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“That doesn’t seem like missing data to me?”
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A Tesla Powerwall owner said a battery that briefly appeared to hit 0% in the app may point to a bigger problem than a missing graph point after a similar issue lasted 24 hours, stopped solar generation, and forced the home to rely on grid power.
On Reddit, not everyone saw the graph as evidence of a real system failure.
One user said, “That just means the data is missing for that time period,” later describing it as “normal.”
The owner pushed back, noting that the house appeared to pull electricity from the grid during both events and that the 24-hour outage put the home on grid power for a full day. 
“That doesn’t seem like missing data to me?” they said.
A second commenter took a more cautious view, saying, “It usually indicates a connectivity problem (or worse, an issue with the system) and is worth investigating.”
The original poster said the support flow ultimately sent them back to their installer’s contact details, but the installer was “seemingly” not answering emails.
They also added they could still access the setup through WiFi and that it “seemed like the powerwalls had just stopped communicating with everything else.” That would point to something beyond a simple app-display issue during the 24-hour disruption.
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Homeowners who want to compare battery setups can explore EnergySage for home battery storage options, including competitive installation estimates. EnergySage has teamed up with electrification brand Qmerit to help homeowners get the best price on home battery storage solutions.
Another user said, “Check your utility portal for daily usage info etc. maybe it is just a data drop.” 
The OP noted that a review showed heavier utility use during the outage, helping separate missing app data from actual grid consumption.
Someone else offered another possibility for the shorter event: “The 30 minutes of 0% battery can be that the system is restarting, such as for an update.” 
Owners can compare the app with utility usage, log into the system locally if possible, and document whether solar generation and battery communication actually stop.
For homeowners who want backup power but are not ready for a whole-home setup, Pila offers another option. The company’s plug-and-play batteries are priced at a fraction of what a whole-home backup system would cost, which may appeal to shoppers looking for a simpler starting point while they evaluate installer support and system complexity.
Other homeowners have run into similar questions about whether a battery issue was just bad data, a restart, or a real system failure. 
• One customer watched their panel and battery system report a grid outage for hours, leaving the home dark.
• A homeowner’s solar panels stopped working during outages even with battery backup installed.
• Some Powerwall owners said server errors froze controls and made stored home energy harder to manage.
• One solar panel system saw output drop as batteries filled because pre-PTO rules blocked exports.
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Spacewalkers begin final phase of multi-year space station power system upgrade  CBS News
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India’s federal government has decided it wants more floating solar and is backing its ambition with investment and incentives. Deployed floating solar capacity in India stands at roughly 700 MW in 2026, but a new support mechanism approved by India’s cabinet in July aims to see that expanded by 5 GW in a five-year period. The Pradhan …
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The government of Togo is asking stakeholders to comment on documents covering the development of a large-scale solar project ahead of issuing a competitive tender.
The Nangbéto solar PV project, with a planned capacity of 100 MWac, represents the first tranche of a planned 400 MW clean power program in Togo.
Earlier this year, Belgium-headquartered clean energy non-profit RELP entered into an agreement with the Togolese government to support the development of a government-led renewable energy program.
A social media post published by RELP explains that before the government opens the competitive tender for the Nangbéto project, it is asking the market to review the draft documents. Documents available for comment include the concession agreement, power power agreement, tender dossier and technical requirements.
Togo’s Minister Delegate to the Minister of Economy and Finance, Robert Koffi Messan Eklo, explained during the launch of the public consultation why Togo was requesting the feedback.
“If I sign at the wrong price, we’ll be paying for it for 25 years,” the minister said.
Independent power producers, contractors, suppliers and financiers are invited to give feedback on the documents. The deadline to submit comments is November 9.
RELP says the feedback will help make the final documents “clear, balanced and bankable, ahead of the tender launch expected by year-end.”
“Togo is starting something that matters for investors: a multi-year programme and a transparent, competitive process will give developers and lenders a credible pipeline and will provide the government good value,” Andrea Bertello, RELP Regional Director for Africa and Asia, told pv magazine.
RELP is also working with other West African nations to develop similar government-led renewable energy procurements, including Ghana, Senegal and Guinea.
Togo’s largest operational PV project is the Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed solar plant, according to data from the Africa Solar Industry Association’s (AFSIA) project database, with a total capacity of 70 MW.
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Venerdì, 19 Novembre 2026
11:00  – 12:00 CET, Roma
pv magazine hosts its four-day virtual event on European solar and energy storage, exploring market opportunities, solar-plus-storage business cases, technical quality, and cybersecurity in the years ahead.
Thursday, October 29, 2026
11:00 am – 12:00 pm CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid
As a media partner of Genera 2026, pv magazine will organize and moderate a session in Spanish in Madrid, during International Electrification and Decarbonization Week.
Monday, November 2, 2026
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Missed pv magazine USA Week 2026?
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Electricity demand in Quang Ninh province continues to increase along with socio-economic development, urbanization, and the expansion of production and business activities. In this context, developing local renewable energy sources, especially rooftop solar power to meet household needs, is considered a solution contributing to diversifying energy supply and using energy efficiently.
Quang Ninh has the potential to develop rooftop solar power with an average of 1,500-1,700 hours of sunshine per year. Utilizing rooftop space to install photovoltaic panels not only helps households proactively secure a portion of their electricity supply but also contributes to reducing pressure on the power grid, saving energy costs, and promoting the use of clean energy.
However, the initial investment cost for rooftop solar power systems and storage equipment remains a major consideration for many households before deciding to invest. According to preliminary calculations, the installation cost for a rooftop solar power system with battery storage currently ranges from 12-15 million VND/kWp; to meet a self-consumption need of 6-8kWp, the investment cost for households can reach hundreds of millions of VND. This makes many families hesitant to invest in rooftop solar power.
Based on practical requirements and government directives, the Department of Industry and Trade is actively developing regulations and policies to support households in installing rooftop solar power systems for self-production and self-consumption, as well as electricity storage systems, for the period 2026-2030. By October 18, 2026, the Department of Industry and Trade had received input from 33 departments, agencies, and local People’s Committees. This input is being compiled, incorporated, and explained to finalize the draft resolution. This is a crucial step to ensure that the policy, once enacted, is consistent with legal regulations, practical conditions, and the local capacity to balance resources.
One of the notable aspects of the draft is the mechanism for directly supporting a portion of the investment costs for rooftop solar power systems and electricity storage systems for households. Specifically, the draft proposes a maximum support level of no more than 15 million VND for each household solar power system after installation, commissioning, and operation in accordance with the law.
Specifically, for rooftop solar power systems, the expected support level is 1.5 million VND per kWp of photovoltaic panel capacity, but not exceeding 7.5 million VND. For electricity storage systems, the expected support level is 1.5 million VND per kWh of storage capacity, also not exceeding 7.5 million VND.
In addition to direct support, the draft also proposes a policy for lending capital through the City Branch of the Social Policy Bank. Accordingly, the maximum loan amount is expected to be 80% of the total cost of infrastructure and system installation after deducting the support amount, but not exceeding 100 million VND. The maximum loan term is 60 months; the interest rate is equal to the interest rate for loans to poor households as stipulated by the Prime Minister for each period, and the overdue interest rate is 130% of the lending interest rate.
The combination of partial investment cost support and preferential loans is expected to help reduce initial financial pressure, making it easier for more households to access and choose installation options that suit their electricity needs.
The draft also outlines principles for support that are open, transparent, targeted, and for the right purpose, ensuring fairness and limiting policy abuse. Each household is expected to receive financial support only once for one rooftop solar power system on one plot of land.
In addition to financial support, households also receive technical guidance during the investment, installation, operation, and exploitation of the system. The regional power grid management unit is responsible for providing guidance on installation and connection to ensure electrical safety; the commune-level authorities provide guidance on implementing regulations related to structural safety and fire prevention.
Mr. Tran Viet Dung, Deputy Director of the Department of Industry and Trade, stated: “According to the plan, in the period 2026-2030, the city aims to have approximately 74,000 households installing and using rooftop solar power for self-production and self-consumption. Therefore, developing a support policy is considered one of the solutions to increase the attractiveness of the investment option, while creating a basis for mobilizing people’s participation in the energy transition process. Once considered, approved, and implemented according to regulations by the City People’s Council, the policy supporting rooftop solar power will create more basis for people to proactively choose suitable energy solutions, gradually forming a habit of using electricity economically and efficiently. In the long term, it will contribute to reducing load pressure, diversifying supply sources, and supporting the achievement of goals related to ensuring energy security, reducing emissions, and promoting green growth.”
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Published on Oct 29, 2026
Peter Mwaniki
SEG Solar plans to invest $950 million in a 4-gigawatt (GW) heterojunction (HJT) solar cell manufacturing facility in Tomball, Texas, adding upstream production capacity to an industrial campus where the company already manufactures solar modules and is developing additional production lines.
The Houston-headquartered manufacturer signed a land agreement for the proposed facility at its Tomball Industrial Campus in the greater Houston area on October 29. The development is expected to create more than 700 local jobs and enter operation in two phases, each with 2 GW of annual production capacity. SEG targets the first phase for 2028 and the second for 2029.
The proposed cell factory represents a significant expansion of the campus’s manufacturing scope. Rather than concentrating on assembling finished solar modules, SEG intends to bring the production of the solar cells themselves into the same location, alongside module manufacturing and selected component production.
The proposed facility will sit next to two existing or developing module manufacturing operations. SEG’s Tomball #1 facility has 4 GW of annual module production capacity, while Tomball #2, which remains under construction, is designed for another 4.6 GW.
Together, the two module facilities represent 8.6 GW of planned annual production capacity. The proposed 4 GW cell factory would add an upstream manufacturing stage, although its capacity would not cover the full combined nameplate capacity of both module facilities.
The distinction matters because solar cells are the electricity-generating components inside finished photovoltaic modules. Module factories assemble these cells into panels, incorporating electrical connections, protective materials, glass and other components.
By manufacturing cells alongside modules, SEG aims to reduce its reliance on externally sourced cells and gain greater control over the origin and supply of an important part of its finished products.
The company also plans to incorporate warehousing, a research and development center, a certified testing laboratory and additional component production at the Tomball campus. Planned manufacturing lines include ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) film and junction boxes, both used in solar module production.
The resulting campus would combine several stages of solar manufacturing rather than operate as a standalone panel assembly site.
The new facility will produce heterojunction solar cells, a technology that combines a crystalline silicon wafer with thin layers of amorphous silicon to improve the electrical properties of the cell.
HJT technology is designed to reduce energy losses and support high conversion efficiency. Its temperature performance and potential for bifacial module applications also make it attractive for utility-scale solar installations, where developers seek higher electricity output from available project sites.
For SEG, the choice of HJT technology is also significant because the company has already been developing HJT module production at its Texas operations.
The proposed cell factory would bring domestic cell production closer to that module manufacturing activity, allowing the company to develop a more integrated HJT supply chain.
However, the 4 GW cell capacity should not be interpreted as an additional 4 GW of finished solar module production. Cells and modules represent different stages of the manufacturing process, and the amount of cell capacity available will not necessarily match the total module capacity across the campus.
SEG is positioning the investment around the growing importance of domestic sourcing in the U.S. solar industry.
The country has expanded its solar module manufacturing base, but domestic production of solar cells has historically lagged behind module assembly. That imbalance has left manufacturers dependent on imported cells even as more panel factories open in the United States.
Bringing cell manufacturing into Tomball could help address part of that gap and give SEG greater control over the sourcing of materials used in its U.S.-made modules.
The development also has implications for solar developers and project owners seeking to meet domestic-content requirements associated with U.S. clean-energy incentives.
However, producing cells and modules in the United States does not automatically establish that every finished product or solar project qualifies for a particular domestic-content benefit. Eligibility depends on the applicable rules, sourcing calculations and documentation for each project.
SEG says its Texas-made modules using U.S.-produced HJT cells will give customers a more domestic supply option, with the company overseeing multiple stages of production.
The company has identified 2028 and 2029 as the targeted operating dates for the two manufacturing phases. However, its October 29 announcement does not provide a construction commencement date, the identity of the engineering or construction contractor, or a detailed commissioning schedule.
SEG has also not disclosed the financing structure for the planned $950 million investment or identified the principal equipment suppliers for the cell production lines.
Those details will be important in determining how quickly the project can progress from a land agreement to a functioning manufacturing operation.
The proposed investment follows the company’s earlier expansion at Tomball. SEG opened its first module manufacturing facility at the campus in August 2026 and has continued developing the second facility. The new cell factory would extend that expansion into another major stage of solar manufacturing.
If completed on the announced schedule, the development would give the Tomball campus a broader role in the U.S. solar supply chain, bringing cell production, module assembly and selected component manufacturing together at one industrial location.
The expansion of U.S. energy infrastructure extends beyond renewable energy manufacturing to the existing power-generation fleet. In a separate development, CPV Group has arranged $825 million in consolidated financing for its 1,470 MW Shore and Maryland natural-gas power plants, refinancing existing debt and lowering borrowing costs across the two facilities. The transaction highlights a parallel area of investment in the U.S. energy sector, where companies are also restructuring and strengthening the financial position of established electricity-generating assets.
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Solid Solar Pvt Ltd has commissioned a 20 MWp solar power plant in Malna/Patara village in Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand, India. The company describes the project as one of India’s largest solar installations on hilly terrain. Developed across a single hill at an elevation of more than 5000 feet above sea level, the plant is built with Gautam Solar’s TOPCon bifacial modules.
The steep, rocky and uneven terrain, remote Himalayan location and limited accessibility presented challenges at almost every stage of the project. Harsh climatic conditions, wildlife risks, logistical constraints and manpower shortages added to the complexity of construction.
Given the significant variations in elevation and terrain, Solid Solar created a detailed 3D model of the entire hill. This enabled the design and site teams to plan the placement of modules and supporting structures according to the actual contours, helping achieve a precise layout while making the best use of the available space and sunlight.
As most of the hill could not be accessed by conventional vehicles, a ropeway was used to transport materials and solar modules across the most difficult sections of the site. Relying solely on manual material handling or using a conventional ropeway system would have involved both substantially higher costs and longer timelines. Where even the ropeway could not provide a practical solution, the teams relied on smaller, site-specific methods: a controlled sliding mechanism, a manpower-based chain-link system and, through the most difficult stretches of the hill, ‘kachhars’ (mules) to transport materials.
“These seemingly simple solutions played an important role in keeping construction moving across terrain where conventional logistics were not feasible,” stated Solid Solar.
The rocky ground presented another challenge as conventional heavy equipment used for piling and foundation work could not be deployed across almost the entire hill. Solid Solar therefore relied on portable handheld equipment to break and drill through rock, enabling teams to work in areas inaccessible to larger machinery. The project also used chemical grouting to secure columns. This technique, more commonly associated with rooftop solar applications, was adapted to suit the specific conditions of the rocky hillside.
Gautam Solar’s n-type TOPCon bifacial modules have been deployed across the project. The technology allows the modules to generate electricity from sunlight reaching both sides of the panel. The plant has reportedly delivered stronger performance than several other solar installations in the surrounding region.
“Building a plant of this scale on a single hill required meticulous planning, innovative thinking to develop out-of-the-box solutions and close coordination between the design and site engineering teams. The successful commissioning of our 20 MWp solar PV plant in Malna/Patara village is an important milestone for us and reflects the engineering effort that went into its execution,” said Mukesh Agrawal, Managing Director, Solid Solar. 
Gautam Mohanka, Managing Director, Gautam Solar, said, “The Uttarkashi project demonstrates the potential for advanced solar technology to be deployed in challenging geographical conditions. Our TOPCon bifacial modules powering this project are part of an approach that combines technology with site-specific engineering and meticulous execution.”
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TOYO Confirms U.S. Customs and Border Protection Release of Ethiopia-Produced Solar Cells  Yahoo Finance
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Solar Farms Should Prepare for Bushfire Effects, Which Can Reduce Output by 70%  AZoCleantech
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By JD Hayworth, Guest Commentary//October 29, 2026//
Arizona needs more power. Embracing solar can help.
Rows of solar panels sit at Orsted’s Eleven Mile Solar Center lithium-ion battery storage energy facility, Feb. 29, 2024, in Coolidge, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

