Solar Power Future Bright: New Estimates Show Rapid Growth in Off Grid Renewables - by Irena

The supply of electricity from mini-grids and small solar devices, such as solar home systems and solar lights is growing especially fast.

This part of the energy sector, including power generation from these sources, is often missing from official energy statistics. But evidence of their growing importance can be seen in solar panel import statistics and development project databases.

During 2017, IRENA collected detailed data about off-grid power developments to determine current estimates of off-grid capacity. Data sources included biannual market surveys from the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association, the OECD-DAC development project database, national and regional power plant databases, off-grid data gathered via IRENA questionnaires, and information obtained from organisations such as REN21 and the Alliance for Rural Electrification.

New data from IRENA shows that about 115 million people worldwide currently rely on the basic energy services provided by solar lights, while another 25 million obtain a higher level of renewable energy services through solar home systems or connection to a solar mini-grid. In addition to solar power, over 6 million people are currently connected to hydropower mini-grids, while another 300,000 people use biogas power.

The supply of electricity from mini-grids and small solar devices, such as solar home systems and solar lights is growing especially fast. This part of the energy sector, including power generation from these sources, is often missing from official energy statistics. But evidence of their growing importance can be seen in solar panel import statistics and development project databases.

During 2017, IRENA collected detailed data about off-grid power developments to determine current estimates of off-grid capacity. Data sources included biannual market surveys from the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association, the OECD-DAC development project database, national and regional power plant databases, off-grid data gathered via IRENA questionnaires, and information obtained from organisations such as REN21 and the Alliance for Rural Electrification.

Read morL New Estimates Show Rapid Growth in Off-Grid Renewables - Modern Diplomacy

Solar Energy: World energy hits a turning point:Solar that's cheaper than wind-by Tom Randall

Netherlands Almere Solar Energy station

There’s a transformation happening in global energy markets that’s worth noting as 2016 comes to an end: Solar power, for the first time, is becoming the cheapest form of new electricity. 

There have been isolated projects in the past where this happened: An especially competitive auction in the Middle East, for example, resulting in record-cheap solar costs. But now unsubsidized solar is beginning to outcompete coal and natural gas on a larger scale, and notably, new solar projects in emerging markets are costing less to build than wind projects, according to fresh data from Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

The average cost of new wind and solar from 58 emerging-market economies including China, India, and Brazil. While solar was bound to fall below wind eventually, given its steeper price declines, few predicted it would happen this soon.

“Solar investment has gone from nothing—literally nothing—like five years ago to quite a lot of money,” said Ethan Zindler, head of U.S. policy analysis at BNEF. “A huge part of this story is China, which has been rapidly deploying solar” and helping other countries finance their own projects.


Read more: World energy hits a turning point: Solar that's cheaper than wind

Britain: Alternative Energy - Wind and Solar: Wind farms and solar energy would cost billions less than Hinkley nuclear plant

Scrapping a planned euro 30 billion extension of Hinkley nuclear power station in favour of renewable energy would provide the same amount of energy, and save nearly £40 billion, according to a new report.

The ‘Toxic-time capsule’ report, released today by the Intergeneration Foundation, calls the proposed Hinkley Point C the ‘most expensive building on Earth’, and argues it would place economic and environmental burdens on future generations.

EDF Energy’s plans for the new reactors in Somerset would cost the government £92.50 per megawatt hour over 35 years of electricity supply.

But the think tank’s research, based on public subsidiaries and construction costs, found that onshore windfarms would cost euro 38.40 billion less, and solar photovoltaic power euro 49 billion over the same period.

It adds that renewable energy is preferable to nuclear power, as reactors cannot be built quickly enough to curb global warming, handing on the problems of nuclear waste and climate change to our children and grandchildren.

