The global solar market is expected to stay nearly flat between 2019 and 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and its economic impacts, according to Wood Mackenzie. But a significant increase in demand is now expected between 2020 and 2021 as the industry rebounds.

The future is bright(er)

Long-term fundamentals for global PV remain strong despite the pandemic primarily driven by improving cost competitiveness and sustained investor interest, and Wood Mackenzie has increased its outlook for the 2021-25 period by 5 gigawatts DC.

Excess capacity issues

Solar cell supply is in balance in 2020, but the risk of oversupply rises

Vestas, Siemens Gamesa and General Electric were the largest suppliers last year in the consolidating global market for wind turbines, according to new figures from Wood Mackenzie.

All three companies put up record installations in a global market expected to be worth $600 billion over the course of the 2019-2028 period.

Denmark’s Vestas held onto its position as the world’s leading wind turbine supplier thanks to its enduring strength in the onshore arena, with an especially strong performance in the booming U.S. market.  

While its lead over No. 2 supplier Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy shrank modestly in 2019, Vestas nevertheless grew its total installations and became the

Engie is on the lookout for more clean energy acquisitions in the U.S., where the company plans to ramp up its investments into grid-scale batteries, hybrid renewables projects and offshore wind, says North America chief Gwenaelle Avice-Huet.

With a long history in fossil fuels and nuclear energy, Engie has pivoted dramatically toward renewables over the past few years — a strategy that included the U.S. acquisitions of wind developer Infinity Renewables, solar installer SoCore Energy, and battery storage company Green Charge Networks.

“Do we want to continue with acquisitions? I would say yes, because we want to be big in the U.S.,” said Avice-Huet, who moved from

The U.S. Department of the Interior on Monday signed off on Nevada’s Gemini Solar Project, which could be the largest U.S. solar plant once constructed.

Several weeks ago, the 690-megawatt project was awaiting one permit and another review under the U.S. Clean Water Act. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), part of the DOI that oversees public lands, did not respond to request for comment on the status of those reviews, but announced Monday it has signed a record of decision on the project, indicating its approval.

In addition to topping the list as the largest solar project in the U.S., Gemini includes 380-megawatts of battery storage, part

Electricity grids can handle a lot of wind, solar and water resources. But what will help us get from 80% renewable energy to 100% renewable energy?

The missing piece may be renewable synthetic fuels.

“When we really want to decarbonize the whole electricity system, absolutely synthetic fuels will play a key role,” says Matti Rautkivi, the director of Business Development and Strategy at Wärtsilä.

In this episode, produced in collaboration with Wärtsilä, we’re looking specifically at how to use green hydrogen to create renewable fuels — and burn those fuels to create the fully-renewable electricity system.

There’s some uncertainty about how exactly this market

BP and its solar joint venture Lightsource BP are investigating a potential green hydrogen plant in Australia powered by 1.5 gigawatts of wind and solar.

The oil major announced on Friday that a feasibility study was underway for a huge green hydrogen operation. This would then be converted into "green ammonia" and exported internationally.

A pilot phase would produce 20 kilotons annually (ktpa) with the full-scale commercial operation producing 1,000ktpa of green ammonia. BP estimates the commercial venture would need 1.5 gigawatts of power.

BP says it will invest A$2.7 million ($1.75 million) into the study, with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) chipping in another A$1.7

Span.IO, the San Francisco-based startup that makes a smart home electrical panel that can track and control behind-the-meter batteries, rooftop solar inverters, EV chargers and other key household loads via smartphone, has landed a $10.2 million Series A round to scale up deployment in key markets, including wildfire-prone California. 

Span CEO Arch Rao, former head of Tesla’s energy storage business, said the funding round will help ramp up deployment and build relationships with solar and storage vendors such as LG Chem, which integrated Span's panels in its “customizable backup” solar storage offering earlier this year. Span plans to announce another partnership later this quarter to “provide more integrated options for customers.”

Vestas, Siemens Gamesa and General Electric were the largest suppliers last year in the consolidating global market for wind turbines, according to new figures from Wood Mackenzie.

All three companies put up record installations in a global market expected to be worth $600 billion over the course of the 2019-28 period.

Denmark’s Vestas held onto its position as the world’s leading wind turbine supplier thanks to its enduring strength in the onshore arena, with an especially strong performance in the booming U.S. market.  

While its lead over number-two supplier Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy shrank modestly in 2019, Vestas nevertheless grew its total installations and became the first