By JD Hayworth, Guest Commentary//October 29, 2026//
Arizona’s electricity needs are growing. Arizona Public Service and the Salt River Project both recorded peak electricity demand during last summer’s heat waves. These peaks came as data centers continue to strain our energy grid across the greater Phoenix metropolitan area and beyond. 
That’s why we must use every available energy resource. One of the best ways to do that is to respect Arizona’s farmers’ and ranchers’ property rights by letting them decide whether to build a new solar panel or gas well on their land
For many Arizonans, all the natural energy resources we need are right here at home. Our state ranks near the top nationally for peak sun hours. Arizona is already a solar leader, ranking fifth in the United States and generating enough capacity to power millions of homes.
That solar power has created an estimated 15,506 jobs in Arizona while bringing in tens of millions of dollars in capital investment and tax revenue.
Meanwhile, our grid is backed by nuclear infrastructure through our Palo Verde plant. In fact, our grid is already anchored by a massive foundation—including abundant natural gas and the Palo Verde plant, the largest nuclear energy facility in the United States.
As a conservative who represented Arizona in Congress, I’ve always believed energy policy should follow a simple principle: use what works. This means giving landowners the freedom to decide how to use their own property.
That’s why, while I represented Arizona in Washington, D.C., I sponsored legislation that gave Arizona homeowners a federal tax credit for installing solar panels. While I believe consumer choice and private property rights should always have the final say on any energy project, I know Arizona should take advantage of every reliable, affordable resource we have to increase access and lower costs. To the extent we can encourage production from any energy source, I believe we should.
Farmers should be allowed to install solar panels whenever they want. That should be their right as property owners. The simple truth is that, right now, we need more power. Lots of it.
The new solar energy complex in Pinal County, also known as Eloy Valley Energy Center III, can help meet that demand. This approach builds on a formula that already works, giving Arizona farmers and ranchers a steady stream of extra income by letting them voluntarily lease their land, while also bringing jobs, tax revenue, and much-needed power to Arizona’s grid.
Resisting innovations that deliver new energy sources will only hold us back. The same goes for local restrictions that block private landowners from leasing out their own property.
That is why it was disappointing that the Cochise County Planning and Zoning Commission voted last month against expanding the Babacomari Solar Field near Whetstone and Huachuca City. If built, that facility would have added more than 700,000 panels and a 160-megawatt battery facility.
The only solar projects that should move forward are those the community and our farmers feel good about. Still, modern solar and storage systems use far less water than traditional thermal plants, and the construction phase still requires careful review.
Some state measures just go too far. Why are Arizona lawmakers debating making solar construction a misdemeanor? While China tries to corner the solar market at Americans’ expense?
Other countries understand that solar power is increasingly reliable and affordable. Arizonans shouldn’t be denied those benefits.
Over the past decade, solar panel costs have fallen sharply, and battery storage has drastically improved, making power available even after sundown.
Arizona cannot afford to leave sunshine, nuclear capacity, or natural gas underused. Our farmers can’t afford to be unable to use their own land in order to make a living. 
When we protect farmers’ and ranchers’ rights to lease their land, rural communities thrive while energy costs come down. We should all be in support of that.
Republican JD Hayworth represented Arizona in the U.S. House from 1995-2007, and was the first Arizonan to ever serve on the powerful Ways and Means Committee, where he successfully sponsored a federal tax credit for residential solar power.

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Average prices for solar power purchase agreements (PPAs) in Europe rose 0.4% between the second and third quarters of 2026, according to the latest data from LevelTen Energy. In the United States, prices increased by 4.9%.
LevelTen attributes the European increase to macroeconomic factors, including higher photovoltaic module prices and interest rates. Rising costs are increasing project development expenses and pushing PPA prices slightly higher to maintain project financial viability.
The consultancy has also changed how it presents its data. Rather than reporting prices directly in euros per megawatt-hour, it now uses an index based on prices eight quarters earlier, assigning the reference period a value of 1.00.
Under this methodology, the European solar PPA price index stood at 0.86 in the third quarter of 2026, equivalent to 86% of the price recorded in the third quarter of 2024, when the average reached €63.64/MWh. The wind PPA index stood at 0.99, indicating a much smaller decline over the same two-year period.
The quarterly increase therefore does not offset the cumulative fall in solar PPA prices since 2024. Instead, the data point to recent stabilization following a more pronounced period of decline.
Contracts combining renewable generation with battery energy storage systems (BESS) are gaining traction across Europe. LevelTen reported hybrid PPAs in nine European markets during the third quarter, with Spain and Portugal accounting for almost half of the hybrid contracts recorded across the region.
In Spain, the average price for standalone solar PPAs fell to €30.93/MWh, down 1.2% from the second quarter and 7.7% year on year. LevelTen considers prices to be approaching the lower limit at which projects can still secure financing.
Spanish hybrid PPAs, by contrast, reached an average of €48/MWh. The difference reflects the additional value storage can provide by shifting some generation to other hours, reducing exposure to periods of low electricity prices and limiting the economic impact of renewable energy curtailment.
Hybrid PPA prices did not move uniformly across Europe. In Spain, they rose 6.8% quarter on quarter, while in Germany they fell 12.7%. Adding storage does not, by itself, eliminate PPA price volatility; outcomes depend on the conditions in each market.
In Spain, growing renewable energy curtailment is an important factor. Curtailment reached 2.5 TWh in the first half of 2026, more than three times the volume recorded in the same period of 2025 and 50% above the total for all of 2024.
Against this backdrop, integrating BESS into renewable energy projects and their PPAs is emerging as one way to make generation more flexible and reduce exposure to periods of surplus supply.
For the first time, LevelTen’s report includes data on PPAs linked to operating assets, alongside contracts associated with new projects. Agreements involving operational installations currently account for about 40% of transactions recorded on the platform.
The trend is also reflected in offers, with PPAs linked to operating assets rising from less than 10% of the total to nearly 40% in the third quarter of 2026.
Operating assets carry less development risk because they avoid many of the uncertainties associated with permitting, construction and commissioning delays.
They can also offer buyers a faster route to adding renewable electricity to their portfolios. This may appeal particularly to buyers that prioritize energy availability and price over additionality — the contribution a new project makes to increasing renewable energy supply.
European PPA markets are therefore moving from a period of steep price declines toward one shaped by higher development costs, pressure on standalone projects and greater integration of storage. In Spain, where solar PPA prices are among Europe’s lowest and renewable energy curtailment is increasing, hybridization with BESS is playing a growing role in the economics of new projects.
From pv magazine España
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Venerdì, 19 Novembre 2026
11:00  – 12:00 CET, Roma
pv magazine hosts its four-day virtual event on European solar and energy storage, exploring market opportunities, solar-plus-storage business cases, technical quality, and cybersecurity in the years ahead.
Thursday, October 29, 2026
11:00 am – 12:00 pm CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid
As a media partner of Genera 2026, pv magazine will organize and moderate a session in Spanish in Madrid, during International Electrification and Decarbonization Week.
Monday, November 2, 2026
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid
Missed pv magazine USA Week 2026?
Catch up on three days of expert discussions on U.S. solar manufacturing, distributed energy, and solar-plus-storage.
Thursday, November 5, 2026
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Monday, November 23, 2026
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Masdar starts construction on 200MW solar energy project in Malaysia  The National
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U.S. customs clears Toyo solar cell shipments from Ethiopia  StreetInsider
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A week after a Wagoner County District Court Judge reversed a county commission denial of a permit for a proposed 5,000-acre solar project, the commission has yet to decide how to proceed with considering the request of NextEra Energy and its subsidiary Persica Solar LLC.
Wagoner County Commissioners met this week and had the Persica Solar project lawsuit on the meeting agenda. Commissioners discussed the issue of Persica Solar, LLC v. Board of County Commissioners, case No. CV-25-111 in executive session, then returned and took no action. The agenda explained that the executive session was necessary “based on its attorney’s determination that disclosure of these communications will
seriously impair the ability of the Board to conduct the pending litigation and remanded proceedings.”
District judge Doug Kirley ruled last week that the commissioners decision on June 16, 2025 to deny the permit should not have been based on their refusal to consider “appropriate conditions” to be placed on the project.
“An application for conditional use permit cannot be denied solely on the grounds that the use is not affirmatively beneficial to the community when all conditions of the ordinance are satisfied,” wrote the judge in his order. “Wherefore, premises considered, Persica’s Application for Conditional Use Permit is granted subject to the imposition of reasonable conditions by the Board of County Commissioners of Wagoner County.”
Commissioners in their October 26 meeting listened to a few residents including Joyce Campbell but took no action on the issue.
“I would like to urge you to appeal the recent ruling in the Persica that can be approved for the application. The court’s ruling grants the permit subject to the imposition of reasonable conditions by this board, yet important questions still remain unanswered.”
She asked what constitutes a reasonable condition for a project of the magnitude of 5,000 acres. Campbell also raised the question as to the extent the conditions can address setbacks, drainage, road, fencing, screening, lighting, emergency response and the protection of neighboring landowners.
Commissioners are scheduled to meet in the coming week, but an absence will delay any potential decision on the Persica Solar farm request to Monday, November 9, according to a spokeswoman at the Wagoner County Clerk’s office.
The original vote was 2-1 to deny Persica a permit for its proposed 241-megawatt solar farm near Porter.
 
Jerry Bohnen is the founder and creator of OK Energy Today, which began in 2012. He is an Edward R. Murrow Investigative award winner and has been recognized by other national, regional and state institutions during his 50 years as a broadcast journalist. Contact Jerry at editor@okenergytoday.com
OK Energy Today is a news media publication committed to timely, accurate reporting on Oklahoma energy.
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KUANTAN: A RM850 million floating solar photovoltaic (PV) project at Chereh Dam in Pahang is expected to create about 1,500 jobs and generate clean electricity equivalent to the annual consumption of 100,000 households.
Sultan of Pahang, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah said the project, a collaboration between Citaglobal Bhd, Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC (Masdar) and Tiza Global Sdn Bhd, marked a major step towards expanding the state’s use of renewable energy.
The Pahang Ruler said the project was set to become one of the largest floating solar installations in Southeast Asia, while creating employment opportunities for local communities.
“We hope it will create jobs and be completed as soon as possible,” Al-Sultan Abdullah told reporters after officiating at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Chereh Dam floating solar PV project at a hotel here today.
Citaglobal Bhd group chief operating officer Datuk Aimi Aizal Nasharuddin said construction was expected to begin in January or February next year, with completion targeted for the end of March 2028.
The 200-megawatt (MW) project will cover about 1,500 acres (607 hectares) of the dam’s water surface and is expected to generate 1,500 jobs, particularly during the construction phase, he said.
The jobs would span several fields, including engineering, construction, hydrographic surveying, electrical engineering and other related professions.
Meanwhile, Citaglobal New Energy Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Datuk Chairil Nazri Ahmad said floating solar technology could improve electricity generation efficiency because panels installed over water generally operate at lower temperatures than those mounted on land.
He said installing solar panels on the reservoir could also help reduce water evaporation and preserve water reserves.
“The solar panels are estimated to have a total capacity of 307 MW, while the maximum electricity export capacity to the grid is 200 MW. Actual generation will depend on weather conditions and the amount of sunlight received, with the electricity generated fed into the grid for distribution to consumers,” he said.
Also present were Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail, Citaglobal Bhd executive chairman and president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria, and Masdar executive director for projects and business development Abdulla Zayed.