Read more: Wind farms and solar energy would cost billions less than Hinkley nuclear plant | Left Foot Forward

Alternative Energy: New technique for turning sunlight into hydrogen

A team of Korean researchers, affiliated with UNIST has recently pioneered in developing a new type of multilayered (Au NPs/TiO2/Au) photoelectrode that boosts the ability of solar water-splitting to produce hydrogen. According to the research team, this special photoelectrode, inspired by the way plants convert sunlight into energy is capable of absorbing visible light from the sun, and then using it to split water molecules (H2O) into hydrogen and oxygen.

This study is a collaboration among scientists, including Prof. Jeong Min Baik (School of Materials Science and Engineering, UNIST), Prof. Jae Sung Lee (School of Energy and Chemical Engineering, UNIST), Prof. Heon Lee (School of Materials Science and Engineering, Korea University), and Prof. Jonghwa Shin (Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology).

This multilayered photoelectrode takes the form of two-dimensional hybrid metal-dielectric structure, which mainly consists of three layers of gold (Au) film, ultrathin TiO2 layer (20 nm), and gold nanoparticles (Au NPs). In a study, reported in the January 21, 2016 issue of Nano Energy, the team reported that this promising photoelectrode shows high light absorption of about 90% in the visible range 380-700nm, as well as significant enhancement in photo-catalytic applications.

Many structural designs, such as hierarchical and branched assemblies of nanoscale materials have been suggested to increase the UV-visible absorption and to enhance water-splitting efficiency. However, through incorporation of plasmonic metal nanoparticles (i.e. Au) to TiO2 structures, their photoelectrodes have shown to enhance the photoactivity in the entire UV-visible region of solar spectrum when compared to the existing ones, the team reports.

Prof. Jeong Min Baik of UNIST (School of Materials Science and Engineering) states, “Several attemps have been made to use UV-based photoelectrodes for hydrogen production, but this is the first time to use the metal-dielectric hybrid-structured film with TiO2 for oxygen production.” Moreover, according to Prof. Baik, this special type of photoelectrode uses approximately 95% of the visible spectrum of sunlight, which makes up a substantial portion (40%) of full sunlight. He adds, “The developed technology is expected to improve hydrogen production efficiency.”

Read more: New technique for turning sunlight into hydrogen | Solid State Technology

Airplane Industry - Solar Power: Solar Impulse: Fuel-free aeroplane arrives in Myanmar

In doing so, the solar-powered plane has completed the fourth leg in its historic bid to fly around the world powered only by the Sun's rays.

Project chairman Bertrand Piccard piloted the vehicle, taking off from Varanasi in India early on Thursday.
The trip, which involved crossing the waters of the Bay of Bengal and a tall mountain range, was about 1,400km in length.

The aeroplane is a single-seater, and Piccard takes it in turn with project CEO Andre Borschberg to guide Solar Impulse on its circumnavigation of the globe.

So far, the pair have covered about 4,500km since beginning their adventure in Abu Dhabi on 9 March.
It will likely be another five months before they return to the United Arab Emirates, having crossed both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans in the process.

Read more: BBC News - Solar Impulse: Fuel-free aeroplane arrives in Myanmar

Alternative Energy: Turkish solar-powered water pumping system wins global award

 A Turkish physics professor has won a global energy award -- the Energy Globe Award -- for creating a solar-powered water pumping system in the Turkish capital Ankara.

The Energy Globe Award recognizes projects regionally, nationally and globally that conserve resources such as energy and that use renewable or emission-free sources. It was founded in 1999 and is located in Austria.

The award was given to Demir İnan, who created a solar-powered water pumping system for the houses in Süleymanlı village in Ankara.

İnan is the president of Clean Energy Foundation, located in Ankara. The foundation promotes the use of renewable energies in Turkey and neighboring countries.

According to a statement from the Austrian Embassy Commercial Section, İnan received the National Energy Globe Award 2014. His project aims to use solar panels for various household and irrigation needs.

The statement said that using solar energy for water pumping saves money and is suitable for countries such as Turkey.

