solar – Page 2 – Renewable Brief

Major renewable energy news last week

Header image courtesy of DOTI2010/AlphaVentus

BP and Total win massive German $14 billion offshore wind tender

Oil and gas major players BP and TotalEnergies have emerged the winners at Germany’s 7 GW offshore wind site auction. The contract is worth a total of just shy of $14 billion.

Three sites included in the tender will produce 2 GW in the North Sea, with one Baltic Sea site generating 1 GW.

BP got the contract for two projects, equivalent to 4 GW, while TotalEnergies got the remaining two sites.

Aging Scottish windfarm to get a new lease of life with new turbines

The Hagshaw Hill wind farm is getting an upgrade three decades after commissioning. The site will receive 14 modern wind turbines to replace its aging 26 turbines. Total output will jump to 79 MW from 16 MW, with an additional 20 MW of battery storage to take more advantage of the wind power at the site.

Nordex records 1.6 GW wind power orders in Q2 2023

Nordex reports a demand of 1.62 GW of wind turbine capacity in the second quarter of 2023. This brought the total for the first half to 2.641 GW.

The average sale price was 0.89 million euros per MW in the 2nd quarter, which compared to the same quarter last year. Total orders between April and June stood at 308 from 13 markets, notably Greece, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, and Germany.

PV module maker Meyer Burger secures €200 million from €3.6 billion EU Innovation Fund

Meyer Burger becomes a beneficiary of the EU’s Innovation Fund. The Swiss company got €200 million from a total of €3.6 billion made available by the EU. The fund will go into constructing an additional 3.5 GW of solar cell and module production capacity in Germany and Spain.

40 other large-scale clean tech projects got funding from the EU, including €54 million going to Norwegian Norsun for expanding production capacity. Midsummer also received over €32 million for a new 200 MW plant for producing thin film solar cells.

Saudi Arabia signs MoU with Engie on green hydrogen projects

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has announced on Twitter it has signed an MoU with French Engie. The agreement focuses on green hydrogen and derivatives in the Arabian kingdom.

#PIF has signed an MoU with ENGIE, a leading provider of low-carbon energy services and solutions for integrated utilities management, to explore the joint development of green hydrogen projects and its derivatives in Saudi Arabia. pic.twitter.com/bEawKrMp0Q
— Public Investment Fund (@PIF_en) July 13, 2023

NiSource completes 465 MW solar projects in Indiana

NiSource, through its subsidiary Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), has completed two solar parks in Indiana. One of them, the Indiana Crossroads Solar, located in White County, will generate 200 MW and contribute more than $42 million in taxes in the next 35 years.

The second park, Dunns Bridge I Solar in Jasper County, has a total capacity of 265 MW in the first phase. The second phase will add 435 MW of solar power with 75 MW of battery energy storage capacity.

Major renewable energy news you might have missed this week

Header image courtesy of Philip Gostelow

AngloGold Ashanti to power gold mine with renewable energy

AngloGold Ashanti Australia will build one of Australia’s largest renewable energy projects in the natural resources sector. The project will power the company’s Tropicana Gold Mine, consisting of a 50 MW solar farm and an 18 MW battery energy storage system. The development will cut the mine’s carbon emissions by 160,000 t annually.

The UK government defends green levies on energy bills; will bring down future costs

After a two-year suspension due to the pandemic, the UK government is bringing back green levies on energy bills. The levies will add £170 per year to the average bill.

Down Street insists the levies will bring down energy bills over time by stimulating renewable energy investments.

Noria Energy launches largest floating solar project in South America

Noria Energy has launched a new solar power system that floats on the Urra Dam reservoir in Colombia. The 1.5 MW solar development will demonstrate that hydroelectric dams with fluctuating water levels can be paired with a floating solar generation to enhance energy reliability and boost production.

Africa REN secures € 32 million funding for the first battery storage project in West Africa

Africa REN has announced it has secured funding for the first battery storage project in West Africa. The project is located in Senegal and funded by the Dutch development bank FMO and the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund (EAIF).

BlackRock secures $500 million to build Australia’s biggest battery

BlackRock, the world’s biggest fund manager, has raised more than $500 million from co-investors to build the largest grid-scale battery project in the southern hemisphere in Australia, with 850 MW and 1680 MWh of capacity. The Waratah Super battery in NSW will help drive Australia’s transition to a low-carbon economy.

Texas depends on solar to cope with heavy load on grid due to heatwave

Header image courtesy of TotalEnergies

Texas has been experiencing a recording breaking heatwave, and one of the most affected infrastructures is the electricity grid. However, renewable energy, particularly solar, has come to the rescue by helping the Lone Star State to maintain energy reliability, as The Guardian reports.

Texas has been groaning under the weight of a blanket of oppressive heat, with forecasters not seeing an end in sight. The soaring temperatures have made people seek respite indoors in the comfort of their air-conditioners. However, the artificially cooled air comes at a cost; energy demand is at record levels.

With a grid independent of the rest of the country to sidestep federal regulation, Texas can obtain little power from other states. This is a serious issue as several of the state’s old fossil-fueled power plants have failed during the spikes in demand.

However, Texas has avoided rolling blackouts in June, despite temperatures reaching three digits. According to energy analysts, this is thanks to solar power generated in the state. During the hot afternoons, solar has produced more than 15 percent of Texas’ energy supply.

The irony is not lost on most observers as the same sun responsible for the heat is producing the energy needed to cool spaces.