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For decades, “rooftop solar” has equated to a major rooftop transformation and a significant financial commitment. It’s also been largely limited to wealthier homeowners, though even they could be stymied by solar-hostile HOAs, municipalities, or utility companies.
Plug-in solar, often referred to as “balcony solar” is a new mode of solar installation that could start to change that in a big way. Plug-in solar refers to a small scale (<1.2kW) solar array that can be purchased retail and is designed to be set up as a temporary installation, often being hung over a balcony rail or set up in a backyard by the purchaser. These panels connect to a small inverter (which may have an attached battery) which is then directly plugged into a wall outlet in the home.

Historically, plug-in solar systems have been illegal (and were also considered unsafe). This year, 10 states, including California, have passed legislation legalizing plug-in solar, and the UL 3700-based testing and certification framework was established in January of this year.  Although the specifics vary by state, the legislation generally limits plug-in solar systems to 1.2 kW (most retail systems currently available on the market are around 400 W, or 0.4 kW) and allows them to be used without a signed interconnection agreement with the utility company. However, system owners are still required to notify their utility company of their intent to install and use a plug-in solar system, and the systems cannot export electricity to the grid. Additionally, most states’ plug-in solar legislation includes provision limiting, or in some cases outright prohibiting, landlords and homeowner associations (HOAs) from preventing residents from installing these systems. For state-specific details, see the
“Plugin Solar Legislation Tracker.”
Residential solar has an entry-point problem; plug-in solar may be a solution
Rising household and utility costs are giving consumers more reasons to look for ways to take greater control over their energy use and expenses. With systems starting as low as $800 for a 400-watt setup, plug-in solar creates a lower-cost entry point for consumers that traditional rooftop solar doesn’t serve.
For installers, that means it shouldn’t be viewed as a competitor to rooftop solar. It may be better understood as an on ramp to a much longer homeowner renewable energy journey.
Residential solar doesn’t have a demand problem so much as an entry-point problem. Our latest Solar Snapshot report found that 71% of homeowners have at least some interest in solar. But interest doesn’t necessarily translate into a viable rooftop project. Zooming out, it’s easy to see why.
For starters, the traditional rooftop solar market is only available to a limited pool of consumers, excluding renters, multifamily residents and households with unsuitable roofs. For many, going solar is out of the question entirely. And for those who do meet the required housing conditions, it’s not exactly a slam dunk. 44% of interested homeowners say solar is more expensive than they expected. We call that gap between expectation and reality “Cost Shock,” and it’s now the leading barrier to adoption in our research.
The expiration of the solar tax credit has raised the barrier even further. During the two decades the credit was in place, the U.S. solar industry grew by over 200x. Now, its absence has fundamentally changed how installers close a sale. Nearly half (49%) of interested homeowners say they can’t afford solar without tax credits, while 55% of installers now say third-party ownership is their most popular financing option and 65% expect it to represent the majority of their 2026 sales.
The result is a sizable group of consumers who are interested in generating their own power, but for whom the industry’s traditional entry point simply doesn’t work. New tools that let homeowners compare options, understand expected costs and savings, and explore solar before speaking with an installer can help make the process feel less opaque. Plug-in solar fits into that same broader shift by giving consumers more ways to engage with solar on their own terms, rather than requiring a full rooftop project, or signing risky-feeling financial agreements as the first step.
Not the end of the ride; Just another loop on the “Solar Coaster”
Currently the plug-in solar system landscape is largely direct-to-consumer, but I don’t believe that makes it the “Uber of Solar.” Yes, plug-in solar removes many of the traditional barriers to adoption, but there are a couple actionable ways for solar professionals to add significant value.
First, the impact of shading on solar panels is not always intuitive. People I’ve spoken with are always very surprised to learn that a single line of persistent shading (like the kind you might get from a nearby utility pole, or a balcony rail) could reduce the output of an entire array to nearly zero. Factor in other considerations like ideal tilt and azimuth, airflow for cooling, and the effects of debris on panel performance, and the case for a professional consultation on panel placement becomes pretty clear.
Second, plug-in solar is available to a wide swath of the population who cannot go solar for reasons other than the cost of a traditional system. Depending on your location, there’s a strong case for a “full service” plug-in system, where trained and trusted professionals still handle the installation, which can be a great option. It’s something I would have loved to have access to as a fresh-faced college graduate with a new job, but still renting!
From there, you’ve formed a new relationship with a customer, and a few lower energy bills may prompt them to start thinking more about where their electricity comes from, how much they use and how much control they have over it. A few years down the road, they may choose to buy a home and turn back to their trusted installer for a full-scale rooftop solar project, or EV charger install. That trust matters: 54% of homeowners interested in solar cite technical expertise as a top factor in choosing an installer, alongside warranties and customer reviews.
For installers, the opportunity starts before the rooftop
One of the things I’ve learned from studying solar consumers is that the first energy decision rarely happens in isolation. Someone who starts with a few panels on a balcony today may be the same customer considering rooftop solar, battery storage or an EV charger several years from now. Of course, not every customer will follow that path. That’s not really the point. The point is that plug-in solar creates an opportunity to introduce more people to solar energy and establish relationships that can grow alongside their energy needs, early.
The 2026 Aurora Solar Snapshot also revealed that utility bill savings and energy independence remain a primary motivator for going solar, consistently outranking environmental impact for the last four consecutive years. Plug-in systems, which have a typical payback period of two to five years, are a great first step on the path to utility savings. With the majority of the country seeing utility reductions of up to $400 per year for a 1,200-watt plug-in system, balcony solar installations can open the door to additional home electrification improvements.
And, not every plug-in customer will become a rooftop customer, of course. In a post-incentive market, the most resilient installers will be the ones that can meet customers at more than one point in their energy journey. Plug-in solar lowers the threshold for that first purchase and gives more opportunities to build relationships and trust. It may be a much smaller system, but for installers willing to think beyond the traditional, it could be the beginning of a much bigger customer relationship.
By Fox Swim, Senior Solar Industry Researcher