Read more: Turkish solar-powered water pumping system wins global award | Nation | Daily Sabah

Solar Poweer: Spain meets large proportion of electricity demand with solar PV, CSP in 2013

When wind, hydro and other renewable energy sources are added, Spain met over 42% of its electricity demand with renewables in 2013.

Spain has the highest portion of electricity generation from CSP of any nation in the world, and one of the highest portions of solar electric generation, following Germany and Italy.

Spain hits 26% wind, solar generation

The nation has also met a record 21% of demand with wind power, roughly tied with nuclear power as the largest source of the nation's electricity. This means that wind, PV and CSP met 26% of demand during the year, one of the highest portions of electricity demand met with variable and intermittent renewable energy technologies globally.

Due to this variability, the actual contribution of wind and solar was higher during certain months. For example, PV and CSP met 8.0% of demand in June 2013, and wind and solar together met over 30% of demand during multiple months.

Spanish electricity demand was down 2.1% in 2013, the second year of declines. Additionally, the nation exported a net 6.96 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity in 2013, or 2.8% of generation, with Morocco as the largest destination. 

Read more: KW52 | Spain meets 4.9% of electricity demand with solar PV, CSP in 2013 - SolarServer

Solar Power: SunEdison, OPIC, IFC and Rabobank finalize US$100.4MM Project Financing Arrangement for the Largest Merchant Solar Plant in Latin America

SunEdison, Inc. a leading worldwide solar energy services provider recently  announced the closing of a $100.4 million non-recourse debt financing arrangement with the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. Government’s development finance institution and IFC, a member of the World Bank Group. The debt proceeds will be used in Chile for the construction of a 50.7 MWp solar power plant, to inject energy directly into the Central Interconnected System (SIC), selling all its production in the spot market (merchant solar).

OPIC is providing $ 62.9 million of debt, IFC is providing a parallel loan of U.S. $37.5 million and Rabobank is providing a local Chilean Peso VAT facility for the equivalent of U.S. $25.6 million.

Interconnection of the 50.7 MWp plant is expected to take place during the first quarter of 2014. Once completed, the project, called "San Andrés" and located in the Atacama region, is set to become the largest solar photovoltaic merchant plant in Latin America in 2014 and one of the largest in the world.

Pancho Pérez, SunEdison President for Europe, Middle East, Africa and Latin America, stated: “This plant represents significant growth for SunEdison and Chile’s PV industry, and significant value creation for SunEdison, investors and the region. The San Andrés merchant PV plant highlights SunEdison’s ability to deploy innovative energy solutions that address consumers’ electricity needs, contribute to national economic growth by reducing energy cost, and serve as a reference for the industry worldwide. We are very proud to partner once again with OPIC, IFC and Rabobank in Chile to enable this worldwide flagship project”.

Pérez added, “When completed, San Andrés will be the one of the first merchant PV plants and will demonstrate that solar photovoltaic is already a competitive energy source in countries like Chile. This project reinforces SunEdison’s leadership in the Latin American renewable energy market and reaffirms our commitment to clean energy industry development in Chile”

Read more: SunEdison, IFC and OPIC close US$100.4MM Project Financing Arrangement for the Largest Merchant Solar Plant in Latin America | OPIC : Overseas Private Investment Corporation

Alternative Energy - Morocco: Kingdom of sun - Emilie Cochaud, Juliett Lacharnay , Mairead Dundas, Marina Bertsh

Solar Power

Morocco may have little to no fossil fuel resources, but the kingdom has its eyes on a brighter future. By 2020 the country plans to produce 42 percent of its electricity from renewable sources, a large portion of it thanks to energy from the sun.

With 3,000 hours of sunlight each year and high irradiation, Morocco, the North African country is perfectly placed to tap into this inexhaustible resource.

In the southern city of Ouarzazate, famous as the door to the desert, King Mohammed VI has just approved the construction of a 500 megawatt solar plant, "the biggest project known in the world today", according to Mustapha Bakkoury of the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy. It's the first of five similar projects with an estimated price tag of seven billion euros. Critics have questioned whether the cost is extraordinarily exorbitant, but Morocco is confident it has made the right choice by banking on solar power.

