Welcome back to another busy week! This time, we are covering how China managed to add 3.95 GW new solar despite COVID-19, Japan’s new BIPV system, Tesla’s plan of building model 3 with LFP batteries, and many more!
- Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Your Monday Briefings is now divided into 2 sections:
- The 1st section has all the solar news related to COVID-19
- The 2nd section has solar news which has little to do with the pandemic.
If you want to read news unrelated to the coronavirus, you can simply scroll down to the 2nd section of the article.
SECTION 1: COVID-19 WATCH
China
China added 3.95 new solar in 2020Q1
COVID-19 has hit the solar industry hard worldwide. However, China’s 2020Q1 newly installed PV capacity was as high as 3.95 GW, of which 2.23 GW falls under the large-scale PV category, whereas 1.72 GW the small, distributed PV category.
However, for a solar powerhouse like China, 3.95 GW is still a 24% YoY decrease.
The northern and western parts of China used to be the hub of solar farms, however, the tide is changing. In 2020Q1, Guangdong province has added 600 MW in 2020Q1, Inner Mongolia 470 MW, Zhejiang 360 MW, Shanxi 290 MW, Shandong 280 MW.
Source: pv magazine
France
France’s 2020Q1 new solar has dipped 15% YoY
The French PV industry has suffered blows after blows.
- The PV supply chain was disrupted due to the public health crisis;
- To contain the pandemic, all the PV project sites were closed due to the nationwide lockdown
Consequently, France’s newly installed PV capacity, which totaled 176 MB in 2020Q1, has borne the brunt of COVID-19: It has decreased by 15% from 205 MW in 2019Q4, according to thinktank France Territoire Solaire.
Source: pv magazine
Electric Vehicle Market
Electric vehicle market share set to increase despite COVID-19
Electric vehicle sales were expected to be a slump, which will diminish by 1.7 million cars due to the pandemic. However, according to BloombergNEF’s prognosis, the industry will not be hit as severely as the conventional car industry (23% decrease in sales worldwide).
In BloombergNEF’s EV market report, the market intelligence company believes that, just like renewable energy, EV will gain ground on fossil fuel vehicles. With the collapse of fossil fuel car sales, the EV will increase its market share.
Source: pv magazine
SECTION 2-1: NON-COVID-19 Regional Market News
And for those of you who are sick of COVID-19 news, here are the news that are not (entirely) related to COVID-19.
Japan
Japan’s New BIPV System for Walls and Windows
Two Japanese companies, Kaneka and Taisei, have developed a building-integrated PV (BIPV) system called T-Green Multi Solar System (“T-Green Multi”), which can be applied to vertical surfaces, such as walls and windows.
The variant for windows can turn semi-transparent. Therefore the surface of the window can be utilized without entirely blocking the view from the window.
Source: pv magazine
Myanmar
Myanmar’s Ministry of Electricity and Energy (MOEE) has launched a 1 GW tender for constructing solar plants across the country.
The successful bidder will be awarded 20-year PPAs.
It is estimated that 30 solar power plants of roughly 30 MW~ 40 MW will be constructed.
The deadline for submitting bid documents is June 18, 2020.
Source: pv magazine
Brazil
The Brazilian government approved the 540.21 MW solar project developed by the Spanish Renewable Energy Company Solatio Energia to enter the national Incentive Regime for Infrastructure Development (REIDI).
The project’s total investment has exceeded BRL 1.51 billion (US$256.6 million).
India
The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has once again extended the tender deadline for its 4 MW floating solar-plus-BESS project in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
SECI said in the notice that the deadline for bidding will be extended from the previous June 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020. And the technical-commercial bidding will begin on June 18, 2020.
Turkey
The Turkish Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources announced the 1 GW solar tender plan under the Yeka (Yenilenebilir Enerji Kaynak Alanları) renewable energy plan.
This round of tenders is for multiple projects of 10-50 MW solar projects located in 40 provinces in Turkey, which is now scheduled for next quarter.
The U.S.
The US Trade Representative's Office (USTR) stated that bifacial PV modules will be officially removed from the tariff exemption of Section 201, starting from May 18, 2020.
Zimbabwe
The Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) has launched a tender to build a 500MW solar power plant, according to TaiyangNews.
The bidding documents will be made available in June 2020.
For more information about the tender, please visit the ZETDC website.
Source: TaiyangNews
SECTION 2-2: NON-COVID-19 Company News
Guorun Energy Group
The commencement ceremony of the 1GW high-efficiency shingled photovoltaic module industry project of Guorun Energy Group Heilongjiang Future Solar Energy Technology Co., Ltd. was held in Qinggang County on May 18.
Guorun Energy Group's Rongdeng New Energy plans to invest 10GW of high-efficiency heterojunction solar cells, and Future Solar plans to invest in a 6GW high-efficiency shingle integrated photovoltaic module project.
JA Solar
JA Solar announced on May 18th that the 525W + ultra-high power module, "DeepBlue3.0", will be launched in Q3 2020, with a preliminary design capacity of 14GW.
Jiangsu Akcome
Jiangsu Akcome has indicated at the 2019 online earnings call that the company currently has three cell and module production bases in Zhangjiagang (Jiangsu province), Ganzhou (Jiangxi province), and Changxing (Zhejiang province), which boast 1.2GW module capacity and 450 MW cell capacity.
Sasol Ltd
South African chemical company looking for partners to deploy 600 MW of renewables
South African chemical company Sasol is looking for developers and investors to set up renewable energy projects via a request for information (RFI) process.
Sasol is planning to have 600 MW of renewable electricity capacity to cut down its greenhouse gas by roughly 1.6 million tons annually as well as reduce its dependence on Eskom, South Africa’s electricity public utility.
Source: pv magazine
Sonnenstromfabrik
German solar module manufacturer Sonnenstromfabrik has launched 3 versions of glass-glass mono-Si PV module. Their power output range is 160W-280W and efficiency is 9.5%-16.7%.
Tesla
Reuters reports Tesla’s plan to build Model 3 vehicles with LFP batteries
According to Reuters, Tesla is getting approval from the Chinese government regarding its plan to equip model 3 cars with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries.
The identity of the battery manufacturer is unknown at the moment.
Source: Reuters
