutions, told the meeting the solar farm would reduce reliance on imported energy and increase the country's resilience against volatile international energy markets.
He said the scheme had been refined following concerns raised throughout the application process. Landcape impacts have been reduced through amendments, the retention of existing hedgerows and additional planting.
Choudhary said solar farms currently occupied only 0.3% of Cornwall's total land area.
Following the meeting a spokesperson for EDF Power Solutions added: "We continue to believe the site is an excellent location for the size of solar farm proposed."
Follow BBC Cornwall on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@bbc.co.uk.
The 80-acre solar farm could be built either side of the B4399 through Dinedor.
Homegrown biofertilisers are helping some South East farmers mitigate the impact of rising costs.
Panels will be installed across greenbelt land at Owlers Farm, between Ossett and Kirkhamgate.
Residents of the Durham village bemoan a Planning Inspectorate decision to allow a huge solar farm.
One director, who has just bought 2,000 panels, hopes to safeguard the company's future bills.
Copyright 2026 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
 

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May 20, 2026
Shares of solar panel manufacturer First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) jumped 6.1% in the afternoon session after the company announced a partnership with GameChange Solar to support the deployment of its domestically manufactured thin-film solar modules in India. 
The collaboration is aimed at accelerating growth in India’s utility-scale solar market, helping developers comply with the country’s domestic sourcing laws. This partnership builds on two previous projects where First Solar’s modules were successfully deployed on GameChange Solar’s tracker systems, operating with nearly 99.8% uptime for over a year. Given India’s evolving regulations and a limited pool of compliant suppliers, First Solar’s established manufacturing presence in the country is expected to reduce supply chain risks for developers, positioning the company for further growth.
Is now the time to buy First Solar? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
First Solar’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 30 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The biggest move we wrote about over the last year was 11 months ago when the stock dropped 20.3% on the news that a U.S. Senate panel proposed phasing out solar and wind energy tax credits by 2028, raising concerns about future profitability and project viability for solar companies. 
The phasing out is expected to begin as early as 2026, diminishing the financial incentives that have been critical drivers of growth in the renewable energy sector.
First Solar is down 14.4% since the beginning of the year, and at $234.83 per share, it is trading 17.5% below its 52-week high of $284.59 from December 2025. Despite the year-to-date decline, investors who bought $1,000 worth of First Solar’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $3,064.
ALSO WORTH WATCHING: Nvidia’s Quiet Partner. Nvidia’s chips cost a hundred grand. The connectors that make them work cost even more. One company makes them all.
Every AI server needs specialized infrastructure the chip companies don’t make. High-speed cables. Power connectors. Thermal sensors. This 90-year-old company built a monopoly on it. The AI boom just started. This stock is still flying under the radar. Claim The Stock Ticker Here for FREE.
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US solar glass producer Stewart Glass is expanding its facility in Ohio with a new production line.
The “Line 2” expansion will be able to produce 250 tonnes of front and back solar glass for crystalline silicon solar modules per day once it is operational, Stewart Glass said, which is expected to happen in June 2027.
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The new line will produce “Ultra clear” glass of between 2.0-3.2mm thickness with a dual-layer anti-reflective coating (ARC). The company said all planning and engineering procedures have been completed.
Stewart Glass said the facility is designed to support “increasing demand across the solar industry while maintaining strict quality and consistency standards.”
The firm began operations at its first solar glass production line earlier this month. The second line will double its production capacity.
Expansions in the US module production industry have been considerable in recent years, with over 60GW of nameplate capacity now online across the country. With growing pressure on imported components like cells, wafers and polysilicon, as well as volatile prices for commodities like glass and aluminium, domestic US products have become sought after.
PV recycling firm Solarcycle is also planning to produce solar glass in the US, at a first of its kind facility which will use recycled materials to produce new glass. It has signed a prospective supply agreement with Illuminate USA.
Canadian Premium Sand is also planning to produce solar glass at a facility at an undisclosed location. It plans to build a factory capable of producing 4GW worth of solar glass annually, partially financed through federal tax breaks.

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Published by
Leatherhead Living – East Surrey News
on
21 May 2026 update – the appeal has been allowed for a Solar farm at land east of Cobham Road Fetcham. (Slyfield)
This means the refusal by Mole Valley councillors has been overruled by the Government Planning Inspector.
The Solar farm therefore receives planning permission.
The inspector considers the land is Grey Belt the new test of land within the Green Belt.
The land can continue to be used for grazing during the 40 years lifespan of the solar farm.
National policy on sustainable energy a key factor in the appeal.