Read more: Morocco: Kingdom of sun - FRANCE 24

Aircraft Industry - Switzerland: Solar plane completes 2nd leg of trip in Texas

 A solar-powered plane has landed in Texas, completing the second leg of a trip across the United States.
The Solar Impulse is making the first attempt by a solar airplane capable of flying day and night without fuel to fly across the U.S.

The plane landed early Thursday at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport after taking off Wednesday from Phoenix.

The plane flew its first leg from California in early May. From Dallas, it will fly to Lambert-St. Louis airport, Dulles airport near Washington and New York's John F. Kennedy airport.

Read more: Solar plane completes 2nd leg of trip in Texas - Timesonline.com: Technology

Go solar or pay more for energy—in Europe - by Chris Meehan

Solar Power a clean alternative source of energy

A senior energy consultant at Great Britain-based GlobalData is advising people in Europe, particularly in Britain and Italy to go solar now or face higher energy costs. The business intelligence firm is already predicting that domestic gas prices across Europe will rise by about 10 percent in 2013, making solar a better investment than ever.

GlobalData’s Head of Consulting for Power and Utilities Jonathan Lane is advising consumers across the continent to invest in photovoltaics now or lose money in the long term. “Twenty-thirteen looks pretty grim for both energy consumers and utilities,” he said. “Prices are sure to rise again for energy consumers, as both renewable subsidies and higher oil prices push electricity and gas prices higher across the continent.”

However, he also noted that “Renewable subsidies represent a cost and an opportunity for domestic energy consumers. Those that can fund the installation of solar PV, or borrow the money to do so, should invest.” He added, “Those that can’t will have to pay.”

Lane contended that Great Britain and Italy are the most susceptible to such price increases and whose residents are most likely to benefit from installing PV. “The UK has feed-in tariffs for solar which make it economic,” he said. He also noted that a new policy in Britain to simplify tariffs will help.

In the past Italy has been one of the fastest growing solar markets in the world, thanks in part to generous solar incentives. But after the country’s economic issues became more apparent, some have criticized the country for making such investments, while its debt surmounted.

That’s changing, according to Lane. “Higher electricity prices and lower panel prices means that Italy can lower its incentives.” The lowered incentives and module costs means solar is still an attractive investment in the country.

Read more: Go solar or pay more for energy—in Europe

Alternative Energy: Small-scale solar's big potential goes untapped - by Julie Cart

Gerald Freeman unlocks the gate to the small power plant and goes inside. Three rows of solar collectors, elevated on troughs that track the sun's arc like sunflowers, afford a glimpse of California's possible energy future.

This facility and a smaller version across the road produce some 70 kilowatts of electricity, about 80% of the power required by Nipton's 60 residents, its general store and motel.

Freeman, a Caltech-trained geologist and one-time gold mine owner, understood when he bought this former ghost town near the Nevada border that being off the grid didn't have to mean going without power.

The Obama administration's solar-power initiative has fast-tracked large-scale plants, fueled by low-interest, government-guaranteed loans that cover up to 80% of construction costs. In all, the federal government has paid out more than $16 billion for renewable-energy projects.

Those large-scale projects are financially efficient for developers, but their size creates transmission inefficiencies and higher costs for ratepayers.

Smaller alternatives, from rooftop solar to small- and medium-sized plants, can do the opposite.
Collectively, modest-sized projects could provide an enormous electricity boost — and do so for less cost to consumers and less environmental damage to the desert areas where most are located, say advocates of small-scale solar power.

Read more: Small-scale solar's big potential goes untapped - latimes.com

Europe Could Be 100% Renewable by 2050, If It Gets Its Act Together - by Martin Abbeglen

It's not just top European scientists who believe a 100% renewable future is possible. Paul Hockenos of Renewable Energy World posts on a new report from the Heinrich Böll Foundation, which claims that Europe could be 100% renewable by 2050.

