X-Elio’s 148 MW BESS addition: Spain-headquartered global renewable energy company X-Elio will build a 148 MW battery energy storage system (BESS) project to accompany its 200 MW Blue Grass Solar Farm in Australia’s Queensland that has been online since November 2022. The BESS addition will happen over 2 phases of 60 MW and 88 MW, to be completed by Q3 2025, and Q3 2026, respectively. X-Elio says this will be its 1st hybrid solar and storage project in Australia.
SunCable project moves forward: SunCable has received conditional approval from Singapore’s Energy Market Authority (EMA) to proceed with its ambitious Australia-Asia PowerLink (AAPowerLink) project. This project is aimed at generating solar energy from up to 20 GW of solar PV and 42 GWh of battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity in Australia’s Northern Territory. Over 2 stages of development, SunCable will deliver up to 6 GW of 24x7 green electricity to be supplied as 4 GW for green industrial customers in Darwin, and 1.75 GW to customers in Singapore via a 4,300 subsea cable through Indonesia. The EMA approval follows a comprehensive process by the EMA that determined that AAPowerLink is technically and commercially viable.
Nepal’s 800 MW solar tender: Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has received competitive tariffs between NPR 4.99 to NPR 6.00 ($0.037 to $0.045)/kWh for its 800 MW solar PV tender. A total of 70 companies have submitted their bids to secure a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with the NEA. Authorities expect an average tariff not exceeding NPR 5.60 ($0.042)/kWh against the ceiling of NPR 5.94 ($0.044)/kWh, according to local media reports. In the technical bid evaluation round, the NEA received responses from 127 developers offering to build 259 projects with a combined 3.5 GW capacity. Winning projects with less than 10 MW installed capacity will get 18 months to complete construction, while those over 10 MW capacity will get 24 months.
350 MW in Victoria: Construction has begun on the 250 MW Goorambat East Solar Farm in Australia’s Victoria, which the state government calls one of Victoria’s largest solar farms. It will supply enough cheap energy to power every household in the Rural City of Benalla and the Rural City of Wangaratta twice over. This will be France’s Engie’s 1st solar energy project in Victoria since the closure of its Hazelwood Coal Plant in 2017. It is scheduled to enter commercial operations in 2027. Additionally, Spain’s Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV) has grid-connected the 99 MW Winton Solar Farm in the Goorambat’s project vicinity. As of 2023-end, Victoria had 39% of renewable electricity generation in its system thanks to 82 large-scale operational projects representing a combined 5.5 GW capacity. The state government said Victoria is on track to transition to 95% renewable energy generation by 2035.
MoU for RE in South Australia: The State Government of South Australia has announced a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Hyundai Engineering and Construction (Hyundai E&C). The MoU aims to facilitate future investment projects and job creation in South Australia in the fields of renewables, hydrogen, housing and infrastructure in the state as South Australia aims for 100% net renewables by 2027. The current electricity system of South Australia runs on 70% renewable energy. Hyundai E&C has capabilities in solar and wind farms, battery energy storage, offshore wind, hydrogen, and transmission and distribution networks.
Chinese companies reinforce Australian presence: China-headquartered solar inverter and energy storage system (ESS) supplier Sungrow has signed long-term strategic partnerships with leading Australian and New Zealand solar distributors. The signing ceremonies with Raystech Group, Solar Juice, and Supply Partners were held during the 2024 All-Energy Australia exhibition. Raystech will deliver 800 MW of its inverters and 150 MWh of residential battery energy storage systems (BESS), and 350 MWh of commercial and industrial (C&I) BESS across Australia and New Zealand. Solar Juice gets 500 MW PV inverters, 200 MWh of residential BESS, and 100 MWh of C&I BESS for the Australian market. Supply Partners will supply 200 MW of Sungrow PV inverters and 100 MWh of residential BESS for 2024 for direct distribution across residential, commercial, and battery divisions, while also expanding into the C&I energy storage and electric vehicle (EV) charging sectors.
DAS Solar’s distributorship deals: Chinese solar PV manufacturer DAS Solar also signed n-type solar module supply deals at the All Energy Australia 2024 event. With Raystech, it will co-develop 500 MW of solar projects over the next 3 years, and 250 MW with Sol-Distribution. The company also entered partnerships with Solartech and YHI for both Australia and New Zealand markets.
Huasun exhibits in Australia: At the All Energy Australia 2024 event, chinese heterojunction (HJT) solar PV manufacturer Huasun Energy exhibited its Himalaya G12-132 V-ocean solar modules, along with the full range of Everest G12R products. It targets these products at the country’s residential, C&I and utility-scale solar power plants.
JinkoSolar ESS in Japan: Chinese solar PV manufacturer JinkoSolar will deliver 2 of its 3 MWh SunTera ESS, providing a combined 6 MWh capacity, to Marubeni Corporation for installation in the Kitakyushu region of Japan. The SunTera system has an advanced liquid cooling system that maintains the temperature difference between batteries in the cabinet within 2.5°C. This extends its lifespan, increases available power generation, and significantly improves the revenue of power station owners, according to JinkoSolar.
Japanese honor for Trinasolar: Leading solar PV manufacturer from China Trinasolar has won the Good Design Award for its Vertex S+ series for aesthetic design and outstanding performance. Organized by the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry, this award is referred to as the Eastern Oscar for product design. Trinasolar said it was selected out of more than 5,000 entries worldwide. The Vertex S+ Series is based on advanced n-type i-TOPCon technology with 210 mm rectangular silicon wafers (210R) cell technology. Trinasolar says this module had earlier won the German Design Award and the International Design Excellence Award.
JA training in Vietnam: JA Solar recently participated in a training session for university students on advancing solar PV education in Vietnam. Organized by a leading Vietnamese renewable energy technology company INPOS, the course was held at the Electric Power University, a public university in the space of electrical engineering and renewable energy studies. JA Solar’s Executive President Aiqing Yang said, “We are committed to talent development through various initiatives, including our investment in institutions like Xingtai Polytechnic Institute of New Energy. By partnering with universities such as Electric Power University, we strive to cultivate the skilled professionals needed for the long-term growth of the industry.”