3373058 Appeal decision.pdf full report of 133 paragraphs.

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LONGi Green Energy Technology remains a key global solar player while facing softer module pricing and trade headwinds. Recent disclosures on U.S. trade actions and industry demand trends keep the stock in focus for investors watching the solar supply chain.
LONGi Green Energy Technology sits at the center of the global solar supply chain, and recent trade and pricing developments have kept the stock on the radar of international and U.S. investors. The group has been mentioned in U.S. trade-related announcements in 2024 amid ongoing scrutiny of Chinese solar manufacturers, while sector data point to intense price competition for modules and wafers, according to coverage from international business media and industry associations as of April 2024.
As of: 05/21/2026
By the editorial team – specialized in equity coverage.
LONGi Green Energy Technology is a vertically integrated solar manufacturer focusing on monocrystalline silicon technology. The company develops and produces silicon wafers, solar cells and photovoltaic (PV) modules used in projects worldwide, positioning itself as a large-scale supplier to utility and commercial customers. It also offers solutions for distributed rooftop systems.
Historically, LONGi has been one of the sector’s cost leaders in monocrystalline wafers, helping it secure high volumes with global module makers and project developers. Over time it expanded downstream into branded modules sold directly to developers and installers, aiming to capture more value in the PV chain, according to company profile information published on its website as of 2024.
The business model relies on large manufacturing campuses in China and selected overseas locations, supported by continuous investment in high-efficiency cell architectures. LONGi’s strategy emphasizes research and development to improve conversion efficiency and lower levelized cost of electricity for end users, according to company statements and product documentation available on its official site as of 2024.
LONGi’s revenue is primarily driven by shipments of monocrystalline silicon wafers and solar modules to project developers, engineering, procurement and construction firms, and distributors. Demand tends to track global solar installation activity, which in turn is influenced by policy support, electricity prices and financing conditions in major markets such as China, Europe and the United States, according to sector analyses from international energy agencies and market researchers as of 2023–2024.
Module average selling prices (ASPs) and wafer prices are key variables for LONGi’s top line and margins. Overcapacity across parts of the solar manufacturing chain has pressured selling prices in recent years, contributing to intense competition among Chinese and international manufacturers. Industry studies on next?generation solar cells and module markets published in 2023 and 2024 describe a highly competitive landscape with many players pushing for efficiency gains while contending with price erosion and trade barriers.
Technology transitions also shape LONGi’s revenue mix. The market is shifting from passivated emitter and rear contact (PERC) cells toward newer technologies such as tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) and heterojunction, which promise higher efficiencies. Manufacturers that can bring these products to market at scale while keeping costs under control may capture share, but they also face higher capital expenditure and ramp?up risks, as highlighted in industry commentaries on next?generation solar cell markets as of 2024.
The global solar industry has expanded rapidly, with market research indicating that the next?generation solar cell market could grow at a mid?single?digit to high?single?digit compound annual rate through the decade, driven by decarbonization targets and declining system costs, according to sector reports released in 2023 and 2024 by specialized clean?energy research firms. Within this environment, LONGi competes with other large module makers and integrated solar manufacturers in China and abroad.
Competitors include Chinese peers that also supply modules and wafers globally, as well as manufacturers in the U.S., Europe and Southeast Asia. Some reports on the clean and renewable energy value chain identify LONGi among major suppliers of solar components alongside western and Asian manufacturers, noting the concentration of upstream capacity in China. These dynamics give Chinese producers scale advantages but also expose them to trade policy interventions in key import markets.
Trade measures, including tariffs, anti?dumping investigations and local?content incentives in the U.S. and Europe, can alter demand patterns for Chinese?made solar components. Since 2022, U.S. policy initiatives have combined domestic manufacturing incentives with enforcement actions targeting alleged circumvention of tariffs and labor concerns in solar supply chains, according to public announcements from U.S. authorities and coverage by major financial media as of 2023–2024. As a major Chinese manufacturer, LONGi operates against this backdrop, which may influence its export mix and regional strategies.
Official source
For first-hand information on LONGi Green Energy Technology, visit the company’s official website.
For U.S. investors, LONGi is relevant as a large player supplying the global solar ecosystem, even though its primary listing is in Shanghai. Trends in LONGi’s pricing, capacity decisions and technology roadmap can influence equipment costs for solar projects worldwide, which may indirectly affect U.S.-listed developers, independent power producers and inverter or storage companies that operate in the same value chain.
In addition, ongoing U.S. trade deliberations concerning solar imports from China mean that policy changes can alter the competitiveness of imported modules relative to domestically produced equipment. Statements and actions from U.S. agencies in 2023 and 2024 show continued focus on ensuring compliance with trade and labor rules in the solar sector, according to official releases and major news outlets in that period. Investors monitoring renewable?energy?focused exchange-traded funds and U.S. utility decarbonization plans may therefore track developments at large suppliers such as LONGi as part of a broader view of project economics.
Currency movements between the U.S. dollar and Chinese yuan, financing conditions for Chinese manufacturers, and shifts in domestic Chinese solar demand also form part of the mosaic for U.S. investors assessing global solar sector dynamics. As a key upstream supplier, LONGi’s strategic decisions on capacity, technology and regional focus can influence broader supply-demand balance and pricing trends in modules and wafers.
Read more
Additional news and developments on the stock can be explored via the linked overview pages.
More news on this stockInvestor relations
LONGi Green Energy Technology remains one of the largest global providers of solar wafers and modules, operating a vertically integrated model centered on monocrystalline technologies. The company’s prospects are closely tied to global solar installation growth, technology transitions such as the move to higher?efficiency cells, and evolving trade rules affecting Chinese-made equipment. For U.S. investors following renewable energy, developments at LONGi can offer insights into equipment pricing, supply-demand balance and technology trends across the solar value chain. At the same time, competitive intensity, policy uncertainty and cyclical swings in module pricing underscore that the solar manufacturing segment can be volatile and sensitive to regulatory and macroeconomic shifts.
Disclaimer: This article does not constitute investment advice. Stocks are volatile financial instruments.

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At a time when South African universities face electricity instability and rising energy costs, the project positions UP among a growing group of institutions taking more direct responsibility for energy security. The development is anchored in a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), securing long-term access to renewable electricity while reducing reliance on external supply.
The facility will be built on a 21.4-hectare site and will comprise more than 20,000 solar panels. Once operational, it is expected to generate approximately 22 225 MWh of electricity annually, offsetting more than 21 million kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions each year. That is roughly equivalent to the annual electricity use of around 3,700 South African households, underscoring both the scale and environmental significance of the installation. Beyond the technical figures, the project reflects a broader shift in how institutions are beginning to think about infrastructure, with universities increasingly investing in their own generation capacity to secure operational continuity.
AttSolar, a consortium comprising the Atterbury Group, Fledge Capital, and MPower from the Moolman Group, is responsible for the development and long-term operation of the facility. The partnership brings together privatesector expertise in infrastructure delivery, financing, and engineering, enabling a project of this scale to move from planning into execution within a structured delivery framework. It also reflects a growing model of collaboration between higher education institutions and private developers in accelerating renewable energy deployment.
The sod-turning ceremony brought together representatives from UP, AttSolar, project consultants, contractors, and key stakeholders, formally marking the transition from planning to construction. The event signalled coordinated alignment across academic, technical, and commercial partners around a shared implementation timeline.
A key moment was the signing of the first solar panel, known as the ‘Golden Table’ tradition. This symbolic gesture serves as both an activation milestone and a permanent record of the collaboration between institutions and individuals involved in delivering the project. It reflects the collective effort behind the initiative, spanning academic leadership, technical expertise, and infrastructure partners.
UP Vice-Chancellor and Principal Professor Francis Petersen described the project as a major milestone in the institution’s long-term approach to sustainability and resilience. “This marked a giant step forward in UP’s commitment to a sustainable, resilient, energy secure future,” Prof Petersen said.
He added that the facility would significantly reduce the University’s environmental footprint while strengthening its ability to maintain operational continuity in the face of ongoing national energy challenges. The project aligns with UP’s broader approach of integrating sustainability directly into core infrastructure planning rather than treating it as a supplementary objective.
Atterbury group chief executive officer Louis van der Watt emphasised the importance of collaboration in enabling infrastructure delivery at scale. “This project is a powerful example of how universities and the private sector can work together to deliver shared value and shape the future, bringing together expertise, resources, and purpose to create meaningful impact,” he said.
Van der Watt also noted that such partnerships generate long-term benefits beyond construction, including improved infrastructure resilience, reduced emissions, and strengthened institutional capacity for future sustainability initiatives.
Construction of the solar PV facility is scheduled to continue throughout this year, with full commissioning planned for December 2026. Once completed, the project will significantly expand UP’s renewable energy portfolio and reinforce its position as a leading institution in sustainable infrastructure development within the higher education sector.
More broadly, the initiative reflects a practical shift in how universities respond to the energy transition – not as a future aspiration but as an operational reality being built on campus today.