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the UL 3700-based testing and certification framework has yet to be adopted by manufacturing to even produce and sell the systems. The California “Balcony Solar has a “Sunset Clause” in jut 3 years. After that, even the UL3700 plug in 120-volt systems could be outlawed because Utilities want 220-to-250-volt solar AC input at the meter, not 120 Volt. Phase A to Phase B is 240 volts and Phase A or Phase B to the grounded conductor is 120Volts and that is not the Transmission voltage required by Utilities for NEM2.0 or NWM3.0 in California. A smart customer could connect 600 watts to Phase A and the neutral and 600 Watts to Phase B and neutral with two separate balcony solar systems but then the design and cost just doubled.
A better system you can use one thousand watts of solar panels to charge a 5kwh battery (rack battery) through a hybrid inverter (inverter plus charger) or a PSPS, you can then use a 200w micro inverter for 24 hours (24hr*200w= 4800wh)…to reduce base electric load use and with the hybrid inverter or a PSPS, you have access to power in a blackout!!!
OR you export the 1000w onto the grid FOR CREDIT!!!
To make any decisions you need to live monitor your house electric use with a whole house monitor like Emporia Via monitor for $200
I built just a system, and I could vary the on-grid output from the batteries based on need. All the parts are available on E-bay, but they do not meet the UL3700 testing and only have CE testing certification from China. But that required a very large battery-based system, and the weight and cost was in the tens of thousands of dollars like a 4 Power wall combined system. Simple is better. The Dryer 30 amp 240 volts plug in the garage or laundry room with a Fused “y” connector would be better but that is NOT what is proposed.
Currently Plug-in solar has five major problems causing you not to benefit…. NO Netmetering (you don’t get any credit and why give the power company FREE power???), kits don’t come with battery option (work only during the day), only benefits half of your house because you only connected to 120v (what about the other side of your 240v split phase house) so you actually need to purchase TWO kits to cover your whole house, one way smart meter on your house (current going in either directions reads only as consumption, you will be paying a bigger bill because of exporting), and kits with inverters that can not do ‘zero export mode’….
CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE AND DEMAND CREDIT FOR EXPORTING PLUG-IN SOLAR!!! All the above issues would be solved only if you get credit for exporting!!!
One solution is Portable, Powerful, Plug-In Solar: GismoPower patented a plug-in, 5Kw EV-charging carport, the MEGA® (“Mobile Electricity Generating Appliance”). Shade & Charge while generating electricity for homes, small biz and renters. Solar on Wheels® won the American Made Solar Prize & federal grants.
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The UK’s largest solar power system installed on a single continuous roof is set to be built at a factory in Bridgwater.
More than 18,000 solar panels will be installed at Refresco’s manufacturing site on the edge of town, creating a system expected to generate around 7.5GWh of renewable electricity every year.
The huge 8.5MWp installation is expected to become the largest solar PV system on a single continuous roof anywhere in the UK, according to the companies behind the project.
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Once up and running, it is expected to provide around 17 per cent of the Bridgwater factory’s annual electricity needs, reducing the amount of power the site has to draw from the national grid.
Work on the project is already well underway at the factory, which operates around the clock. The drinks manufacturing plant is a leading provider for Complete Beverage Solutions.
Refresco is the world’s largest independent bottler and private-label beverage manufacturer, with one of their factories at the edge of Bridgwater. (Image: GB NRG)
The Bridgwater installation forms the centrepiece of a much wider solar programme being rolled out across four Refresco UK manufacturing sites.
Together, the four projects will have a capacity of 21.5MWp, in what the company describes as one of the largest commercial and industrial solar programmes undertaken in the UK.
James Logan, managing director of Refresco UK, said: “Reducing the environmental impact of our manufacturing operations is an important part of Refresco’s long-term strategy, alongside maintaining the scale, efficiency and reliability our customers expect.
“This programme will enable us to generate more renewable electricity directly at our production facilities, reduce our reliance on grid-supplied electricity and strengthen the long-term resilience of our operations.
“By reducing emissions from our manufacturing activities, we can also support our customers in achieving their own sustainability objectives and addressing emissions within their supply chains.”
Once up and running, the project is expected to provide around 17 per cent of the Bridgwater factory’s annual electricity needs. (Image: GB NRG)
GB NRG was chosen to develop and deliver the four-site programme after a competitive process involving 12 commercial solar providers.
Zestec Renewable Energy was subsequently selected to fund and manage the solar infrastructure over the long term. The projects are being delivered through long-term agreements backed by funds managed by Octopus Energy Generation.
Installing such a large system while the Bridgwater factory continues operating 24 hours a day has presented challenges, with work planned to avoid interrupting production and to protect the building’s roof.
Several companies are collaborating the design, install, fund and manage the ambitious solar project. (Image: GB NRG)
Jon Antoniou, founder and CEO of GB NRG, said: “We are extremely proud to have been selected by Refresco to deliver what is a genuinely landmark solar programme.
“An 8.5MWp installation on a single roof is an exceptional project in its own right, and across the four sites we expect to deliver 21.5MWp of onsite solar generation.”
Meanwhile, Toby Smith, COO of Zestec Renewable Energy, said large rooftop projects allowed businesses to make use of space which would otherwise go unused.
He said: “Large-scale rooftop solar gives businesses such as Refresco the opportunity to make productive use of existing roof space, reduce reliance on grid electricity and make meaningful progress towards their sustainability objectives, without the need for upfront capital investment.”
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Luis Reyes
Oct 29, at 10:30am ET
Most solar farms aren’t built with a tractor in mind. The rows are packed in tight, the solar panels usually sit a few feet off the dirt, and once the fence goes up, about the biggest machine that ever drives in there is a mower.
So when someone pitches a farmer on growing food under solar panels (the industry calls it agrivoltaics), you can probably guess what the farmer asks first. Can I still get my equipment in?
Oregon State University has a five-acre solar array about 20 miles south of Portland that was laid out to answer that. Its rows of solar panels are spread farther apart than usual, and the panels can rotate to a nearly vertical position so farm equipment can drive through.
Right now it’s being tested with blueberries, which get picked by one of the more awkward machines in farming.
Two rows of blueberry bushes, basically. OSU’s page for the trial says Scott Lukas, who holds OSU’s endowed professorship for Northwest berry production and management, planted one row inside the solar array and one row outside it. Both went in the ground in October 2024, and both are a variety called Calypso.
It’s about as simple as a field experiment gets. The soil and the weather are the same for both rows, and one of them spends part of the day in the shade of solar panels. If the shaded bushes grow differently, you can pretty much pin it on the array.
Calypso wasn’t picked at random, either. OSU says growers are planting it widely because of its large berries, high yields and flavor, and because it ripens in the middle to late part of the season. Frankly, that makes it a better test subject than some variety hardly anyone grows.
OSU says it’s tracking growth rate, yield, berry size and sugar content in both rows as the plants mature.
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Because picking blueberries by hand is expensive. Oregon growers harvest roughly 150 million pounds of them a year, according to OSU Extension, and a big share is headed for the fresh market.
The machine that replaces all those hands is called an over-the-row harvester. If you’ve been through a drive-through car wash, picture that, except the car wash is what’s moving and the car is a blueberry bush. It’s a tall, tunnel-shaped machine on wheels that straddles the row and drives straight down it, shaking the ripe fruit loose and catching it as it goes.
Machines like that have picked berries headed for processing for a long time, and an OSU Extension team led by berry agent Wei Qiang Yang has been testing soft-catch versions that are gentle enough for fresh fruit. OSU puts hand-picking fresh-market berries at about $0.60 a pound, against about $0.15 a pound by machine.
You can see why a machine like that is a headache around solar panels. It needs a clear lane on both sides of the bushes and open air above them, and a regular solar array doesn’t leave room for either.
OSU built the spacing in from the start. According to a case study from the AgriSolar Clearinghouse, a program run by the National Center for Appropriate Technology, the team used the research station’s own tractor to work out how far apart the solar panels needed to be, so a farmer copying the layout wouldn’t have to buy special equipment. I think that’s arguably the smartest decision in the whole project.
OSU’s trial page says the spacing allows machine harvest using an over-the-row harvester, and it shows a photo of one with a caption saying it fits between the rows of solar panels.
We’ve seen this problem solved the other way around. A Spanish olive grove we covered is raising its solar panels 13 feet in the air so an 11.5-foot straddle harvester can drive underneath them. Oregon State went with wider lanes and panels that tilt out of the way instead.
I’d love to give you the lane width and the height of the machine, but OSU hasn’t published those, or the harvester’s make. I also can’t find a photo or a write-up of it working a row inside the array. To be fair, there wouldn’t be much for it to pick yet.
Blueberry bushes take a while to get going. OSU’s plan treats the first two years, 2024 through 2026, as a test of whether the plants establish themselves as well inside the array as they do outside it. Year three is when the fruit gets compared.
So will a blueberry bush put up with that much shade?
Nobody knows yet, and I’d be pretty wary of anyone who says they do. Sweet corn under a raised array in Massachusetts came in at about 80 percent of the open rows next door. Pears under a solar roof in Belgium gave up about 15 percent of their harvest three years running. They’re different crops under different hardware, so you can’t really carry either number over to a Calypso bush in Oregon.
The plot’s doing double duty, too. When blueberry bushes are young, growers usually pull most of the flower buds off by hand, sometimes every one of them, so the plant puts its energy into growing. Lukas’s team is spraying an off-the-shelf gibberellic acid product, which is a hormone the plant already makes on its own, in the first summer and fall the bushes are in the ground. They want to see if it cuts the bud count enough that nobody has to hand-prune in winter. So that’s a second labor bill this one plot is trying to shrink, and I’d argue growers care about that at least as much as the shade.
I went looking for the array’s capacity and came back with three answers.
The first figure comes from OSU’s own announcement, and the second is on the Oregon Public Utility Commission’s certification order. Solar panels make direct current, and inverters turn it into the alternating current the grid runs on. Arrays usually carry a bit more panel capacity than their inverters can push out, so the AC number comes in lower.
As far as I can tell, that’s the gap between 326 and 300, but OSU doesn’t spell it out, so treat that as my read. The 320 looks like a typo to me, since a kilowatt-hour measures energy used over time, like on your power bill, and arrays are rated in plain kilowatts.
Whichever number you pick, it’s a small array, and it’s been feeding the grid for more than three years. OSU says 10 percent of the power goes to the research station, 40 percent goes to lower-income subscribers and the other half goes to community subscribers who buy it through the Oregon Clean Power Cooperative, which developed the array.
Chad Higgins, the OSU associate professor who got the array built, has a pretty blunt view of where this is headed. “There is, in my opinion, no need to stop farming under solar panels ever,” he told Capital Press.
That’s a bold line, and a crop that needs a tunnel-shaped harvester is a pretty fair test of it. OSU says the first side-by-side comparison of yield and fruit quality comes in 2027, when the Calypso bushes fruit in their third year.
What do you think?
Olivia Richman · Sep 29, 2026
Luis Reyes · Oct 11, 2026
Dave McQuilling · Oct 13, 2026
Chema Bonilla Díaz · Oct 17, 2026
Olivia Richman · Oct 14, 2026
Luis Reyes · Oct 16, 2026
Luis Reyes · Oct 29, 2026
Luis Reyes · Oct 29, 2026
Olivia Richman · Oct 28, 2026
Luis Reyes · Oct 28, 2026
Olivia Richman · Oct 28, 2026
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Rooftop Solar Panels Slash Electricity Bills, Ease Household Finances in Gujarat
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Gujarat families praise PM's solar scheme for reducing electricity bills, boosting household savings for children's education and expenses.
Gandhinagar: Families in Gujarat's Gandhinagar district say installing rooftop solar panels under the Centre’s 'PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana' has significantly reduced their electricity bills, allowing them to redirect savings towards their children’s education and other household expenses.
Residents of Shalin-2 Society in Vavol area said the scheme had eased the financial burden of electricity costs, with some reporting monthly bills falling from more than Rs 20,000 to a few thousand rupees after installing solar plants.
Gajsi Suthar, a beneficiary, said: "My household’s electricity bill had earlier exceeded Rs 20,000. Following the installation of a rooftop solar plant under the scheme, I received considerable relief from the expense and is using the savings to meet my children’s educational needs and other household requirements."
He further added, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited Shalin-2 Society to meet beneficiaries, inspect the solar panels installed on their rooftops and learn about their experiences with the scheme."
Jasiben Suthar, another beneficiary, said the reduction in electricity bills had helped families retain more money to meet their children’s needs. She expressed her gratitude to the Prime Minister for the scheme.
Ushaben Patel added that the savings generated through rooftop solar installations are helping families manage their expenses, making it easier to pay for children’s requirements and other household needs.
Priya Patel, a beneficiary from Vavol, said: "My family’s monthly electricity bill had previously ranged between Rs 25,000 and Rs 26,000. After installing a solar plant, the bill had come down to between Rs 3,000 and Rs 5,000 at most."
The reduction had helped her family to save a substantial amount every month, which could be used towards her children’s higher education and future requirements.
Patel also urged other households to consider installing solar plants.
The PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana promotes rooftop solar installations in residential households, with the objective of reducing electricity expenses through solar power.
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Ballard Power Systems, through its GeoPura subsidiary, has introduced the HPU Agile-H, an 80 kW mobile hydrogen generator designed to displace diesel generators on job sites with strict space or noise constraints.  
Designed by GeoPura, manufactured by Siemens Energy, and powered by a Ballard Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell, the platform integrates an onboard high-efficiency battery storage system. 
The hybrid setup delivers 80 kW of continuous 400V 3-phase AC power at 50/60Hz. The fuel cell provides steady baseline output, while the integrated battery handles load balancing, peak demand responsiveness, and instant cold starts. Fueling of the system relies on 100% green hydrogen charged by renewable energy sources. 
For operational flexibility, the system operates in off-grid mode, grid synchronization mode, or as a standalone primary source. Multiple units can also be connected in parallel to serve higher electrical loads or build hardware redundancy. 
“From construction and film shoots to events and emergency response, HPU Agile-H brings clean power to more places, without diesel fumes and with less noise,” the companies stated. 
The unit targets lower-load profiles, short-term projects, and operations with limited access to grid infrastructure. Built for rapid field logistics, the lightweight trailer can be towed using standard SUVs or commercial panel vans and set up by a single technician in under 20 minutes without specialized rigging licenses.  
The unit’s safety systems include continuous hydrogen leak detection, smoke and fire monitoring, and hardwired interlocks. 
Operating below 65 dB at 1 meter, the unit produces zero point-of-use emissions. It incorporates cloud telemetry for remote diagnostics and achieves a 99% expected availability rate across a 10-year design life, supported by GeoPura’s low-carbon hydrogen supply network. 
The HPU Agile-H holds tri-certification (CE, UL, CSA) for deployment across North America, the United Kingdom, and Europe. Pre-orders are currently open, with initial commercial deliveries set for Q1 2027. 
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ONTARIO, Calif. — Renogy has partnered with the RV Technician Association of America (RVTAA) to give RVTAA member technicians two on-demand continuing education courses on RV solar and DC charging systems, worth three CEU hours in total, according to a release. The courses are now open to RVTAA members.
Solar charging and DC-DC charging are showing up on more RVs, and more of that equipment is arriving in the service bay. The training is built around what a technician does with that equipment: installing it, programming it, diagnosing it and keeping it running.
The courses are Solar Panels and Charge Controllers (2 CEU hours) and DC-DC Battery Chargers (1 CEU hour). Both cover installation, operation and programming, common technical issues and troubleshooting, and maintenance.
RVTAA members can access registration through the CEU library in their member dashboard. Training is delivered through Renogy’s learning management system and includes an evaluation, with a certificate of completion for technicians who pass. Because the courses are on demand, technicians can fit them around a shop schedule.
“Partnering with the RVTAA allows us to bring the latest off-grid energy training directly to certified technicians through flexible, on-demand CEU courses, empowering them to master the newest components on the market,” said Stephen Clifton, product solutions training manager at Renogy.
“Continuing education is an essential part of maintaining certification and ensuring our technicians and inspectors stay current with evolving technologies, industry advancements, and best practices,” said Destiny Rounsavall, member services and partnership coordinator at RVTAA. “Renogy’s expertise in solar power and energy solutions makes them a valuable educational partner, providing knowledge and resources directly relevant to today’s RV industry.”
The RVTAA courses extend a year of Renogy training for the RV channel, which has included a sales training webinar series for dealers and hands-on technical and sales training with NTP-STAG.
About Renogy
Renogy designs and manufactures solar panels, lithium batteries, charge controllers, inverters and complete off-grid power systems for RV, marine, residential and off-grid applications. The company is headquartered in Ontario, California. More information is available at http://www.renogy.com.
About RVTAA
The Recreational Vehicle Technician Association of America (RVTAA) is dedicated to promoting professionalism and excellence in the RV service industry. Through standardized testing, certification, and educational requirements, RVTAA provides Registered, Certified, and Master Technician credentials to help ensure RV owners receive quality diagnostics and repairs from trained professionals. Our mission is to establish and promote industry standards while building a nationwide network of qualified RV technicians across North America.
© 2026 RVBusiness G&G Media Group LLC
© 2026 RVBusiness G&G Media Group LLC

