Tag: solar panels

Ikea to begin offering solar energy products in the UK

Alicia Moore
Solar Energy - IKEA Store

Ikea is bringing solar panels to its UK stores Retail giant Ikea has plans to break into the solar energy market. The company has announced that it will begin selling solar panels and energy storage systems at its stores in the United Kingdom. These products will be sold alongside similar solutions provided by Solarcentury, a solar energy company based in the UK. Ikea is the latest in several retailers that have begun to offer solar panels and related services. These retailers are benefitting from the growing demand for clean energy,…

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China’s solar energy industry to increase production of solar panels

Bret Williams
Solar Panels - Solar Energy Industry

Solar panel manufacture to increase by 25% this year China’s solar energy industry is poised to become yet more active throughout the remainder of this year. The industry has already established significant momentum in 2017, but manufacturers and developers are not ready to rest easy. The solar energy industry is expected to produce 25% more solar panels this year than in 2016, according to Wang Bohua, secretary general of the country’s solar industry association. Notably, production is set to increase significantly due to foreign demand, much of which is coming…

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US officials to investigate tariffs on imported solar energy products

Angie Bergenson
Solar Energy Tarrif

Petition calls for safeguards to be placed for the sake of the US solar energy market The United States government is considering imposing tariffs on solar panels that are imported into the country. The International Trade Commission has announced that it has launched an investigation concerning the matter. The investigation is in response to a petition filed by Suniva, a solar manufacturer that has declared bankruptcy. The company suggests that China is responsible for flooding the U.S. market with photovoltaic products. This has caused the price of such products to…

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REC Solar begins production on its new solar panels

Bret Williams
Solar Panels - Solar Energy Panel

Company has begun production on its TwinPeak 2 solar panels REC Solar, a company specializing in the manufacture of photovoltaic products, has become the largest solar manufacturer of solar panels in Europe. The company has now begun production on its new TwinPeak 2 solar panels, each of which can produce a maximum of 350 watts of electrical power. The new panels could further bolster the company’s position in the solar energy market, which is expanding at a rapid pace, especially in European countries that are showing a strong interest in…

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Cost of solar energy falls below fossil-fuels in Australia

Tami Hood
Solar Energy - Australian Sun

Solar energy is now less expensive than fossil-fuels A new report from Climate Council suggests that solar energy is now less expensive than fossil-fuels in most major Australian cities. Over the past five years, the cost of solar power has dropped significantly. According to the report, this cost has fallen by 58% over that time period. The falling price of solar energy has made it more attractive, encouraging more businesses and consumers to embrace this form of clean power and distance themselves from fossil-fuels. Costs continue to fall for the…

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New solar energy digital marketplace launches in Australia

Erin Kilgore
Solar Energy - Solar Panels on Roof of Home

Decentralized Energy Exchange aims to expose more homeowners to solar energy Australia has become the first country to launch a digital marketplace for solar energy. Called the Decentralized Energy Exchange, the marketplace is designed to provide homeowners with a way to access solar power. Currently 16% of all clean power generated in Australia comes from rooftop solar panels. An estimated 1.6 million rooftops throughout the country have been equipped with photovoltaic systems. The new marketplace is expected to help more homeowners enter into the solar energy market. Australia is focusing…

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Solar energy industry employs more people than the coal industry in the US

Tami Hood
Solar Energy Industry - Jobs

The solar market continues to show major economic potential The solar energy industry in the United States now offers more jobs than the coal industry, according to a recent survey from Solar Foundation. The solar sector has been growing quickly in the country over the past few years, even outpacing fossil-fuels in terms of new energy generation capacity. Despite this, however, solar only accounts for approximately 1% of all electricity produced within the United States, but the sector represents significant economic potential that is impossible to ignore. Survey highlights the…

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Sunflare develops flexible solar panels

Erin Kilgore
Solar Panels - Residential Solar Energy

Flexible solar panels can, potentially, be installed on any surface Sunflare, a company based in California, has developed a new, flexible solar panel that it believes will become a major asset for those interested in solar energy. Following years or research and development, the company has produced a copper indium gallium selenide solar panel. The new solar panel can be installed on virtually any surface due to its flexibility, which may make it quite attractive to homeowners and businesses interested in becoming more environmentally friendly. Cost of solar energy continues…