Possible should not be confused with easy, however. Among the report's findings, writes Hockenos, is an observation that Europe is in desperate need of a more coherent, consistent approach to energy policy. Much like the need for greater fiscal unity to avert a Eurozone meltdown, the complex mix of targets, subsidies and priorities represented by each member nation represents a major obstacle to progress:

Since grid construction needs as long as ten years to be realized, potential grid investors would need an unshakable commitment to renewable energies to invest in such a costly project. The report underscores a number of measures to get the ball on an all-European system rolling, including a "review" of the EU treaty that stipulates that the national states have full authority to determine their own energy supplies as they wish. Ultimately there must be a guarantee that nationally minded states don't obstruct plans for an European grid system.

As for Europe's current energy markets, they too tend to reflect national priorities and a fossil fuel-dominated system that the EU is supposedly committed to phasing out. The report argues that "open and hidden" subsidies for fossil fuels and nuclear must be abolished in order to even the playing field between renewable and conventional energies.

Read Europe Could Be 100% Renewable by 2050, If It Gets Its Act Together : TreeHugger

China Solar Probe A Go In Europe

Chinese solar makers, already hit with duties in the United States, could within nine months face similar trade sanctions in Europe, according to the European Commission, which said today it would launch an antidumping investigation into solar panels and their key components originating in China.

The announcement came in response to a  complaint put forward in July by EU Pro Sun, a group led by SolarWorld, the German company whose Oregon-based U.S. arm has carried the banner in a so-far successful fight against Chinese solar in the United States. EU Pro Sun accuses Chinese companies of selling their products far below cost in the European Union.

The European Commission said the China solar investigation “will take 15 months in total, whereas it is possible according to trade defence rules to impose provisional antidumping duties within nine months, provided there is sufficient prima facie evidence of dumping.”

As in the United States, European solar manufacturers have suffered mightily in the past few years, as China – led by companies such as Yingli Green Energy, Suntech Power Holdings and Trina Solar — has grabbed 80 percent of the market. And the market in Europe is huge, “worth around €21 billion ($26.5 billion) to the EU” in 2011, according to the European Commission, making this what it called “the most significant anti-dumping complaint the European Commission has recived so far.”

Read more: China Solar Probe A Go In Europe | The Energy Collective

Alternative Energy: Solar-powered and noiseless boats soon

All the fuel and noise pollution caused by boats in our waters may be a thing of the past if an experiment planned by the Kerala State Water Transport Department succeeds. It has decided to go in for solar power  as a fuel source in its  boats.

The state government has sanctioned the project submitted by the KSWTD and entrusted the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) to  study it. A special team has also been formed to review the feasibility study.

KSWTD director Shaji V  Nair said, “If the project is implemented, it will be a breakthrough in the history of water transport in the state. Half  the expense incurred by the department is for fuel. About `7.5 crore was spent for fuel  last year. At the same time, the boats were emitting huge quantities of carbon dioxide.  If the solar-powered boats are operational, it  will be a great success for the department which will also benefit the environment,”  he said.

Read more: Solar-powered and noiseless boats soon - South India - Kerala - ibnlive

Morocco promoting solar energy gets boost with solar powered plane landing

Morocco's ambitious and expensive plan to draw 40 percent of its energy needs from the limitless power of its blazing sun by 2020 received a publicity boost this week as the first solar powered plane to make an intercontinental flight landed in the North African kingdom.

As Swiss pilot and adventurer Bertrand Piccard stepped out of the fragile craft in front of reporters late Tuesday following his 20-hour flight from Madrid, he immediately paid tribute to Morocco's solar ambitions, which include one day exporting electricity to Europe. "We came here out of admiration for Morocco's pioneering solar energy program," Piccard said, flashing a brilliant smile and hugging members of his team on the tarmac.