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McKay has completed the full electrical and balance-of-plant installation package for the 202 MWdc Tauhei Solar Farm in Waikato, New Zealand, adding to its work in large-scale solar infrastructure in the country.
The contract covered site establishment, trenching and cabling, low voltage, direct current and medium-voltage systems, inverter placement / set up, switching station works, fibre and SCADA installation, and testing and pre-commissioning. McKay worked alongside the engineering, procurement and construction contractor on the project.
Project scope
At the Te Aroha site, McKay installed a solar generated temporary power supply to the site compound. McKay also carried out trenching, conduit installation, cable laying, joint bay preparation and backfilling for LV , DC, MV, fibre and communications routes.
These works formed part of the broader balance-of-plant package for the 202 MWdc solar farm. Quality assurance inspections were completed at each stage of the civil and electrical installation works, according to the project description.
Electrical works
The direct current scope included installation of string cabling and 1500 V DC sub-array cabling, along with terminations into combiner boxes. McKay also installed the combiner boxes, and associated DC protection systems.
It McKay positioned and prepared inverter stations for service, including cable terminations, earthing and internal electrical fit-out, as part of its role in readying the plant for commissioning.
For the medium-voltage package, the team installed and terminated MV cables, completed 33 kV joints, added surge protection and carried out the full electrical scope for the MV switching room. McKay installed a complete earthing system inclusive of inverter ring mats and amin earthing loop throughout the site.
Renewables work
The Tauhei development sits within a wider build-out of utility-scale solar generation across New Zealand. McKay's renewables work also spans geothermal energy, wind energy and battery energy storage systems.
Its McKay solar work has included feasibility assessments, detailed electrical design, construction and commissioning on other projects in New Zealand. Tauhei illustrates the scale of electrical infrastructure being deployed as solar becomes a larger part of the national energy mix.
The project due to its size, sourced the majority of the labour requirements from local sources however also drew staff from across the country for peak work commitments, reflecting the labour and coordination demands of large solar developments. The work required integration across civil, electrical and communications systems on a single site.
McKay described the Tauhei scheme as an example of complex, multidisciplinary electrical construction delivered in coordination with EPC and structural teams.
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The UK government has retained the boiler upgrade scheme (BUS) despite widespread speculation the heat pump subsidy program was set to be scrapped, although the total budget for the program has been cut by around GBP 700 million ($932 million).
BUS grants of up to GBP 9,000 have been offered to UK consumers in a bid to accelerate the electrification of home heating in a country where more than two thirds of households use a natural gas-fired heating system.
In the first Budget delivered by UK Chancellor John Healey, the government committed to maintaining the BUS grant at current funding levels of GBP 400 million in 2027-28, rising “broadly in line with inflation” thereafter. Previously, GBP 600 million was allocated for the 2027/28 financial year, GBP 683 million for 2028/29 and GBP 709 million for 2029/30.
Social housing tenants should also benefit from an additional GBP 100 million of funding, subject to final approvals, to support the delivery of up to 57,000 solar installations for households this financial year. Further grant support for residential solar, battery storage and heat pumps will continue to be available through the government’s Warm Homes Plan, which receive an additional GBP 335 million investment in 2027, however the multi-year program’s total budget is being cut by GBP 1 billion as a contribution to defense spending.
The Chancellor has made changes to value added tax (VAT) rules that will affect solar and battery storage. UK consumers currently pay no VAT on home solar and battery but this will rise to 5% from Apr. 1, 2027.
Budget day also saw the UK government publish guidance for the Warm Home Loans program, which will see the UK government subsidize some of the risk associated with financing, allowing lenders to offer lower interest rates.
Solar, battery storage and heat pump installations qualify for Warm Home Loans support and can potentially be used in conjunction with grants or money from other funding programs. The loans themselves are offered by finance partners participating in the program, meaning consumers apply directly to a lender, through an installer or retailer when arranging finance for the improvement work, or through their mortgage providers.
Chris Hewett, chief executive of Solar Energy UK, welcomed the launch of the Warm Homes Loan program.
“With the Warm Homes Loan Scheme now in place, more homes can go solar next year than ever before, taking control of their energy and insulating themselves from high energy bills. Critically, it will ensure that households across society can overcome any financial barriers, making sure that the benefits are felt where they are most needed.”
Hewett added that Solar Energy UK already expects the annual record for smaller-scale solar systems to be broken within a few weeks, and the association is confident the loan program will deliver another record year in 2027.
Progress was also made on a fixed-revenue offer to existing utility-scale solar plants. The government has launched a consultation on a proposed Wholesale Contracts for Difference (WCfD) program, first announced in April 2026. Available on the UK government website, the consultation covers eligibility, allocation and auction design, commercial arrangements, and potential electricity market impacts. Industry stakeholders have until Dec. 9 2026 to respond.
The UK Chancellor also pledged to drive down electricity system costs following up the recent announcement state-owned Great British Grid would work alongside existing network operators to increase competition. Healey added that competition in offshore electricity networks “has delivered hundreds of millions of pounds of bill savings” and therefore competition will “shortly be introduced” into offshore electricity transmission, in a nod to the Competitively Appointed Transmission Owner (CATO) regime which has been in development in Great Britain for more than a decade. If implemented, CATO would allow private companies to competitively bid for the right to build and run new onshore grid infrastructure.
There was movement on electricity bills too, with Chancellor Healey committing to remove standing charges from gas bills. Standing charges are applied to bills for all connected households regardless of usage and are used to cover gas network upgrades. These fixed costs will be paid on the unit rate – the amount paid for each kWh of gas consumed. The government estimates the change could save 60% of households around GBP 45 per year. Healey said the government also plans to remove standing charges from electricity bills in the future.
Andrew Sissons, director in sustainable future at innovation charity Nesta welcomed the change. Sisson said it would provide relief to the poorest households who ration their gas use, “but it will also mean that switching to electric heating such as heat pumps is a better deal for some households that use more gas.”
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) has been the main policy tool supporting UK heat pump deployment since it was introduced in May 2022. The program initially offered GBP 5,000 grants for air-to water heat pumps and GBP 6,000 grants for ground source heat pumps for households installing a heat pump, before increasing to 7,500 GBP for both technologies in October 2023. Following the outbreak of conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, the UK government added a GBP 9,000 grant option for those households using heating oil systems due to their increased exposure to energy price hikes.
The rate of installations has increased since BUS grants were introduced, but volumes remain significantly below what is needed to achieve a government target of 450,000 heat pump installations per year by 2030. The government reported 151,136 BUS voucher applications had been received from May 2022 to August 2026, with 98% applications for air-to-water heat pump grants.
Guidance for Warm Home Loans suggests that BUS grants and other funding support can be used in conjunction with the state-backed financing, potentially further lowering the cost to consumers.
The following lenders are offering Warm Home loans according to the UK government: HomeServe Finance, Hometree Finance, The Money Co-Op, Propensio, Secure Trust Bank, Selina Finance, South Manchester Credit Union, Sunsave Energy, Tandem Bank, This Bank.
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The process dips solar cells into a molten mixture of sodium and potassium hydroxide salts.
This molten salt weakens the coating on the silicon panel, allowing the silver wires to peel off intact as pure metal.
The first generation of commercial solar panels is reaching the end of its 25- to 30-year lifespan.
It offers an acid-free, low-loss approach to recovering precious silver from retired silicon solar panels.
China-based researchers have introduced a new eco-friendly method to extract valuable silver from retired solar panels without using toxic acids. 
The process dips solar cells into a molten mixture of sodium and potassium hydroxide salts. This molten salt weakens the coating on the silicon panel, allowing the silver wires to peel off intact as pure metal. 
Ningxia University researchers recovered up to 97% of the silver while limiting damage to the underlying silicon wafer to just 2.6%.
“These findings clarify the mechanisms of acid-free, low-loss precious-metal recovery from crystalline silicon photovoltaic materials,” the team noted in the study paper.
The first generation of commercial solar panels is reaching the end of its 25- to 30-year lifespan. The aging infrastructure is a major trash problem, but also a massive treasure hunt. 
Silver accounts for less than 0.03% of a retired solar panel’s weight, but it drives nearly half of its monetary value. Recovering that precious metal hasn’t been eco-friendly.
A Chinese team designed a cleaner alternative. The new laboratory-scale method uses a molten mixture of sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide to pop silver wires off dead solar cells. 
Usual solar recycling uses acid leaching. Nitric acid dissolves solid silver into silver ions, leaving recyclers with toxic nitrogen oxide emissions, acidic wastewater streams, and a complex chemical recovery process. The molten salt strategy skips that chemical detour entirely.
The hot salt bath targets the solar cell’s silicon nitride (SiNx) passivation layer rather than dissolving the metal directly. It etches the layer, weakens the adhesive bond at the interface, and lets intact metallic silver wires slide off.
The process is fast. At 230 °C for 150 seconds, the system recovered 94.34% of the cell’s silver while wiping away the SiNx coating. Under peak conditions, total silver recovery reached 97.11%.
Protecting the underlying silicon wafer proved to be a difficult hurdle. Early molten salt methods failed to keep the salt bath from corroding the valuable silicon substrate. The research team limited this damage after identifying the exact chemical mechanism driving the corrosion.
Hydroxide ions attack the exposed silicon as soon as the protective silicon nitride layer strips away. This reaction converts the silicon into soluble silicates, leaving behind tiny pits across the surface. Researchers limited total silicon loss to 2.62% at 230 °C for 100 seconds by precisely controlling the bath temperature and exposure time.
“At 230 °C for 150 s, Ag recovery reached 94.34 %, and the SiN_x passivation layer was effectively removed, maximum Ag recovery was 97.11 %,” the study reported. 
Although the process currently operates only at a lab scale, understanding the mechanics of direct silver detachment could provide a practical solution for green industrial recycling. It offers an acid-free, low-loss approach to recovering precious silver from retired silicon solar panels without damaging the underlying substrate.
This approach arrives at a key moment, preparing the global solar market for the massive influx of panel waste expected in the coming years.
The study findings were published in the Journal of Cleaner Production on October 28.
Mrigakshi is a science journalist who enjoys writing about space exploration, biology, and technological innovations. Her work has been featured in well-known publications including Nature India, Supercluster, The Weather Channel and Astronomy magazine. If you have pitches in mind, please do not hesitate to email her.
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Qualitas Energy secures $286 million financing for its renewable portfolio in Chile  energynews.pro
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Jen Allen, chair of the Pima County Board of Supervisors seen here in a March protest over an ICE detention facility in Marana, has criticized a massive solar farm proposal 25 miles southwest of Tucson. The Center for Biological Diversity also is critical of the plan.
Pima County Supervisor Jen Allen has become the first elected official to come out against a massive solar farm proposal 25 miles southwest of Tucson.
Allen penned a statement in the Fence Post, a newsletter for the Three Points and Robles Junction area, earlier this week that she had met with leadership from RepSol, the parent company proposing a 5,554-square-foot utility-scale solar farm.
Allen, who chairs the board, said she can’t support the project because the company has made no changes to the footprint or energy capacity, despite extensive community opposition.
“No changes, despite several community events with 100-plus people at them being clear about their concerns,” she said.
Allen, a Democrat like four of the five board members, wrote the company still plans to submit permit applications to Pima County early next year.
The Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity has also come out against the proposal, saying there are better places for solar projects.
“Where we put solar is as important as whether we build it, and this plan gets it backward,” said Southwest Director Taylor McKinnon. “The proposal puts endangered species, conservation lands and nearby communities in the crosshairs of industrial development. Solar belongs on rooftops and already disturbed land, not in pristine desert habitat that deserves protection.”
CG Three Points, Repsol’s subsidiary, sent landowners letters in mid-August informing them of plans and project maps for a 500 megawatt solar farm and a 250 megawatt battery storage facility on state trust land. It would include its own substation and is estimated to cost about $575 million, with plans to operate for 35 years, according to applications with the Arizona State Land Department.
Expanding large-scale renewable energy is still a necessity, but not at the expense of rural communities, Allen wrote.
Most of the proposed area falls within the Pima County Conservation Lands System and ranked among the most vulnerable land classifications within the system. The project could reverse decades-long restoration work, she wrote.
“Altar Valley ranchers, farmers, and residents have worked with county, state and federal partners for years to develop and implement protections for the Altar Valley and the Brawley wash – establishing wildlife corridors, revegetating historically damaged areas, and preventing the spread of invasive fire-prone weeds, to name a few – all while preserving the rural traditions of ranching and farming. This work is valuable, as are the rural traditions and culture of the region,” her statement reads.
Allen also expressed her support for the Southern Arizona Open Space Alliance, an opposition group formed before any official notification. They’ve held community meetings since early this summer and are encouraging residents to petition the Board of Supervisors to reject the project, saying fields of solar panels will disrupt the environment and the region’s rural character.
Allen said the project carries environmental risk, including spreading invasive species and increasing the risk for wildfires.
She called on utilities to make investments closer where the need is highest, closer to industrial, commercial, and residential areas in urban and suburban areas.
“We cannot ask our rural communities to bear the brunt of these developments,” she wrote.
Although the company plans to file an application with the county’s Planning and Development Services early next year, it may be several more months before it appears on any public agenda, Allen said.
Because the county has existing land use codes for a utility scale solar, the project would not have to go through a full Planning and Zoning Commission, and receive a hearing administrator process instead. Class II conditional use permits, which the RepSol project would most likely apply for, go through the hearing administrator, which still has opportunities for public feedback, but less eyes on any given proposal, Allen said.
“It’s just heard by one person as opposed to being heard by the full commission,” she said.
The hearing administrator then makes a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors, which they will vote on.
However, all the applicable county departments have to weigh in on their piece of the project before it gets on a hearing administrator’s meeting agendas, which are held once a month.
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Carmine DeBonis Jr., who has worked for Pima County for three decades, will be its next top boss.
Secretary for the Department of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, Rep. Juan Ciscomani and dozens of USDA officials gathered in Tucson Tuesday to off…
The Cook Political Report has switched its assessment of the congressional race for the House seat from a “toss-up” ranking to “Leans Democratic.”
Marana’s town council has voted to tighten noise restrictions and how a developer will decommission a data center site if it goes offline. 
Jen Allen, chair of the Pima County Board of Supervisors seen here in a March protest over an ICE detention facility in Marana, has criticized a massive solar farm proposal 25 miles southwest of Tucson. The Center for Biological Diversity also is critical of the plan.
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The UK has allocated an additional £100 million to support solar and battery installations for social housing in its Budget 2026 
The government has cut the Warm Homes Plan by £1 billion but established a £2 billion Energy Wealth Fund for renewable and low-carbon infrastructure 
Residential solar and battery installations will face 5% VAT from April 1, 2027, raising concerns over higher upfront costs 
The UK’s solar energy industry has mixed feelings about the country’s Budget 2026, with Solar Energy UK calling it ‘broadly positive’ for solar and battery technology, even as the government has announced a £1 billion cut to the Warm Homes Plan. 
A major highlight of the budget is the announcement of an additional £100 million for the Social Housing Fund to support solar and battery installations for households. The government plans to support up to 57,000 solar installations in the current financial year. 
The government has also announced the establishment of an Energy Wealth Fund (EWF) within the National Wealth Fund (NWF) to invest in renewable energy and low-carbon energy infrastructure across the UK. The EWF will receive £2 billion, funded by future revenues from North Sea oil and gas. 
Launched earlier this year as the biggest public investment in home upgrades in the UK’s history, the Warm Homes Plan was announced with a £15 billion budget. It aims to upgrade up to 5 million homes with solar panels, batteries, heat pumps and insulation by offering low- and zero-interest loans (see UK’s £15 Billion Warm Homes Plan To Boost Solar & Battery Uptake).  
However, in the budget announcement, the government has announced a £1 billion cut to the Warm Homes plan as it prioritizes defense funding. Yet it has introduced the Warm Homes Loan Scheme to support uptake of heat pumps and clean technology, including solar panels and battery installations. According to the government, solar panel installations totaled almost 150,000 in H1 2026, while heat pump sales reached a record high in 2025, both indicating a rapid uptake of these technologies. 
The government has also announced it will remove zero value-added tax (VAT) for energy-saving materials, and increase it to 5% from April 1, 2027. Solar Energy UK says this will raise the upfront cost of cutting bills just when it needs to come down. Currently, consumers are not required to pay VAT on home solar and battery installations. 
“Removing the VAT exemption is inconsistent with the Government’s intention for more people to enjoy the benefits of home solar and battery systems. With domestic electricity bills now zero-rated until July next year, saving energy will be taxed more heavily than consuming it – a perverse incentive,” said Solar Energy UK Chief Executive Chris Hewett. He added that the industry will urge the government to reverse course. 
Solar Energy UK said the budget proposes to prioritize projects ready to connect to the grid and generate power soon under the upcoming eighth round of the Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme. This may create uncertainty for projects planned for later years.  
The government has also opened consultation on offering existing low-carbon generators a fixed-price Wholesale CfD scheme. These are currently supported by the legacy Renewable Obligation Certificates system. However, Solar Energy UK warned that the scheme’s final design could affect investor confidence. The consultation is open till December 9, 2026. 
Overall, the UK has made it clear that even as it transitions to clean power and net zero to support energy security, oil and gas will remain part of the electricity mix for decades to come. 
The complete Budget 2026 is available on the UK government’s website.  
Meanwhile, the government continues to clear large-scale solar PV and storage projects. It approved nearly 2 GW of new solar PV and battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity in the month of October 2026 alone. These include Elements Green’s 1.12 GW DC/800 MW AC Great North Road Solar and Biodiversity Park, with 440 MW/880 MWh of storage; Cubico Sustainable Investments’ Frodsham Solar Project in Cheshire, with over 50 MW of solar and an associated battery system; Island Green Power’s 500 MW Green Hill Solar Farm in Northamptonshire and Milton Keynes; and RES Group’s 450 MW Steeples Solar Farm in Nottinghamshire, paired with 150 MW of battery storage. 
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Plant design allows it to run on either stored solar heat or combustion.
Rather than directly converting photons into electricity, concentrated solar energy uses mirrors to turn sunlight into heat, which can then be used to drive traditional generating turbines. Up to about a decade ago, there was a case to be made that concentrated solar energy had a bright future, as improvements in heat storage had turned it into a way to generate power around the clock.
It wasn’t to be. While concentrated solar costs fell enough to compete with nuclear power, the price of photovoltaics plunged, making solar panels the cheapest source of power in most locations. Currently, if you have a good site to generate solar power, then the economics of PV panels are hard to beat.
That has left us needing to build a mixture of other facilities—typically batteries and natural gas facilities—to handle overnight needs or weather-driven shortfalls. But a small company is promising that it can help avoid the need to build a separate facility. Its version of concentrated solar is designed so that a fossil-fueled backup system shares most of the generating hardware with the solar side.
Concentrated solar, also called solar thermal, is pretty simple in principle. Most of the site is covered with heliostats, devices that incorporate mirrors and a motorized tracking system that can keep their focus on a single point as the Sun moves across the sky. The point of focus is in a tower, where sunlight heats a working fluid. The hot fluid can then be used to power a traditional steam turbine, or its heat can be stored and used to generate power overnight.
There are many potential variations, however: different working fluids and methods of heat storage, trough-shaped mirrors that eliminate the need for a tower, and so on. All of those variants are meant to reduce some of the issues inherent to solar thermal: lots of moving parts, potentially corrosive fluids, and so on. Those issues and the lack of standardization have helped ensure that the costs of these plants haven’t come close to keeping pace with photovoltaics.
Without any incentive to generate renewable power overnight, there hasn’t been any way for concentrated solar to compete. Construction of new plants has largely stopped, and a number of sources have simply stopped tracking the economics of it.
So it was a bit of a surprise to hear that India had contracted with a US-based startup called 247Solar to build and operate a small concentrated solar plant. While the plant will be extremely small (1 megawatt) and mix in photovoltaics, the company had a unique angle: The same hardware that is handling the solar thermal output can simply be run using fossil fuels if there is a significant shortfall in renewable generation.
“Our systems are their own backup,” said 247Solar’s Mark von Keszycki. “During times of low solar resource—long duration, bad weather, whatever the case may be—they’re able to burn a variety of fuels.”
To understand how this works, it’s best to step back and understand the entire system being built, which includes details about how the 247Solar team hopes to avoid some of the problems faced by other solar thermal systems and provide a great deal of flexibility in terms of how its systems get put to use.
Like other concentrated solar systems, 247Solar’s will be using a field of heliostats. But the receiver—the hardware that they focus the sunlight on—is distinctive, in that it works with ambient-pressure air. (It’s an updated version of hardware developed by a German company.) Air exits this hardware at approximately 970° C. That air can potentially be used directly for industrial process heat or sent on to the hardware that generates electricity. But in most cases, it will be directed to heat storage.
Rather than dealing with molten salts and potential phase transition, 247Solar heats up ceramic pellets roughly the size of a golf ball. Depending on the details of the storage configuration, von Keszycki says that the heat from the storage could be used to generate power for anywhere from nine to 20 hours after the Sun sets. Hours will obviously be shorter if some of the heat is used to generate power during the day, but 247Solar plans to pair its system with photovoltaic installations for daytime generation.
Wherever the hot air comes from, it will be sent to a heat exchanger. This is designed as a drop-in replacement for a combustion unit on a traditional turbine to heat up compressed air to drive generation. “The heat exchanger does the same job as the combustor did,” 247Solar’s Bruce Anderson told Ars. “It’s in the same place in the turbine assembly as the combustor was: after the compression stage and before the expander.” The initial installation will pair two 200 kW generators; aside from the heat exchanger, everything else is part of a standard off-the-shelf package.
This is the point where the system’s flexibility comes in: It doesn’t care how the air in the exchanger gets heated. So, any of a variety of fuels can be burned to provide the equivalent heat. von Keszycki suggested that adding the capability to the system to burn fossil fuels tacks on less than 10 percent of its total cost.
The air coming out of the heat exchanger is still quite hot, in the neighborhood of 250° C, and von Keszycki called it “a separate usable resource” that could be directed to a variety of applications, including industrial processes and absorption cooling. Again, if intermediate temperatures are needed, it could potentially be mixed with some hot air coming directly from the storage medium, albeit at the cost of generation.
The first installation will be small, with a pair of 200 kW generators, and so will mostly serve to validate the system’s engineering—Anderson said the biggest worries are “unknown unknowns.” But the system is designed to be modular, and the company is already working through the engineering of a 3 megawatt facility that combines multiple units that share a single tower that holds multiple receivers and heat storage.
The installation will also give the company a sense of how the system actually works out financially. On a typical grid, there are few incentives for providing around-the-clock renewable energy. And the cost of ensuring that there is enough generation to back up solar plants is often absorbed by other parties. The ability to generate fossil-fuel-based backup power without having to build a dedicated facility can definitely save someone money, but markets aren’t always set up so that it’s easy to extract those savings.
So, it’s not surprising that 247Solar has other markets in mind. It’s especially excited about remote mining sites, which typically require diesel to be shipped in, often at considerable expense. The 247Solar system would avoid that expense, while potentially providing process heat that could be useful for some of the ore processing. And powering mining operations without emissions would work well for companies that are required to account for the carbon emissions of their supply chain.
Still, there might be a space for this sort of facility on the grid, if it does successfully avoid the need for dedicated fossil fuel plants that only ever run for a small fraction of the night—provided the price and incentives line up.
Ars Technica has been separating the signal from the noise for over 25 years. With our unique combination of technical savvy and wide-ranging interest in the technological arts and sciences, Ars is the trusted source in a sea of information. After all, you don’t need to know everything, only what’s important.