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Installations rise 55% QoQ as developers accelerate project execution
May 21, 2026
Follow Mercom India on WhatsApp for exclusive updates on clean energy news and insights
India added 2.7 GW of solar open access capacity in the first quarter (Q1) of 2026, according to Mercom India’s Q1 2026 India Solar Open Access Market Report, marking a 55% quarter-over-quarter increase from 1.7 GW and 160% year-over-year increase from 1 GW.
The growth was driven by a combination of regulatory push, anticipated supply-side concerns, supportive state-level policies, stronger market outreach, and improved project execution across key markets.
The implementation of the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) List-II for solar cells, effective from June 2026, emerged as one of the biggest factors behind the commissioning rush during the quarter.

Developers accelerated installations to complete projects before the new domestic cell sourcing norms take effect amid concerns over higher procurement costs and limited supplies.
Priya Sanjay, Managing Director at Mercom India, said, “Developers could not risk delays because if the projects have not been commissioned, they would have to forego the benefits of ISTS charges waiver and the ability to procure non-DCR panels.”
She added that once developers sign power purchase agreements with commercial and industrial consumers, pricing is largely locked in, leaving limited room to absorb higher equipment costs later.
State-Wise Installations
Rajasthan accounted for nearly 39% of solar open-access capacity additions in Q1 2026, making it the leading state for the quarter. The top five states together contributed over 84% of total installations.

As of March 2026, cumulative installed open-access solar capacity in India stood at 32.9 GW.
Karnataka continued to lead cumulative installations, with an over 23% share of the country’s total solar open-access capacity. Maharashtra ranked second with around 16%, followed closely by Rajasthan with nearly 16%. The top five states accounted for almost 77% of cumulative installed capacity.
Explaining the concentration of projects in these states, Sanjay mentioned that the regulatory environment, solar irradiation and land availability were key factors. In some states, solar irradiation may be strong, but regulatory challenges and land acquisition constraints limit open access growth.
Market Trends
The top five states accounted for over 86% of the announced installations.
However, developers could continue to face supply chain uncertainty and lack of regulatory clarity over the next few quarters.
Sanjay said some developers may delay procurement decisions while waiting for possible extensions to the ALMM deadline. She noted that during transition periods, suppliers often raise prices due to anticipated shortages, which can affect project economics and commissioning timelines.
The report also tracks activity in India’s renewable power exchanges. In Q4 2025, Adani Green Energy was the leading seller in the Green Day-Ahead Market (G-DAM), accounting for 34% of electricity sold.
The cleared volume of Renewable Energy Certificates traded on the Indian Energy Exchange increased 285% quarter-over-quarter, reflecting higher participation from obligated entities procuring renewable attributes through the exchange mechanism. In contrast, trade volume in the Green Term-Ahead Market (G-TAM) declined around 40% quarter-over-quarter.
Odisha emerged as the leading procurer from G-DAM, followed by Damodar Valley Corporation and Gujarat.
Demand from commercial and industrial consumers is expected to remain strong over the coming quarters, despite regulatory and supply-side uncertainties. Sanjay said the market’s focus has shifted beyond immediate tariff savings toward long-term electricity price stability through multi-year power purchase agreements.
“The demand is always going to be there,” she said, adding that corporations increasingly value fixed electricity costs over 10 to 25 years, even if immediate savings compared to grid tariffs have narrowed.
The Q1 2026 Solar Open Access Market Report by Mercom India is 92 pages long and covers vital information and data on the market. For the complete report, visit: https://www.mercomindia.com/product/q1-2026-mercom-india-solar-open-access-market-report
Meghana Prasad
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© 2026 by Mercom Capital Group, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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Demand for solar PV has risen by nearly a third as households react to rising energy costs and uncertainty following the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, according to a leading merchant.

Since the start of March, City Plumbing has seen a 32% uplift in overall solar PV sales, including battery storage, converters and accessories. There’s also been a huge increase in interest around the components commonly used in plug-in solar systems, following global events and the Government’s announcement of plans to relax legislation in this area.

At the same time, use of our online Solar PV Kit Builder has increased by almost 70% compared to the same period last year, as users explore system options and costs, as well as identify all the components needed for efficient, effective installation.

Alongside product demand, City Plumbing has also seen sustained interest in its solar PV courses. Delivered in partnership with renewable energy training specialist GTEC Training, the three-day course covers how to design, install, and commission rooftop solar photovoltaics at a subsidised cost of £264.*

“When energy prices become unpredictable, homeowners start looking at what they can do to take back some control, and solar is often the first place they start,” said Hemal Morjaria, Chief Commercial Officer at City Plumbing.

“As well as a spike in full rooftop solar, we’ve seen huge interest in smaller-scale plug-in components, and while they are not a replacement for a full system, they do show how awareness is building and often act as a first step before customers look at a larger installation.

“For installers, the key is being able to respond to this rising demand quickly and with confidence, and that comes down to having the right products available, backed by the right technical support.”

To support growing demand, City Plumbing has a national network of dedicated solar hubs, giving installers fast access to the products they need, when they need them. The hubs offer same-day collection and next-day national delivery, helping keep projects on track and avoid unnecessary delays.

The new solar hubs offer a variety of essential solar products, including modules, mounting systems, inverters, cables and switches, making it easier for customers to access last-minute items needed to complete installations.

