Solar ... In the news

Martyn1981

Rapid growth in solar capacity and generation in Texas, (a state with excellent wind generation too). This year could see ~50% growth in solar, and will hopefully overtake coal generation within the state.

The article also mentions that in 2025 wind + solar should overtake gas generation in the state.

Looks like the falling cost of solar is leading to a massive acceleration in deployment around the World, which leads to greater production, and falling costs, leading to ....... and so on, and so on.

Texas Shatters Own Solar Power Record, Weird Political Situation Or Not

Texas burst out in front of the wind power pack in the early 2000’s never to look back. An assist from state officials who approved a major new transmission network helped to kick the wind industry into high gear.

“In 2022, Texas generated 26% of all U.S. wind-sourced electricity, leading the nation for the 17th year in a row,” the US Energy Information Agency noted in its latest update.

“Wind power surpassed the state’s nuclear generation for the first time in 2014 and exceeded coal-fired generation for the first time in 2020,” they added.

“The sharp increase was highlighted by three solar records during the month. The first occurred Jan. 16 at the height of a strong winter cold snap. Output climbed to 14,837 megawatts (MW), accounting for 23% of total system demand. The second two records were set on Jan. 28, when solar hit new highs both for generation at 15,222 MW and for market share at 36.1%,” Wamsted observed.

“Those records were short-lived, as solar generation smashed through 16,000 MW on Feb. 13, topping 16,500 MW for an hour in the morning. At that point, and for some 7.5 hours during the day, solar provided more than 30% of the system’s power needs,” Wamsted added.

Coastalwatch

Don't know if BNEF have been taking a leaf out of Tony Seba's book but the forecasts suggested below do seem adventurous. Admittedly not exponential growth but seemingly sufficient to surpass their own Net Zero scenario and ahead of time.

Time will undoubtedly tell but encouraging to learn of the possibility in the meantime.

could hit 574 GW this year

BloombergNEF says in a new report that developers deployed 444 GW of new PV capacity throughout the world in 2023. It says new installations could reach 574 GW this year, 627 GW in 2025, and 880 GW in 2030.

“The challenge in making forecasts is that if you keep predicting growth at current rates, you end up forecasting the entire world being covered with solar panels,” Jenny Chase, a solar analyst at BloombergNEF, told pv magazine. “Our 2030 forecast is already over 6.7 TW, well above BNEF's Net Zero Scenario and relatively comparable with global power generation capacity of 8.5 TW at the end of 2022.”

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2024/02/20/bloombergnef-says-global-pv-installations-could-hit-574-gw-this-year/?utm_source=Global+|+Newsletter&utm_campaign=579de96357-dailynl_gl&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6916ce32b6-579de96357-159300013

Coastalwatch

Hooray, finally achieved, but roll out is well behind target if we are to reach the 70 GW required for Net zero by 2035. Just 5GW/yr now required so a five fold increase on current install levels. Quite some opportunity for well paid job creation with a decades worth of work ahead too!

United Kingdom breaks 16 GW barrier for solar deployment

Revised figures reveal UK solar capacity surpassed 16 GW in 2023, thanks to the inclusion of the newly available distribution network operator (DNO). Provisional figures for the first quarter of 2024 show the pace of new capacity lagging the same period in 2023.

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2024/07/04/united-kingdom-breaks-16-gw-barrier-for-solar-deployment/?utm_source=Global+|+Newsletter&utm_campaign=df2cb836f5-dailynl_gl&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6916ce32b6-df2cb836f5-159300013

silverwhistle

Solar is obviously making a difference, even in the UK. The Octopus Agile tariff I am currently on sometimes has it's cheapest prices when wind coincides with solar production, like today, and not necessarily overnight when demand is lower.

Cost is low all morning but the 12.30 to 16.00 period is negative and at it's cheapest at 14.30 at -3.97. Unfortunately the car is at a fairly high state of charge so I can really only defer a dishwasher load and laundry until then.

Coastalwatch

Another study showing positive returns both for crops and PV generation. Possibly good timing of it's release given the UK is now seeking to double PV output by 2030.

Microclimates could bolster case for agrivoltaics

Aritra Ghosh, one of the paper’s three authors, told pv magazine that while he believes the paper makes good conclusions about the economic benefits of agrivoltaics, more dynamic simulation tools could possibly make an even stronger case.

“One thing I think is still not evident is the microclimate developing under the PV system can probably improve the PV output we are currently getting from the existing tools,” he said, “PV will definitely get a lot of positive impact from the crop underneath it because it will change the temperature, and that is significant.”

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2024/07/12/microclimates-could-bolster-case-for-agrivoltaics/?utm_source=Global+|+Newsletter&utm_campaign=f4d0989cf7-dailynl_gl&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6916ce32b6-f4d0989cf7-159300013

Coastalwatch

The final decision on this farm was postponed on several occasions prior to the election, possibly due to strong local opposition, including it's MP which the new administration appears to have swept aside in favour of National interest.

Sunnica £600m solar farm approved despite objections

A 2,500-acre solar farm has been approved by the secretary of state for energy.

Sunnica's £600m energy farm on the Cambridgeshire-Suffolk border has been given the green light.

A decision on the plans had been delayed several times, including most recently due to the UK general election.

The new energy security secretary, Ed Miliband, said solar power was "crucial to achieving net zero".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgxqn9v0jdxo

Magnitio

There's a new 50MW solar farm near me that has been built on land previously grazed by sheep. Now it's completed, the land is grazed by sheep. It's only visible from the air or, possibly from nearby hills if you look hard enough. The biggest issue was the amount of construction traffic during the build phase.

silverwhistle

I've mentioned before flying out and around the Bournemouth area and the number of solar farms you can see, particularly on the scrubby land near the airport. Plenty of potential on roofs though, and the more generation we have near southern population centres the better as it aleviates the pressure on the North to South grid.

Martyn1981

This seems like a great idea, hope it expands to the UK (being offered in France currently).

Pssst, Want A Free Shed With Rooftop Solar Panels? Octopus Has Your Number

As if rural solar critics don’t have enough on their hands, here comes the UK firm Octopus Energy with a new deal to tempt many more farmers into the solar field. Octopus is offering to build large new sheds on farms free of charge, complete with rooftop solar panels. The new plan adds yet another wrinkle to the firm’s focus on small-scale rooftop solar installations as well as large-scale solar and wind farms.

Martyn1981

New to me, hope I can post a pic, as it will take too long to explain.

Norway’s national football stadium has the world’s largest vertical solar roof. How does it work?

Norway’s national football stadium carries a lesser-known star attraction: 1,242 solar panels stretching across the roof.

These are not traditional flat roof panels. The mini, square-shaped solar panels have two key features that distinguish them from those typically seen on buildings: they are bifacial, meaning they have two active sides, and they are installed vertically.