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Solar panels work best in bright sunshine, but that doesn’t mean they’re useless on a cloudy day, and even on overcast days, they still generate electricity
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Fitting solar panels to your home is a sizeable undertaking, so it’s understandable in a country like the UK to be concerned about their performance when it’s cloudy.
Thankfully, the short answer is: yes, solar panels work on cloudy days. Even when overcast, the panels continue to generate electricity, which can then be used to power your home, stored for use later, or earn money by being exported to the grid.
It’s true to say solar panels generate less electricity on cloudy days, and that they work best on clear, sunny days. But, importantly, the UK’s climate doesn’t prevent solar panels from being an effective source of household electricity.
Keep reading to understand more about how solar panels work, and what to expect from their performance on cloudy, dull and overcast days.
Solar panels work by using photovoltaic (PV) panels to convert light into electricity. They work in daylight, rather than exclusively when subjected to direct sunlight, so even on cloudy or fully overcast days they will continue to work. That’s because solar panels absorb energy from the visible light spectrum and wavelengths that can pass through clouds.
That said, on cloudy days solar panels generate less electricity than on bright, sunny days. The amount of electricity generated depends on how much light reaches the panels, which in turn is affected by the thickness of the cloud cover, the time of day and year, the angle of the panel (or roof it’s attached to), and local shadowing from nearby objects like trees.
It is also worth remembering that solar panels generate electricity using light, not heat. They don’t need warm weather to function, and can actually perform less efficiently during especially hot weather. So even on a cold winter’s day, clear sunshine will produce a good amount of electricity.
Solar panels generally produce less electricity when it’s cloudy, but the reduction depends on the specific weather conditions. A bright day with occasional light cloud might have relatively little impact on electricity generation, while thick, dark clouds can dramatically reduce the amount produced.
An exact figure can’t be put on how much electricity a solar panel generates on a cloudy day, since there are too many variables to produce a reliable conclusion. However, it is generally claimed that electricity output from solar panels can fall to between 10 and 25 per cent on a grey and overcast day, compared to a sunny day. Heavy cloud cover can see output fall to between 20 and 40 per cent of optimal conditions, while light cloud cover can cut electricity generation to between approximately 60 and 80 per cent.
Read more: Best solar panels, compared
Yes. Solar panels generally generate more electricity when exposed to direct sunlight, since more solar energy reaches their photovoltaic cells. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean the hottest days of the summer are always the best for producing electricity.
This is because high temperatures can make solar panels less efficient. As the temperature of the cells increases, their ability to convert sunlight into electricity tends to decrease slightly.
This doesn’t mean solar panels stop working on hot sunny days. Longer daylight hours and stronger sunlight generally make summer the most productive season for solar generation in the UK, despite efficiency occasionally dropping on especially hot days. Ultimately, the amount of light reaching the panel has a much greater influence on electricity generation than the temperature.
Solar panels can absolutely be a worthwhile investment for your home, despite the UK’s reputation for grey skies and unpredictable weather. As explained earlier, they don’t require constant sunshine to work, and can continue to produce useful amounts of electricity even on cloudy days, and are mostly unaffected by colder temperatures.
In short, a properly installed system can still produce a substantial amount of a home’s electricity demand each year. It is therefore best to zoom out and look at years as a whole, instead of focusing too much on individual days or weeks. Some especially cloudy days will see very little electricity generation, while other days will see much more.
Whether solar panels are worth it to you comes down to their cost and the long-term savings they can deliver. Using electricity generated by your own panels reduces the amount you need to buy from your energy supplier, while exporting surplus electricity back to the grid can provide an additional financial benefit.
Read more: Are Octopus solar panels worth it?
Weather is one of the biggest factors affecting solar panel performance, with the difference between a sunny day and a dull, overcast one having a significant impact on electricity production. However, there are other factors that determine how much electricity your panels can generate.
These include the angle of your roof, local shading caused by nearby objects like trees or other buildings, the size and specification of the panels, and even how clean they are. Dust, pollen, leaves and other objects can reduce electricity generation. A bright side in the UK is that our frequent rainfall can help solar panels stay cleaner and more efficient, according to Switch Together.
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Rooftop solar energy systems, paired with battery energy storage, are one of the most effective ways to bring down household energy bills. A typical installation saves many hundreds of pounds each year, the precise amount varying according to capacity, configuration and location.
“With the Warm Homes Loan Scheme now in place, more homes can go solar next year than ever before, taking control of their energy and insulating themselves from high energy bills” said Chris Hewett, Chief Executive of Solar Energy UK. “Critically, it will ensure that households across society can overcome any financial barriers, making sure that the benefits are felt where they are most needed. We are already expecting the annual record for smaller-scale solar systems to be broken within a few weeks. I have every confidence that the scheme will help deliver yet another record next year, over and above the 300,000 we expect to see this year. That in turn means employing more people, cutting energy bills and fuel poverty, delivering economic growth and cutting dependence on increasingly expensive natural gas.
The Warm Homes Loan Scheme was first trumpeted in the Labour’s 2024 manifesto, as part of the Warm Homes Plan. It is comparable to a Scottish Government programme that formerly offered interest-free loans for home solar installations, which had a significant impact on fuel poverty.
Rather than being provided directly by the state, the loans will be made available across the UK via a series of partners, including Solar Energy UK members Sunsave and E.ON (via Homeserve). Interest rates will be cut by up to 5 percent on the rate that would otherwise apply, saving customers hundreds of pounds a year and ensuring that savings exceed repayments.
Loans for solar panels will be capped at up to £15,000, enough to secure an array substantially larger than the household average. The same cap will apply for battery energy storage, again plentiful.
“Two further aspects of the scheme are also very welcome” added Gemma Grimes, Solar Energy UK’s Director of Policy and Delivery. “All home energy upgrades, barring connections to heat networks, will be conducted by installers certified by the standards body MCS, with whom we work closely. This will help secure and maintain consumer confidence. Grants for heat pumps will also remain, under the government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme (and Home Energy Scotland in Scotland), further reducing the cost of installations.”
For additional information:
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Fiji, 8 October 2026 – Australia has become the first country to endorse a global plan to double the number of homes with rooftop solar by 2030, putting household solar in the spotlight ahead of the UN’s COP31 climate summit in November.
The Global Rooftop Solar Declaration was endorsed by the Hon Chris Bowen MP, Minister for Climate Change and Energy and President of Negotiations for COP31, at the 2026 Pacific Pre-COP meeting in Fiji, ahead of next month’s COP31 Summit. The Declaration provides a blueprint for governments to make home solar and battery systems easier and cheaper to install, providing more secure and affordable electricity to their citizens. That means cutting red tape for installations, helping families access affordable finance, upgrading power grids and training more local workers.
The Declaration underpins the 300 Million Solar Homes initiative. Around 150 million homes worldwide have rooftop solar today, and the initiative aims to double that by 2030. Its partners – including the Global Solar Council, Smart Energy Council Australia and Solar Citizens – welcomed Australia’s endorsement and called on other governments at a national, regional and local level to follow.
Rooftop solar, and battery storage, is one of the fastest-growing parts of the global energy system, expected to deliver 42% of solar growth and 34% of all renewable energy growth by 2030. With energy prices volatile following a second global energy crisis in four years, the fastest and cheapest way for households to ensure a secure supply of electricity and take control of their bills is by installing panels and batteries. In Australia, a household can save up to AU$1,500 a year from solar alone. There are also significant opportunities for plug-in solar and batteries as these products become available around the world.
Australia is a world leader in rooftop solar and home batteries, with solar on more than 40% of homes and rooftop systems supplying around an eighth of the country’s electricity. In the Pacific, five islands in Tonga run entirely on solar and battery storage. As President of Negotiations Australia’s backing of the declaration ahead of November’s summit in Türkiye is a clear signal to other countries that the global community can tackle skyrocketing energy prices through rooftop solar and home batteries.