*subject to funding eligibility
Source : City Plumbing
Image : Via City Plumbing: 1423664637 / AlbertPego / istock
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Finance panel clears ₹5,500 Cr floating solar + storage plan  Manufacturing Today India
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Europe has avoided €10 billion in gas imports since the start of the Iran war thanks to power generated from its solar PV fleet, according to research from SolarPower Europe.
The research said that in March, avoided imports reached €110 million (US$128 million) per day, with a cumulative saving of €3.76 billion over the course of March.
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Gas prices have skyrocketed since the outbreak of the US/Israeli war with Iran and the subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane. European gas futures peaked at €60/MWh in March, double the average of the prior months.
SolarPower Europe said that with €10 billion, the EU could build another 8GW of solar PV capacity or more than 44GWh of utility-scale battery energy storage capacity, “more than three times” the capacity installed across the continent last year.
Walburga Hemetsberger, CEO of SolarPower Europe, said: “The full costs of the energy crisis are still to be measured, but it is a price Europe shouldn’t have to pay. Solar is showing the benefits of a renewable-first energy system. The savings since 1 March are equivalent to Belgium’s recent annual defence budgets. 
“This is just a sample of what is possible. The energy crisis following the invasion of Ukraine is estimated to have cost 1.7 trillion EUR as bills spiked and governments looked to shield billpayers. Cutting the impact of gas on wholesale power prices must now be a priority.” 
The group said that increasing grid system flexibility through measures like energy storage, thus allowing for greater renewable energy deployment and electrification, is a “strategic necessity” to reduce Europe’s vulnerability to international energy shocks. It said that over the course of 2026, power from Europe’s renewable energy fleet would avoid “tens of billions” in gas imports, depending on how prices evolve.
“By adding more non-fossil flexibility in our system we can reduce the impact gas has on setting electricity prices. [the grid flexibility package] AccelerateEU is the first step, but we need concrete measures that can rapidly encourage higher levels of deployment and deeper electrification of our society and economy,” added Hemetsberger.  
While the case for renewables in light of increased volatility is clear on paper, there are growing structural challenges to the sector. A report from energy think tank Ember last month found that grid constraints could put up to 120GW of renewable energy projects at risk by 2030. We have also heard that the appetite for standalone solar projects has faded (subscription required) across the continent, pushing developers towards more complex and challenging hybrid and energy storage projects.

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New Strategy Enhances Tandem Solar Cell Efficiency  Mirage News
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Floating solar with storage to be new renewable energy engine for India  Fortune India
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Maker Luke Ditria has once again revisited his Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W-powered bird-spotting wildlife camera project, this time upgrading it with a 3D-printed enclosure and a solar panel with custom-designed photovoltaic HAT add-on for full off-grid operation.
"I started this project last year and I've made a few videos about the previous versions, but I'm back and with some pretty big updates," Ditria says of the project's evolution. "The device is still built around Raspberry Pi's so-called AI Camera, which uses the Sony IMX500 intelligent image sensor. This sensor integrates a camera and a small neural network accelerator into a single chip, letting you run a small neural network model directly on the camera itself to process images at up to 30 frames a second. I've been using this sort of edge-compute AI detection for some time now, primarily for autonomously detecting and identifying wildlife."
The first version of Ditria's autonomous wildlife camera was unveiled a year ago, using a Raspberry Pi 5 single-board computer and the Raspberry Pi AI HAT+ Hailo-based accelerator board to run a custom-trained You Only Look Once (YOLO)-based neural network model designed to recognize around 30 different birds. The first major revision to the project shrunk both the power and space requirements considerably, swapping the Raspberry Pi 5 out for the smaller and cheaper Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W and shifting the neural model to the Raspberry Pi AI Camera's Sony IMX500 image sensor while dropping the solar panel entirely.
The latest version effectively combines the two, using the same Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W and Raspberry Pi AI Camera but with a return to solar charging rather than relying on manual intervention. "[The last version] could operate through daylight hours before being taken back inside to charge," Ditria notes. "Having to collect it and charge it and remember to put it outside every night was annoying." A large solar panel handled the energy harvesting, but off-the-shelf solutions for getting that into a battery and the Raspberry Pi proved inadequate — leading to Ditria and a friend to design their own Hardware Attached on Top (HAT) add-on, the PV Pi.
"It has true maximum power-point tracking [and] battery charging up to a peak of 10A for 12V lithium-iron-phosophate [LiFePO₄] battery packs, which means this caps out at about 140W of charging with sufficient cooling," Ditria says of the PV Pi HAT. "As for the solar input, the PV Pi works with 12V and most 24V solar panels, so it's quite flexible. And, importantly for remote Raspberry Pi projects, it can communicate directly with the Raspberry Pi to report things like battery voltage and charge current, and also has a real-time clock for power scheduling and more."
For the neural network model, Ditria trained it for 52 local species to minimize false positives. "I collected and labeled a bunch of images from online sources," he explains, "and then trained and exported a YOLO-11N [object detection] model. I've also included that bird model in my GitHub repo, that's exported and ready to run on the [Sony] IMX500 camera [module]."
Project source code is available on GitHub under an unspecified open-source license; 3D print files for the enclosure are available on Maker World under the site's Standard Digital File License.
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AI gives China ‘God’s-eye view’ of green sector as data-centre demand booms  South China Morning Post
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TAIGUA has installed 1,133 photovoltaic modules at the Can Boada and Can Poal reservoirs in Terrassa, with the aim of covering the electricity consumption of both facilities linked to water supply with its own generation. The project involved an investment of 260,000 euros, financed 50% with European funds managed through PERTE.
The installation, however, introduces two different scales within the same project. While Can Poal will cover its entire annual consumption and have a surplus of 22%, Can Boada, despite concentrating 713 panels and a power exceeding 300 kW, will cover 18% of the annual consumption of a facility that supplies two-thirds of the city.
At the Can Boada reservoir, TAIGUA has installed 713 panels over a surface area of 1,484 square meters. The installation exceeds 300 kW of power and will cover part of the energy demand of a facility that consumes 2,300,000 kW per year.
Pere Mora, manager of TAIGUA, highlighted the project’s significance by recalling that the facility supplies water to two-thirds of Terrassa. In his words, the new modules allow for the internal generation of energy that the company previously had to purchase.
“This facility supplies water to two-thirds of the city, and having these photovoltaic modules allows us to obtain over 300 kW and generate the energy ourselves that we previously had to buy” – Pere Mora, manager of TAIGUA
At Can Poal, on the other hand, the company has installed 420 modules with a total power of 100 kW. This production will cover 100% of the equipment’s annual consumption and, in addition, will leave an energy surplus of 22%.
Mora added that this surplus is intended to supply energy communities in the area. The destination of the surplus expands the scope of an initiative that is not limited to the self-consumption of the infrastructure itself.
The commissioning of the two reservoirs is part of a broader strategy for solar implementation in the city. Terrassa currently ranks third in Catalonia in terms of the number of panels, with around 45,500 modules installed.
This volume of generation allows for a reduction of 6,900 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. TAIGUA’s project is also part of the objectives set by the European Union for 2030, which require a 55% reduction in these emissions.
Jordi Ballart, mayor of Terrassa, linked the action with the municipal energy model and with the application of sustainable energies to public facilities linked to basic services such as water.
“This project is totally aligned with the city model we are working on, applying sustainable energies to municipal facilities, in this case, to the water supply” – Jordi Ballart, mayor of Terrassa
Beyond this action, TAIGUA has already set its next investments. The 2026-2029 Investment Plan foresees an annual allocation of five million euros for actions on the network and service infrastructure.
For 2026, the planned budget amounts to 5,659,911 euros and includes the renovation of the network, the purchase of new electric generators, the application of artificial intelligence in the new software, and the installation of more sensors for active leak detection.