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India’s solar energy industry is emerging as a world leader

Stephen Vagus

India continues to support the growth of its thriving solar energy industry With 2016 coming to a close, India has emerged as a prominent player in the solar energy industry. The country has shown strong support for solar power over the past year, with government incentives encouraging developers to bring their projects to India. Currently, India currently has 10 gigawatts of installed solar capacity, which is a thousand-fold increase over the capacity that was available in the country in 2010, when India launched the National Solar Mission. Installed solar capacity…

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Scientists develop new technology to efficiently store solar energy as hydrogen fuel

Stephen Vagus

Stanford scientist have made major progress in solving solar power’s storage problem Scientists from Stanford University have reached a new milestone in producing and storing the electricity generated by solar energy systems. Solar power has vast potential, having proven in the past that this form of clean energy can provide abundant electricity when it is needed. The problem, however, is that storing this electricity has proven to be quite difficult, which has made solar energy less attractive when compared to other forms of power. The scientists from Stanford believe that…

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Tesla shows off its new solar energy solution

Angie Bergenson

Tesla continues to break into the solar energy market with new glass tiles Acclaimed automaker Tesla has very ambitious plans for clean transportation, but this may pale in comparison to the company’s new efforts in the solar energy market. The company has unveiled a new range of textured glass tiles. What sets these glass tiles apart from others is that they are affixed with solar cells. Moreover, these solar cells are almost indistinguishable from their conventional counterparts. This makes gives them a type of “camouflage” quality, which could make them…

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MIT researchers seek to understand price reductions in solar energy

Stephen Vagus

MIT research team awarded $1.3 million grant through SunShot Initiative Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have been awarded a $1.3 million grant from the Department of Energy’s SunShot Initiative. The grant will be used to fund the study of why the cost of solar energy has been going down so rapidly. The study will also determine how costs will continue to fall in the future. The solar sector has been experiencing tremendous growth in recent years, and this is partly due to the falling cost of photovoltaic…

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New York renters could soon have their own community solar energy systems

Stephen Vagus

Community solar energy is coming to New York New Yorkers will so be able to tap into the power of the sun. Renters will have the opportunity to take advantage of community solar energy projects. These projects are designed with a very specific purpose, which is to provide access to clean power to everyone within a specific community. Through a new community solar initiative, energy developers will be able to team with building hosts. Those making use of this community project will be able to use electricity produced by the…

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Solar energy reaches new milestone in the United Kingdom

Erin Kilgore

Solar power outpaces coal in energy production Solar energy has reached a major milestone in the United Kingdom. Over the past six month, solar energy systems have generated more electricity than coal for the first time ever. An analysis from Carbon Brief shows that solar panels generated approximately $7,000 gigawatt-hours of electricity from April to September. This is approximately 10% more than the energy generated through the use of coal. Production of solar power is quickly growing in the UK This milestone highlights the UK’s increasing interest in solar energy…

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Concentrated solar power gets a major boost in China

Stephen Vagus

The solar energy market is growing, showing no signs of slowing down Solar energy has been growing aggressively throughout the world. The majority of this growth is being seen in the photovoltaic solar panel sector, which accounts for the majority of the solar market currently. There is another form of solar power that is gaining momentum, however. Concentrated solar power systems is becoming more popular as the demand for clean electricity grows. Now, this form of solar energy has acquired major support from a country that is becoming heavily invested…

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New graphene solar panels generate power from rain

Erin Kilgore

Scientists are developing graphene solar cells that can also use rain to produce electricity. A team of Chinese researchers from the Ocean University of China in Qingdao have made a breakthrough with graphene and solar panels. They believe that it is possible to harness power from rain via solar cells through a simple chemical reaction that would involve using sheets of graphene to separate the positively charged ions in rain, which would result in electricity generation. The study was published in the journal Angewandte Chemie. The chemical reaction is what…

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