“Families everywhere want to bring down their energy bills, and rooftop solar and storage lets them do just that. It took the world around 30 years to reach the first 150 million solar homes. We want to add the next 150 million in just four years. Australia’s support and practical experience in implementation is exactly what we need to realise that ambition in every corner of the world.” 
– Sonia Dunlop, CEO of the Global Solar Council

“Rooftop and home solar is the sleeping giant in global climate diplomacy, despite powering millions of homes. This pivotal Declaration provides a pathway to rapidly change that. We now call on national, state and local leaders around the world to sign onto the Global Rooftop Solar Declaration ahead of COP31 and help bring the benefits of home solar to millions more people.”
– Heidi Lee Douglas, CEO of Solar Citizens

“Solar is the cheapest, cleanest form of power in the world. Australia already leads the world in rooftop solar and home batteries, and today we have shown that the Australian Government is prepared to take that leadership globally. Rooftop solar cuts power bills, gives countries greater control over their own energy and protects households and economies from volatile fuel costs and supply.”
– David McElrea, CEO of the Smart Energy Council Australia

Notes to Editors 
About the Global Rooftop Solar Declaration: The Declaration calls on national, state and local governments to accelerate the deployment of rooftop solar and household batteries. Signatories commit to prioritise:
The declaration can be found in full here.
ENDS.
The Global Solar Council (GSC) is the united voice of the solar industry worldwide. As a non-profit trade body, our vision is to create a fair and sustainable world with solar at the heart of a new energy economy. Driven by our passion for a cleaner, more just world, we work as a community to ensure everyone’s voices are heard, advocating for swift progress to be made in the battle for the climate. We advise governments on the pressing issues central to the solar transition, including finance, grids, skills, sustainability, and supply chains.
Solar Citizens is an independent, community-based non-profit organisation working to protect and grow renewable energy and transport in Australia and internationally. Our vision is of a world that prioritises affordable, renewable energy and clean transport, where every home, business and community can participate and benefit. We champion people-led energy systems that reduce the cost of living and harmful emissions. We enable global leadership to accelerate a fast, fair and inclusive energy transition.
The Smart Energy Council (SEC) is the peak independent membership body representing Australia’s renewable energy industry. A not-for-profit organisation and registered charity, we advocate on behalf of our members and the wider industry for strong energy policy, increased investment, energy security and sustainable industry growth. Our work spans residential, commercial and industrial distributed energy resources (DER), including solar PV and battery storage, rooftop solar, electrification, electric vehicles and smart transport, renewable manufacturing, large-scale renewable energy, electricity grid development and emerging energy technologies. We represent our members’ interests nationally and internationally, including across the Asia-Pacific region.
Media Contact: Tim Lamacraft, GM Media and Comms, media@smartenergy.org.au – +61 448 972 192
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The Smart Energy Council is Australia’s independent peak body for the renewable energy industry, representing more than 1,000 organisations across solar, wind, battery storage, hydrogen, renewable manufacturing, transport, utilities and emerging clean energy technologies.
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BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif. — Big Bear Lake has welcomed tourists, campers and nature lovers for decades, and though the town has come a long way from its gold mining past, modern amenities like electricity can still be hard to come by.
At the end of a dirt road that winds up into the mountains, staff and students at Camp Gilboa spent an October Saturday preparing for winter, filling pipes with antifreeze and boarding up windows so the snow wouldn’t cave them in. While they worked, on-site generators kept the lights on.
“We are an off-grid site, and so we completely rely on generators for all of our power, which — they are propane generators — and so, you know, they’re not environmentally friendly,” said Michael Auerbach, executive director for Camp Gilboa.
Auerbach and his team have begun to transition away from the generators, a transition they hope becomes permanent.
“There’s a risk there with no safeguard or only having one power source,” Auerbach said. “And so the idea behind the solar panels was to have an additional power source and then have the generators act as just a backup in case of emergency and lost power.”
Funded in part by grants from the Jewish Solar Challenge, the camp installed a solar and battery array on their dining hall, which they rely on for 12 hours out of the day. Auerbach says that the new array reduced the camp’s fuel costs by more than 50% — from just over $7,501 last summer to $2,612 this year.
Although in addition to the savings, Auerbach says that the new energy source embodies the values of the camp, which instructs students in social and environmental justice.
“Camp Gilboa is on a literal nature preserve,” Auerbach said. “We’re surrounded by the Wildlands Conservancy. “So they not only have like a practical value to us, but they have a deep symbolic and philosophical value to them.”
Mitchell Schwartz, founder of the Jewish Solar Challenge, joins Auerbach in that belief. Schwartz began the organization in 2021, with the goal of equipping every Jewish nonprofit in the country with solar power.
“We started in the Jewish community because personally, I’m Jewish, and I feel that I want to make sure our community is doing the right thing before we start to advocate and try to get other folks to do it,” Schwartz said. “Although obviously it’s happening across the country with religious groups, nonreligious groups, etc., but we want this to be a model to help any nonprofit put solar up there.”
Already, the Jewish Solar Challenge has awarded grants for over two dozen solar installations, with several more scheduled before the end of 2026. Over half of those are in California.
Schwartz said that Camp Gilboa is the “perfect candidate” for a grant because of their off-grid location, but also because of the camp’s cause.
 “It’s the perfect project,” Schwartz said. “You have wonderful people teaching kids here the right things to really honor and love and respect and care for the earth and reducing emissions, reducing costs. It’s just the perfect project.”
Ultimately, Camp Gilboa hopes to convert to 100% solar-powered energy.
“It’s one thing to sit around and learn about and talk about environmental justice, but also we have an imperative to actually do something about it,” Auerbach said.

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Mecpower Solutions and Navitas Solar have announced plans to establish a 5 GWh BESS manufacturing facility in Gujarat 
The facility will serve utility-scale, commercial, and industrial applications 
The partnership will support their own projects and also cater to market demand  
Indian solar PV manufacturer Navitas Solar is venturing into the energy storage space. In collaboration with renewable energy EPC company Mecpower Solutions, it will establish a 5 GWh battery energy storage system (BESS) manufacturing facility in Gujarat. 
To be located in Karjan, the factory will produce storage solutions for utility-scale renewable energy projects and commercial and industrial (C&I) applications. It is scheduled to start commercial operations in Q1 FY2027-28. 
Mecpower offers its project development, engineering, and execution experience to the partnership, while Navitas brings its manufacturing capabilities. 
The output from this facility is expected to support their own respective EPC deployments and meet demand from other energy storage projects.  
Calling BESS a critical component of the power sector, Navitas Solar’s Anikt Singhania said the partnership will expand its manufacturing capabilities and also contribute to the development of scalable storage solutions in the country. 
Navitas Solar joins a slew of PV manufacturers entering the BESS space as they diversify their portfolios and revenue streams while tapping growing demand for energy storage. Manufacturers aim to position themselves as providers of integrated clean energy solutions. Waaree Energies commenced production at its BESS container factory in July 2026 with plans to achieve 20 GWh (see Waaree ESS Starts 5.15 GWh BESS Container Facility In India). 
Premier Energies has joined hands with Germany’s RCT to establish 12 GWh BESS production capacity (see Premier Energies & RCT Finalize 12 GWh BESS Manufacturing Deal). 
Vikram Solar is another PV manufacturer that recently unveiled plans to set up a 7.5 GWh BESS factory in Tamil Nadu, with plans to expand it to 15 GWh in phases. The company said last year that it plans to set up a 1 GWh solid-state cell and battery manufacturing facility with proprietary battery management system (BMS) technology, with plans to scale it up to 5 GWh.  
TaiyangNews 2024