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Instances of cracks in PV module glass started appearing about five years ago. Spontaneous glass breakage is now one of the solar industry’s top issues, but manufacturing pressures and a lack of standards are hindering solutions.
Elizabeth Palmiotti uses a scattered light polariscope to measure the stress in PV glass.
Image: NLR
From the magazine
Solar glass is not supposed to break on its own – but increasingly, it does. Since about 2021, scientists, operators, and testing labs have been seeing glass breakage on solar modules with no apparent cause, such as impacts or extreme weather. This novel failure mode has been researched to some extent, but as its scientific name suggests, “spontaneous glass breakages” still occur without warning.
Spontaneous glass breakage in glass-glass modules is the most significant reliability issue affecting modules today, according to Kiwa PVEL. “We are aware of it occurring in multiple countries, with multiple module model types, mounted to multiple tracker/racking solutions,” the lab wrote in its 2025 PV scorecard.
Tristan Erion-Lorico, vice president of sales and marketing at Kiwa PVEL, said the phenomenon is directly related to the industry’s cost-saving efforts.
“Generally speaking, we have thinned the glass, frames, and encapsulant and gone to more aggressive mounting,” ­Erion-Lorico told pv magazine. “That probably all works on paper, where the ‘perfect module’ should be reliable over the expected lifetime. However, we have eroded the safety margins, and now microscopic defects along the glass edges or surface, improperly placed silicone or frame adhesive, edge pinch, pressure from the busbars, etc., can result in module breakage.”
In the second quarter of 2025, Kiwa PVEL’s mechanical stress sequence testing recorded a historic high, with about one-third of the modules’ glass breaking. In the last quarter of the year, the results got a bit better, with about one-quarter of the samples failing. But those are still unprecedented results in decades of commercial module manufacturing.
“While our test doesn’t provide the same breakage pattern as modules suffering spontaneous breakage in the field, it is a good indication of modules’ mechanical durability,” Erion-Lorico said. “A module that breaks after static mechanical load (SML) or dynamic mechanical load (DML) tests is likely not going to last 30 years in the field.”
New PV modules in power plants are now larger than ever. With glass on both sides representing more than half of a module’s weight, it is not surprising that manufacturers found room to cut costs by reducing its thickness. While previous PV module generations had 3.2 mm glass, current modules usually have around 2.0 mm.
“The shift to thinner glass is driven entirely by the customer. Glass manufacturers have had to invest significantly in new equipment to cater to this changed demand,” said Pradeep Kheruka, chairman of Borosil and Borosil Renewables, an Indian multinational solar glass manufacturer. “Glass manufacturers can safely handle large, thin glass, but as modules are now larger and heavier than in the past, they require specialized installation equipment.”
Kheruka added that responsibility for glass breakage is shared among different actors. “High pressure on the front and back glass from thick soldered joints is one factor that module manufacturers must address, while issues such as improper sealant filling leading to contact between the aluminum frame and the glass, or poorly finished holes in the backsheet, can also contribute,” he explained.
The US National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), formerly known as the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), surveyed potential causes of spontaneous glass breakage in late 2024. A range of contributing factors was identified, including reduced thermal strengthening in thinner modules, microscopic flaws at edges and surfaces, lamination-induced stresses such as edge pinch, increasing module size without corresponding changes to mounting and frames, and contact between the glass and the frame or trapped debris.
For a recent 2026 paper, NLR focused on the first cause and developed a non-destructive method to measure the glass surface directly on finished solar panels. Using this novel method, researchers collected data from numerous mass-produced panels from commercial fields, where glass has spontaneously broken. “We confirm that most 2.0 mm glass in PV modules is fully tempered, however, it remains weaker than traditional 3.2 mm glass. Our results show a clear correlation between lower surface stress and increased susceptibility to spontaneous breakage. This is an important consideration for modules that are supposed to survive in various environments for more than 30 years,” explained NLR module reliability researcher Elizabeth Palmiotti.
Palmiotti added that recent research found that although 2.0 mm glass can meet the threshold for fully tempered glass under certain glass standards, its surface compressive stress is generally lower, and the compressive layer itself is thinner.
“The thickness of this protective layer scales with general thickness. So, 2.0 mm glass inherently has a thinner layer of protection than 3.2 mm glass, meaning the same defect may break a thinner glass but not the thicker one,” she added, explaining it becomes more susceptible to defects caused by edge defects, impacts, and contact with the frame.
Henry Hieslmair, principal engineer for solar at DNV, an independent assurance and risk management provider, said investors are concerned about spontaneous glass breakage. “The general observation is that as safety margins are reduced, smaller and more nuanced factors begin to play a much larger role,” he said. Farid Samara, senior engineer for solar mounting at DNV, added that when projects with thinner glass and large module formats come to his desk, he usually requires a much deeper review of the module. “Module manufacturers often argue that structural testing should be the responsibility of tracker suppliers, while tracker manufacturers make the opposite claim,” he said.
This blame game ultimately points to a deeper issue: a lack of a clear, PV-specific standard for glass.
“There currently is no PV glass specific standard, meaning glass manufacturers and module manufacturers are not reporting their glass properties in any meaningful way,” NLR’s Palmiotti noted. “Having the community align on definitions for glass surface stress would be a huge step.”
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BSR submits Brailsford solar park plans  reNews
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As Europe’s first generations of integrated PV systems age, researchers and industry actors are only beginning to explore the long-term realities of maintenance, compatibility and repair.
Image: Becquerel Institute
Across Europe, the first and second generations of building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) systems are now reaching ages where maintenance, refurbishment and component replacement are becoming unavoidable operational questions. At the same time, European policy discussions around circularity and resource efficiency are spotlighting long-term system serviceability. Within several ongoing European research projects, including SPHINX and EVERPV, investigations are underway to better understand the technical, economic and regulatory barriers that currently limit repair and recycling pathways for building-integrated photovoltaics.
In Europe, BIPV using building-integrated PV products such as tiles, shingles, and ventilated facades has been a small but steadily growing segment of the PV market since the early 2000’s. Even if the basic category of products has not fundamentally widened over the past 20 years there have been considerable improvements in technical features and performance, ease of integration and market uptake. First-generation systems with roof mounted BIPV products are approaching the end of their theoretical design life of 20 or 30 years, and larger volumes will enter phases that require curative maintenance in the coming years. Whilst maintenance requirements are more likely to originate from components other than the module or laminate itself, such as cables, junction boxes, and watertightness, the combination of form-factor constraints and specialised support and integration structures means that repair is a distinct challenge.
European standards such as EN 50583 and IEC 63092 explicitly frame BIPV modules as construction products subject to both PV and construction-product requirements, including mechanical resistance, fire safety, watertightness and durability. BIPV systems act as roofs, façades, skylights, shading devices or curtain walls while also generating electricity. This dual functionality changes maintenance logic because a failed BIPV module can trigger a building intervention rather than a simple electrical repair.
A building-applied rooftop module can generally be swapped relatively quickly if a compatible replacement module can still be sourced because conventional rooftop PV has followed the same module technology evolution than the utility-scale and commercial and industria (C&I) PV market, with the main difference being the use of modular racking integration systems. BIPV, however, has simultaneously evolved in a different direction, with a slower PV cell technology adaptation, and bespoke products developed to meet the requirements of a broad range of architectural designs and building typologies, especially in façade applications.