Just moments earlier, the Solar Impulse had swept silently out of the darkness to glide onto the runway. Its four battery-powered turbo-props were already still, showing off the aircraft's ability to fly even when the sun is gone.

EU-Digest

Sun-powered plane flight from Madrid to Rabat delayed untill Thursday by strong winds

The Swiss sun-powered aircraft Solar Impulse has been delayed by strong winds during a stop-off on its first planned intercontinental flight, organizers said on Monday.

The plane landed in Madrid early Friday at the end of the first leg of its attempt to reach Morocco without using a drop of fuel.  After technical checks and a pilot change it was hoped Solar Impulse would leave for Rabat on Monday.

“Today was the earliest possible departure date but we are waiting for the best weather window,” project spokeswoman Alexandra Gindroz told AFP.  “We have too much south-east wind.”

The departure is not likely to be before Thursday, when the forecast is for calmer weather, she said
.
Read more: Sun-powered plane trip to Morocco delayed by strong winds

Solar plane takes its first transcontinental flight

Solar Aircraft

An experimental solar-powered airplane took off from Switzerland on its first transcontinental flight Thursday, aiming to reach North Africa this week.

Pilot Andre Borschberg planned to take the jumbo jet-size Solar Impulse plane on its first leg to Madrid, Spain, by Friday. His colleague Bertrand Piccard will take the helm of the aircraft for the second stretch of its 2,500-kilometer (1,554-mile) journey to the Moroccan capital Rabat.

Fog on the runaway at its home base in Payerne, Switzerland, delayed the take off by two hours, demonstrating how susceptible the prototype single-seater aircraft is to adverse weather.

“We can’t fly into clouds because it was not designed for that,” Borschberg said as he piloted the lumbering plane with its 63-meter (207-foot) wingspan toward the eastern French city of Lyon at a cruising speed of just 70 kilometers an hour (43.5 mph).

After landing in Madrid in the early hours of Friday, Borschberg will face other challenges, including having to overfly the Pyrenees mountains that separate France and Spain.

Read more: Solar plane takes its first transcontinental flight - AVIATION - FRANCE 24

Alternative Energy: Why Solar Cookers Should Spread Like Satellites in Morocco - by Tafline Laylin

Women in rural Morocco are often responsible for the grueling task of trekking miles to collect fuel for cooking, which requires not only energy but also time that might have been used developing or applying other skills. Lacking access to natural gas, these villagers have had no choice but to burn biomass to produce the family’s meals –  a situation that also has grave environmental consequences. But a new initiative brought to our attention by Hicham Semlali has already profoundly improved the quality of life for residents of Ouffi Ait – a small, sunny village southeast of Marrakech.

The Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECI) introduced 150 new solar-cookers, which allow women to spend time on cottage industries and give the surrounding forests a much-needed break.

Working with the Foreign Association XXI and ADMR from Morocco, AECI targeted women as protagonists of a cleaner, more equitable future in their Morocco Solar Cookers for Rural Families project.

Aimed at overcoming poverty and exclusion, the initiative promotes using technology and renewable energy to strengthen the social and economic fabric of rural society and contribute to the successful management of natural capital and environmental preservation.

Read more: Why Solar Cookers Should Spread Like Satellites in Morocco | Green Prophet

Alternative Energy: Global Atlas for Solar Energy and Wind Power launched

The International Renewable Energy Agency, IRENA, and the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) presented the first Global Atlas for Solar Power and Wind Energy.

Global Atlas for Solar Power and Wind Energy launched. The International Renewable Energy Agency, IRENA, and the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) presented the first Global Atlas for Solar and Wind Energy at the Clean Energy Ministerial Forum, which took place in London on 25 and 26 April 2012. The atlas provides open access to information about where solar and wind energy can best be exploited, and is set to accelerate the development of renewable energy sources.

Global database set to accelerate the transition to renewable energies - energy ministers attending international forum on low-carbon energy

For more: REVE - Regulación Eólica con Vehículos Eléctricos -