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Researchers in China have investigated gallium-doped zinc oxide (GZO) as an indium-free transparent conductive oxide (TCO) for silicon heterojunction (HJT) solar cells. The approach aims to reduce manufacturing costs and reliance on scarce indium used in conventional transparent electrodes.
“The high cost of indium has driven the development of indium-free alternatives to conventional TCOs for HJT solar cells,” the group explained. “In this study, the structural, morphological, electrical, optical, and chemical properties of GZO films were investigated by combining in situ optical emission spectroscopy (OES) with ex situ characterization.”
The researchers fabricated HJT solar cells using n-type crystalline silicon wafers measuring 210 × 105 mm and approximately 130 μm thick. They chemically cleaned and textured the wafers, then deposited intrinsic amorphous silicon passivation layers and doped microcrystalline silicon oxide layers on both sides by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition.
They then deposited GZO transparent electrodes at room temperature using reactive plasma deposition, with thicknesses of 80 nm on the front and 100 nm on the rear. The team varied the oxygen fraction in the oxygen-argon deposition gas from 5% to 25%, while keeping the total gas flow constant, and screen-printed contacts using 30 wt% Ag-coated Cu paste.
They monitored the plasma using optical emission spectroscopy and characterized the films’ crystal structure, surface morphology, oxygen chemical states, electrical properties, and optical transmission. Finally, they measured the cells’ current-voltage characteristics under simulated sunlight at 1,000 W/m² and 25 C, comparing their performance with a reference HJT cell featuring indium-based transparent electrodes on both sides.
“The film deposited at an oxygen content of 10% exhibited the optimum electrical properties, with a minimum resistivity of 4.902 × 10⁻⁴ Ω cm and an average optical transmittance of 83.45% in the 400-1100 nm range,” the results showed.
“The GZO film deposited at 10% oxygen showed the typical hexagonal wurtzite structure with a pronounced preferred orientation,” the group added. “When the optimized GZO films were applied as TCO electrodes in HJT solar cells, a conversion efficiency of 24.92% was achieved. Compared with the HJT solar cell with double-sided ICO, the efficiency was only 0.68% lower.”
The article “24.92% efficient crystalline silicon heterojunction solar cells with Ga-doped ZnO transparent conductive oxide films by RPD” has appeared in Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells. Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, China’s Dinto Solar and Anhui Huasun Energy have contributed to the research. 
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Chinese-linked solar developer loses appeal over Texas grid interconnection  Utility Dive
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Researchers in China have developed an acid-free method to recover silver wires from end-of-life aluminum back-surface-field solar cells using a molten mixture of sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide (NaOH-KOH).
The molten salt etches the cell’s silicon nitride (SiNx) passivation layer and weakens the bond between the silver and the SiNx, allowing the silver wires to detach and be recovered directly as metal, rather than being dissolved into silver ions and recovered later.
At 230 C for 150 seconds, the process recovered 94.34% of the silver and effectively removed the SiNx layer, the researchers said. Maximum silver recovery reached 97.11%.
Silicon substrate loss was limited to 2.62% at 230 C for 100 seconds. The researchers found that once the SiNx layer is removed, the exposed silicon is attacked by hydroxide ions in the molten salt, causing pitting and converting silicon into soluble sodium and potassium silicates.
The work builds on an earlier NaOH-KOH molten salt recycling approach reported in 2024. The researchers said existing molten salt methods avoid acids but do not effectively control silicon substrate loss, and that the new study clarifies the mechanisms behind both silver recovery and silicon loss.
Most silver recovery from end-of-life modules still relies on acid leaching with nitric acid and other strong acids, which converts silver into ions and generates nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions and acidic wastewater, according to the researchers. They noted that silver accounts for less than 0.03% of the weight of an end-of-life module but nearly half of its total value, and that the first generation of commercial PV modules is now reaching the end of its 25- to 30-year life.
The work was carried out at laboratory scale.
The findings appear in “Sustainable recovery of silver wires from crystalline silicon solar cells,” which was recently published in the Journal of Cleaner Production.
Researchers from Australia’s University of Newcastle, CSIRO Energy and PV Industries recently recovered an average of 93% of silver electrochemically from a simulated nitric acid leaching solution using stainless steel cathodes. Separately, researchers from the University of New South Wales, Gdansk University of Technology and the Polish Academy of Sciences found that silver can make up to 47% of a module’s recoverable value, though falling silver content in newer panels will lower future recycling revenue.
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300 MWp solar park: Algeria advances 3.2 GW renewable energy plan  AL Circle
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Energies Media
A massive solar facility in Germany shows that aggressive clean-energy expansion can coexist with local wildlife conservation.
Photovoltaics play a fundamental role in the nation’s green energy shift, especially in the digital and electric era.
Yet critics argue that large-scale projects displace grassland birds and harm sensitive agricultural ecosystems.
But long-term, advanced environmental monitoring in Hesse tells a different story.
How did modern technology, combined with traditional surveys, demonstrate the benefits of effective management?
Nationwide digitization and electrification are rapidly transforming Germany’s energy landscape.
Policy incentives and climate mandates are primary drivers of this shift.
By 2030, Germany is projected to reach over 14 million electric vehicles and six million heat pumps.
Thousands of data centers are also expected to expand by the end of the decade.
These technologies are central to eliminating nationwide fossil fuel reliance and modernizing infrastructure.
However, this expansive transition is also expected to surge national power demand from 500 TWh to 700 TWh by 2030.
At the same time, the nation is experiencing a major energy supply gap across its power grid.
This is because Germany completed its nuclear shutdown in 2023 and is phasing out electricity generated by coal.
To bridge this growing deficit sustainably, utility-scale green energy capacity must rapidly scale.
Solar power especially provides a quick, clean solution to rising consumption while progressing toward legally mandated 2045 net-zero targets.
Germany is actively seeking large-scale solar development opportunities due to its distinct advantages.
Yet the nation has faced significant opposition across local municipalities.
Critics and agricultural communities are frequent opponents of utility-scale projects due to environmental concerns.
One argument maintains that these massive ground-mounted installations disrupt open agricultural landscapes.
Others worry that these facilities displace ground-nesting grassland birds such as skylarks.
Conservationists are also worried about the degradation of sensitive local ecosystems.
As a result, extensive off-site compensation land is routinely demanded by municipal authorities.
To address persistent local biodiversity concerns, solar park developer and operator ENERPARC took action.
The company’s goal is to challenge assumptions regarding renewable energy and habitat disruption using direct empirical study.
A long-term ecological monitoring program was launched as a result, focusing on the Lauterbach solar park in Hesse.
This facility was constructed on former intensively farmed land, serving as an ideal real-world test site.
It turns out that solar panels have an unexpected beneficial effect on birds.
Baseline ecological surveys began in 2018 before the 136-acre solar farm’s construction commenced.
From 2022 onward, after the project was completed, annual field mapping tracked species recovery.
In 2025, advanced artificial intelligence monitoring was introduced alongside conventional field methods.
Acoustic sensors were placed throughout the facility to continuously record background sound.
The AI systems used sound triangulation to map active zones, identify species, analyze vocalizations, and pinpoint nesting territories. Prior to construction, active skylark territories were four.
This number increased to approximately 20 permanent territories.
The growth occurred as project developers eliminated:
Ground vegetation management also played a key role. It unlocked uncultivated open spaces, rich, pesticide-free foraging grounds, and reduced disturbance during nesting seasons.
Beyond the benefits to native skylarks, the site also created a vital feeding habitat for other endangered species.
These species include quails, wheatears, whinchats, and native lizards.
This advanced monitoring model provided municipal authorities with accurate data needed to accelerate clean energy growth.
The positive findings demonstrate that properly planned and managed solar parks can boost local biodiversity.
Ultimately, solar developers should implement targeted interventions that help protect native wildlife while maximizing energy output.
Anke Maree is a writer with a clear and engaging editorial style. Her work focuses on making complex topics accessible, informative, and relevant for readers across different areas of interest.
Anke Maree is a writer with a clear and engaging editorial style. Her work focuses on making complex topics accessible, informative, and relevant for readers across different areas of interest.
Anke Maree is a writer with a clear and engaging editorial style. Her work focuses on making complex topics accessible, informative, and relevant for readers across different areas of interest.

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India’s federal government has decided to expand its floating solar ambitions and is supporting that goal with investment and incentives, according to pv magazine. Deployed floating solar capacity in India stands at roughly 700 MW in 2026, and a new support mechanism approved by the country’s cabinet in July aims to add 5 GW over a five-year period.
The program is tied to the Pradhan Mantri Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana scheme, though the source text does not detail the mechanism’s specific terms. The cabinet approval in July establishes the policy basis for the targeted capacity expansion, while the current installed base of about 700 MW provides the starting point against which the 5 GW goal would be measured.
The source does not specify financing amounts, the start date of the five-year window, or the implementing agencies responsible for the program. It also does not indicate how much of the planned capacity has been allocated or contracted.
Interactive table based on the Store Companies dataset for this report.
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Major integrated solar manufacturer
India's largest solar module manufacturer
Part of Adani Group, integrated manufacturing
Leading manufacturer, part of Tata Group
Major PV module and cell producer
Historical leader in solar manufacturing
Makes solar cells, modules, encapsulants
Module and cell manufacturer
Solar PV module manufacturer
Solar panel manufacturer and distributor
Manufactures solar modules and inverters
Solar panel manufacturer
Solar panel manufacturer
Solar panel manufacturer
Solar cell and module manufacturer
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Leading electrical goods co, major LED player
Major manufacturer of LED lights and fixtures
Major player in LED lighting segment
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Manufactures LED displays and lighting
Indian subsidiary, major LED mfg in India
Manufactures LED lights and fixtures
Major Indian electrical brand, produces LEDs
LED lighting products manufacturer
Manufactures LED bulbs and lighting
Major player in consumer LED lighting
Leading LED lighting solutions provider
Manufactures LED lights under Finolex brand
Wires & cables major, also manufactures LEDs
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More than 300 more council homes in the Goole area are to be fitted with solar panels in a bid to cut tenants' energy bills and reduce carbon emissions.
As part of an investment programme by East Riding of Yorkshire Council during the 2026-27 financial year, solar panels, energy-efficient LED lighting and improved loft insulation will be installed.
Once the work is completed, around March 2027, more than 400 council homes in the town will have solar panels, almost a third of the council-owned properties in the area.
The solar panels will also allow tenants to use renewable electricity generated at their home, with surplus electricity able to be exported to the National Grid.
Michael Lee, council cabinet member for housing and infrastructure, said: "We're proud to invest in our council housing stock, to create warmer and more energy-efficient homes that help both tenants and the environment."
Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North.
Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices
Homes England and developer Muse plan to build 1,500 homes on the former university site.
The city council says the money will help make sure infrastructure is built to support 5,500 homes.
Figures show 408 homes were under construction at the end of June, the highest level since 2016.
The Committee for Housing is asking for an extra £795,000 to improve the situation for tenants.
Treated vegetable oil is being used as an alternative to kerosene to heat facilities used by crews.
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Ground-mounted solar installations occupied 2,798 hectares in Italy in 2025, up from 1,700 hectares in 2024, according to the new “Land Consumption, Urban Ecosystems and the State of the Territory” report by the Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (ISPRA) and the National System for Environmental Protection (SNPA).
Annual additions have increased sharply over the past five years, from 75 hectares in 2021 to 263 hectares in 2022, 420 hectares in 2023, 1,700 hectares in 2024 and 2,798 hectares in 2025. The area occupied by new ground-mounted solar installations grew from 0.75 square kilometers to 28 square kilometers over that period.
Solar accounted for around 27% of the 10,243 hectares of land consumed in Italy in 2025, as total land consumption increased by 22.4% compared with 2024. After accounting for 746 hectares of restored land, net land consumption reached 9,497 hectares, the highest level since 2012.
Ground-mounted solar installations now occupy a total of 21,368 hectares, corresponding to around 12,570 MW of capacity. The southern region of Puglia has the largest installed area, at 4,764 hectares.
According to ISPRA, ground-mounted solar panels represent a significant share of reversible land consumption, unlike buildings and roads, which are classified as permanent land consumption. The report separately identifies 448.5 hectares of low-density solar installations, including many agrivoltaic projects, where modules cover less than half of the site area. These installations are not counted as consumed land.
In 2025, Lazio recorded 952 hectares of new ground-mounted solar installations out of 1,436 hectares of total land consumption, accounting for about two-thirds of the regional total. In Sicily, solar installations occupied 858.5 hectares out of 1,619 hectares. Together, the two regions accounted for almost 65% of the ground-mounted solar area added in Italy during the year.
They were followed by Piedmont, with 189 hectares; Puglia, with 145 hectares; and Sardinia, with 136 hectares.
The province of Viterbo recorded the largest annual increase in land consumption, at 969 hectares, more than twice the previous year’s figure. The municipalities with the largest increases were Tuscania, at 319 hectares, and Montalto di Castro, at 316 hectares, followed by Catania, at 198 hectares.
Excluding ground-mounted solar, the ranking changes, with Rome recording the largest increase at 74 hectares, followed by Foggia at 72 hectares, Cerignola at 53 hectares and Campagna at 51 hectares. Lazio also recorded Italy’s highest relative increase, equivalent to 1.01% of its existing artificial surface area.
The report states that, in municipalities covered by the European Union’s Nature Restoration Regulation, the loss of natural land in central and southern Italy and the islands is largely driven by large ground-mounted solar installations. In northern Italy, buildings, logistics facilities and construction sites are the main drivers.
Based on grid connection requests submitted to Italian transmission system operator Terna, projects totaling 10,263 MW with signed connection contracts could require more than 10,260 hectares of land over the next 18 to 24 months.
The estimate falls to around 9,750 hectares when 515 MW of advanced agrivoltaic projects funded under Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan are excluded. A further 54,365 MW of projects have already received environmental approval.
According to ISPRA, standalone battery energy storage systems (BESS) could also increase the amount of solar capacity that can be developed, with implications for land consumption. More than 9,600 MW of standalone storage has contracted grid connections, while around 76,000 MW has received connection approval.
Storage could reduce renewable energy curtailment and connection costs in areas where the grid is congested, potentially enabling additional solar development. The report does not provide an estimate of the land area that battery installations themselves would occupy.
The report also references Italian Constitutional Court ruling No. 127/2026, which upheld restrictions on ground-mounted solar installations in agricultural areas and described soil as a scarce resource.
ISPRA estimates that Italy has up to 1,116 square km of potentially usable rooftop space, which could accommodate between 140 GW and 193 GW of solar capacity without consuming additional land.
ISPRA also identifies the expansion of data centers, driven by demand for digital infrastructure and cloud services, as an emerging source of land consumption. Data center development accounted for an additional 13 hectares in 2025, mainly in Lombardy. In the Milan area, 39% of new projects were located on previously undeveloped land.
Wind power installations occupied 118 hectares in 2025. Of this area, 58% consisted of unpaved yards, 41% of unpaved roads and just over 1% of sealed surfaces associated with turbine foundations.
From pv magazine Italia
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The Tías City Council calls on the residents of Mácher to a meeting at the Guardilama Mácher Sociocultural Center next Tuesday, November 3, at 7:00 PM, due to a new project processed by the Government of the Canary Islands for another photovoltaic plant installation in more than 70,000 m2 in the Mácher area.
The mayor of Tías, José Juan Cruz, insists that his government group, made up of PSOE and Podemos, rejects this photovoltaic plant and any similar installation that involves land occupation, “and we do not understand how the Government of the Canary Islands, through the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Energy, continues to accommodate these types of projects, whose processing was initiated this very month of October”.
José Juan Cruz Saavedra emphasizes that “we are committed to promoting energy saving and the use of renewable energies, but not in this way, but through self-consumption and the occupation of existing roofs, thus avoiding land occupation in the municipality and the visual and environmental impact of the project we are discussing”.
The mayor of Tías points out that the Directorate General of Energy of the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Energy of the Government of the Canary Islands has sent the City Council a request for a report regarding the “administrative authorization and declaration, in particular, of public utility of the installation called Photovoltaic Plant Tías II, of 4MW, in the municipality of Tías”.
The City Council has 30 days to submit this report of allegations, technical conditions, and impacts.
As will be recalled, the municipal council already rejected last year another project for the installation of 1,680 photovoltaic modules on rustic land in the municipality, a project that involves the occupation of 28,721 square meters of cadastral surface and whose announcement was published by the Directorate General of Energy of the Government of the Canary Islands in the Official State Gazette.
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