Building long-term compatibility into BIPV products
The central challenge is compatibility. Repairability in of systems using BIPV products is strongly constrained by what can be described as “form-factor lock-in”. Many BIPV products are designed around specific architectural requirements including dimensions, transparency, colour, mounting interfaces, glazing composition and electrical configuration. Once installed, these systems may require near-identical replacement products decades later to maintain both building compliance and aesthetic continuity. European technical approval systems already reflect this issue. In France, for example, ATEC technical approvals are delivered for a very specific combination of module, mounting system, dimensions and implementation conditions, meaning that even moderate design changes can invalidate the original approved configuration, potentially affecting building insurability.
Analysis indicates that warranties from European module and BIPV product manufacturers generally reserve the right to replace failed modules with “equivalent products available at the time of claim”, rather than identical products, implicitly acknowledging that exact continuity cannot be guaranteed over long building lifetimes. For many ageing BIPV systems, the problem is not whether a module still works, but whether a compatible replacement still exists.
How can repair become economically viable?
France installed roughly 300 000 systems using BIPV products, mostly in-roof mounting systems, between 2006 and 2014. A survey of French PV maintainers and repair professionals suggests that the main barriers to repairing systems integrated into buildings are often economic and contractual rather than purely technical. Economic and insurance-related concerns appeared among the most recurrent themes in maintainer responses. Respondents repeatedly cited the high cost of partial repair compared with full repowering, particularly where scaffolding, diagnostics, rewiring and façade intervention are required.
Insurance and warranty continuity also emerged as major concerns. Several maintainers indicated that replacing isolated components can create uncertainty regarding the ten-year mandatory watertightness liability insurance (décennale) on roofs, ATEC system conformity and building insurance coverage after intervention. Others noted that older systems frequently suffer from component obsolescence, making it difficult to source electrically and mechanically compatible replacement modules without redesigning larger parts of the installation.
The survey also highlights barriers that are more specific to systems using integrated PV products, such as in-roof systems, falling under the French definition of BIPV. Multiple respondents reported that building owners often lose confidence in the system’s ability to maintain its building-envelope function after a defect appears, particularly in cases involving water ingress on integrated roofing systems. Waterproofing failures, ageing integration kits and uncertainty regarding long-term performance were repeatedly associated with decisions to replace entire systems rather than repair isolated components.
Maintainers additionally pointed to the absence of structured refurbishment channels and limited availability of replacement components, suggesting that the broader repair ecosystem for BIPV remains underdeveloped. Interestingly, professionals that indicated repairing systems more frequently were also those with more extensive professional PV networks. Together, these findings suggest that improving long-term BIPV repairability will require not only more durable products, but also better compatibility strategies, stronger maintenance networks and clearer insurance and warranty frameworks.
Rethinking warranties and repair pathways
Whilst system owners ultimately decide whether to repair, replace or decommission a failed installation, manufacturers and installers strongly shape the available options. A review of warranty conditions for BIPV products commercialised in southern Europe shows that manufacturers generally retain control over the remedy applied to defective products, deciding whether systems are repaired, replaced or financially compensated. In many cases, warranties cover only the replacement component itself, while excluding or only partially covering labour, transport, access equipment, dismantling or waterproofing restoration. This distinction is critical because, in BIPV, intervention costs are often driven far more by site logistics than by the value of the module itself.
For systems integrated into buildings, replacing the module is sometimes the easiest part of the repair. Replacing a façade- or roof-integrated module can require scaffolding, temporary weather protection, dismantling surrounding building elements, specialised glazing operations and electrical safety procedures to maintain compliance with insurance, safety and building-performance requirements. In some contexts, particularly in France, remuneration schemes linked to BIPV feed-in tariffs restrict the extent to which systems can be modified while retaining tariff eligibility. If compatible replacement products are unavailable, producers may therefore face very limited repair options.
Preliminary techno-economic analyses undertaken in the Horizon Europe SPHINX project indicate that intervention costs of several thousand euros are common even for relatively small systems, particularly where accessibility is difficult. However, robust comparative data on real-world BIPV repair, access and intervention costs remain extremely limited across Europe, particularly for ageing integrated systems.
Current research activities are therefore seeking to better document how labour, access constraints, insurance requirements cost influence repair decisions in practice. Under these conditions, repair rapidly becomes an economic rather than technical question.
Several maintainers interviewed within SPHINX project indicated that scaffolding and waterproofing interventions alone can exceed the residual economic value of continued electricity production for ageing small roof-integrated systems. Where no immediate safety or building-function issues exist, decommissioning or full repowering may therefore become financially more attractive than partial repair.
In practice, the key issue is rarely whether repair is technically possible, but whether any actor is willing to assume the operational, financial and insurance risks associated with carrying it out. Current warranty structures and maintenance practices often prioritise rapid restoration of production and contractual clarity over component-level repair.
Preserving compatibility through digital continuity
Because compatibility over several decades may become one of the main repairability barriers, manufacturers are increasingly exploring digital continuity strategies. For architecturally unique systems, digital archives can preserve dimensions, glazing composition, colour rendering, transparency levels, mounting interfaces and electrical characteristics, allowing replacement products to be reproduced even after the original production line has disappeared. This approach directly addresses one of the main repairability barriers identified in BIPV: the impossibility of sourcing visually and electrically compatible replacements years after installation.
New module architectures for maintainable BIPV products
Innovative module architectures such as matrix shingling may also improve long-term maintainability by reducing dependence on fixed electrical formats. Conventional PV modules and laminates are highly constrained by voltage and current compatibility requirements, making replacement difficult when older cell technologies disappear from the market. Matrix-based shingled architectures introduce greater flexibility in electrical configuration, potentially allowing replacement laminates to reproduce legacy electrical characteristics using newer cells and manufacturing technologies. Such adaptability could help maintain compatibility with existing inverters and strings while avoiding complete system replacement.
Long lifetimes matter
Many first-generation BIPV systems remain structurally functional even when their electrical performance declines or isolated failures occur. Yet without economically viable repair pathways, otherwise serviceable systems risk premature decommissioning and replacement. Repair and reuse may ultimately become just as important as recycling. However, second-life reuse pathways for BIPV remain limited by certification constraints, insurance requirements, the absence of standardised testing procedures for reused modules and the difficulty of guaranteeing long-term building-envelope compliance after reintegration into buildings.
In this context, future European BIPV products may need to be designed not only for efficiency and aesthetics, but also for maintainability, traceability and compatibility with long building life cycles.
The questions surrounding repairability are still emerging, and many of the operational practices, insurance frameworks and refurbishment pathways that may ultimately support long-life integrated PV systems remain under development. Across Europe, manufacturers, maintainers, insurers, researchers and building professionals are beginning to explore how future BIPV systems can better integrate maintainability, digital traceability and long-term service strategies from the design phase onward.
As part of this ongoing work, the Becquerel Institute and project partners are continuing to collect field feedback and operational data from manufacturers, installers and maintenance professionals in order to better quantify repair practices, intervention costs and long-term maintenance pathways for BIPV systems.
These topics will also be discussed during the upcoming EU co-financed SPHINX/FORESI workshop on BIPV repairability and circularity taking place on 16 June in Lyon, France.
Free registration: more information
Authors: Mélodie de l’Epine, Research & Innovation projects, Becquerel Institute & Jose M^a Vega de Seoane, Managing Director, Becquerel Institute España.
Funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe, Grant Agreement No. 101136094 — SPHINX and No. 101122208 – EVERPV. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
Becquerel Institute is a strategic consulting company and applied research institute specialising in solar photovoltaics and energy transition. Founded in Brussels in 2014, with regional offices in France, Italy, and Spain, the company provides strategic advice to companies, public authorities and international organisations, across all segments of the PV value chain. Becquerel Institute is a recognised partner in European and international research programmes.
 
The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own, and do not necessarily reflect those held by pv magazine.
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New organic device can both generate power and emit light  Tech Explorist
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Research from Indiana University suggests that concerns over the impact of solar development on US agricultural production are largely exaggerated, with prices for maize, soybeans and wheat expected to increase by less than 5.6% if the build out of utility-scale solar on cropland is consistent with historical patterns.
Image: pv magazine / AI generated
Expanding utility-scale solar in the United States is unlikely to compromise food security, according to new research.
Researchers Jerome Dumortier and Rafael M. Almeida, from Indiana University, used a county-level agricultural model to explore how replacing cropland with utility-scale solar farms could affect land allocation, crop prices, agricultural production and farm revenue for major crops across the United States.
A baseline solar expansion scenario found that if 40% of future solar development is placed on cropland, a rate the research paper says is consistent with historical patterns, prices for maize, soybeans and wheat would increase by less than 5.6%. This figure is around a third compared to long-term estimates associated with biofuel production.
Under a large solar expansion scenario which considered the impact if 80% of new solar development occurs on cropland, price increases were calculated at 9.6% and 8.8% for maize and soybeans, increasing to 18.4% for wheat. The differentiation is explained by wheat being located in areas with higher solar potential, the research paper says.
The paper explains that the effects on commodity prices are moderate due to total area of land being substantially larger than the area required for solar farms. “Notably, the scenarios modeled in this analysis are also unlikely since they rely on high shares of cropland replacement to meet future PV deployment targets, and they do not consider siting on pasture, grassland, or marginal cropland,” it adds.
Dumortier told pv magazine that a central goal of the research was to replace speculation with data as debates over where to build solar projects become more heated.
“Much of the public debate around solar development on farmland has been driven by incomplete comparisons. Some estimates reported in the media are comparing the solar land requirements to states the size of New Jersey, Maryland, or even West Virginia, which naturally triggers worries. Although the comparison to states is correct, it needs to be put in relation to the total amount of land available,” Dumortier explained.
“The United States has an enormous agricultural land base, and total cropland area has been declining for decades as productivity gains allow farmers to produce more from less land. Those market effects are leading to a decline crop prices trend in the absence of shifts in either demand or supply.”
Dumortier also said that meeting rising electricity demand with domestically-produced energy, rather than remaining exposed to price swings that come with globally-traded fossil fuels and the geopolitical instability that impacts them, is a matter of both economic and national security interest. 
“Solar installations are domestic infrastructure and use fuel that is free and never subject to sanctions. Farmers understand this arithmetic well,” Dumortier said. “For generations, they have supported ethanol policy precisely because converting surplus crop production into fuel creates an additional source of domestic energy demand and supports crop prices in the process. Solar leasing offers a complementary opportunity on the supply side: land that market forces are already pulling out of crop production can generate stable, long-term lease income, diversifying farm revenue without compromising the broader agricultural system.”
“The data should give policymakers and the public alike reason to take a more measured view of a debate that has, until now, had more heat than light,” he added.
The research findings are presented in the research paper “Limited impact of solar energy expansion on agricultural production and crop prices in the United States,” available in the journal Land Use Policy.
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A bill that cleared the New Hampshire Legislature last week would create a framework for residents to be compensated for renewably generated electricity they feed into the grid from home battery systems.
It is a “modest step forward” for New Hampshire’s net metering policies, said Sam Evans-Brown, executive director of Clean Energy New Hampshire, at an April hearing before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
House Bill 1718, from prime sponsor Rep. Michael Vose, an Epping Republican, directs the New Hampshire Department of Energy and Public Utilities Commission to create a framework for crediting electric customers for power they export to the grid from batteries charged by renewable power generators, like solar panels.
The Senate passed the bill on Thursday, following House passage in March. It now heads to Gov. Kelly Ayotte.
“Logically, it makes sense,” Vose said of the bill in a phone call on Tuesday. “… If you can export the kilowatts, it doesn’t really matter whether you export them directly from your solar panels or from a battery, as long as you put those kilowatts in the battery with your solar panels.”
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A limited number of New Hampshire electric customers are already net-metering energy from batteries through a program run by Liberty Utilities. Vose said enshrining the practice in law would eliminate uncertainty.
“The legislation basically removes any doubt from anyone’s mind that if they choose to do this, if they choose to make this investment, that they’ll be able to recover their investment,” he said.
As proposed, the bill calls for the New Hampshire Department of Energy to craft rules to govern how battery systems are installed in customers’ homes and interconnected to the grid. Those rules may include safety requirements or size restrictions, according to the bill’s language. Meanwhile, the rate structure for how residents would be credited for energy from their batteries would be up to the Public Utilities Commission, which the bill says may develop “terms and conditions” for customers to export energy and be compensated.
Batteries eligible to participate in the program must be configured to charge only from on-site renewable generation, except in certain cases that Deana Dennis, director of regulatory affairs for the Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire, called “common sense” exemptions during the April hearing. Those include residential batteries that utilities may manage from offsite at certain times, such as in the lead-up to a severe storm or in preparation to offset demand peaks, she said.
Solar panels typically generate the most energy at midday when the sun is strongest, while demand for electricity in most homes and across the grid peaks in the morning and evening.
Batteries can help make renewably generated energy available at times of peak demand. And because of that, Vose said, they are an important part of making solar power pencil out.
“The only way that solar makes sense is if you can combine it with batteries,” Vose said. The combination of batteries and solar panels helps “ameliorate” the intermittent nature of solar energy, he said. At the April hearing, Evans-Brown made a similar statement, saying more widespread adoption of battery storage would “maximize the value” to the grid of variable distributed generation like solar panels.
Yet batteries are expensive, and that has posed a barrier to their widespread adoption. Industry and government groups estimate that the installation of residential solar batteries lags far behind the adoption of residential solar panel installations in New Hampshire.
A March report from the Solar Energy Industries Association estimated that 6.2% of New Hampshire homes have solar panels installed; Megan Stone, legislative liaison with the New Hampshire Department of Energy, cited data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showing that 25,467, or 2.9%, of the state’s 878,680 residential electric customers participate in net metering.
Meanwhile, utilities reported far fewer residential batteries on their networks: The utilities Eversource and Unitil reported a combined total of fewer than 1,000 batteries in 2024, according to Stone, though data from Liberty was not included, and Stone noted the total may also exclude some installations that were not reported.
“It does cost more money to combine a battery with your solar system. But it should pay for itself in the long run, just by making the energy more available to yourself, and to the grid when it needs it,” Vose said.
In the past, Vose has criticized expansions to net metering. But he said this policy is not an expansion: The bill does not change the total amount of electricity that customers can get credits for, he said, just the time at which they may export the energy.
And in doing so, he said, it may help users recoup their investments while making solar energy more available to reduce peak load on the electric grid.
“It’s not that complicated,” he said.

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Floating solar with BESS opens a new renewable energy engine for India’s energy security ambitions  Fortune India
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Amea Power has commissioned its 120MWp Doornhoek solar PV IPP in South Africa’s North West province.
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How one Oregon city has raised a billion dollars for climate change  NPR
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Macro-siting models that protect sensitive habitats and farmland from utility-scale development reduce permitting friction for a mere 0.17% cost premium.
New York solar installation
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From pv magazine USA
A new geospatial modeling framework demonstrates that utility-scale solar buildouts can avoid critical ecological habitats with a virtually negligible impact on project economics. 
The study, “Sustainability trade-offs at the nexus of solar energy, agriculture, and biodiversity,” published in the journal Geography and Sustainability, presents a transferable optimization framework to navigate the increasingly contentious intersections of clean energy deployment, agricultural preservation, and wildlife conservation. Led by researchers from Cornell University, The Nature Conservancy, the U.S. Geological Survey, and Central Michigan University, the team used New York State as a case study to model how competing land-use priorities alter the geography and financials of decarbonization. 
The research team used a specialized computer mapping program that evaluates choices in a strict order of importance to analyze the land-use footprint under three distinct deployment strategies, which included minimizing capital costs, prioritizing agricultural preservation, and maximizing biodiversity conservation. Proximity to existing transmission lines, road access, slope, and local soil configurations were integrated to evaluate realistic developer constraints.
To build a rigorous framework, the researchers adopted the most aggressive utility-scale solar development projection from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), which mandates the deployment of 46,216 MWdc of utility-scale solar capacity, a buildout requiring approximately 107,700 acres (43,584 hectares) of land. 
The model revealed significant regional trade-offs depending on which stakeholder metric was prioritized. When developers optimize strictly for a least-cost scenario focused on the lowest capital expenditures and shortest interconnection distances, the model disproportionately clusters solar arrays on flat, cleared land, targeting more than 40,000 hectares of pasture and hay fields.
Nearly half of this land directly overlaps with critical grassland bird habitats, creating severe biodiversity conflicts. Conversely, enforcing a strict agricultural preservation scenario successfully spares about 80% of prime farmland, but pushes the solar footprint into alternative open spaces, resulting in the projected deforestation of over 41,000 hectares of timberland.
Finally, prioritizing a biodiversity-conscious scenario that avoids sensitive ecosystems forces the conversion of more pasture, hay fields, and cultivated croplands to fill the capacity deficit. 
“There’s land-use conflict associated with solar energy development because there are different people interested in biodiversity, agriculture and energy, but in reality those things are interacting in a nexus,” said Steve Grodsky, the paper’s senior author and assistant professor at Cornell University. “This modeling gives us an opportunity to forecast potential interaction points and potential conflict zones, and allows communities and agencies to make more-informed choices in siting decisions.” 
The study’s most significant finding challenges the industry assumption that stringent environmental constraints will derail project economics.
Restricting development on ecologically sensitive lands to prioritize biodiversity increased the annualized total system costs by a mere 0.17%. The finding suggests that smart macro-siting can mitigate local opposition and environmental degradation at an almost imperceptible premium to ratepayers and developers.
For utility-scale solar developers, EPCs, and asset managers, the optimization metrics offer actionable leverage to de-risk pipeline development early in the pre-construction phase. Utilizing dual-criterion macro-siting algorithms allows developers to proactively eliminate high-conflict parcels before submitting interconnection requests, substantially reducing long-term soft costs tied to permitting delays and environmental litigation.
Given that a biodiversity-first approach incurs a system-wide cost penalty of less than two-tenths of a percent, developers can present these optimized spatial configurations to local planning boards as a powerful tool to neutralize “not in my backyard” (NIMBY) resistance, securing faster local zoning approvals without eroding project internal rates of return.
“Traditionally, solar siting has been evaluated through a least-cost objective where the primary goal is to site the energy quickly, cost effectively and ensure reliability,” noted Adam Gallaher, lead author of the study. “What we’ve found is that it is possible, and minimally more expensive, to take into account multiple criteria that can inform just and ecologically responsible energy transitions.” 
The authors said the framework can be calibrated by policymakers outside of New York to accommodate regional geographical realities, offering a mathematical pathway to balance multi-functional landscapes during the energy transition.
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Enbridge to invest USD 1.2bn in Wyoming solar, BESS project for Meta  Renewables Now
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