Cover Story

PV’s rise to the mainstream finds it now inextricably linked to an economy tumbling towards recession. Players approached by José Rojo acknowledge the disruption but believe the chaos may hand the industry a chance to become a core part of a new world rebuilt along green lines.

From manufacturing and logistics constraints to power price collapses, the effects of the coronavirus pandemic are being felt throughout the entire solar supply chain. Liam Stoker details the impacts on the industry and how they have been mitigated.

Since its emergence, the novel coronavirus has spread quickly across the world causing untold disruption. Liam Stoker and José Rojo detail how the pandemic has affected the clean energy economy to date.

Realising the theoretical promise of solar-wind-storage hybrids is far from straightforward, with individual projects likely to vary considerably. Ben Willis examines some of the technical complexities of combining different technologies into a single, profitable entity.

With industry heavyweights eyeing up developments of solar-wind-storage projects, Liam Stoker uncovers what’s really driving hybrid power plants, and the regulatory and financing hurdles that must be surpassed to deliver them.

As detailed in the previous article, research into the soiling of solar modules is shedding new light on the problem, its impacts and the best solutions. Sara Verbruggen looks at some of the available latest technologies, the economics behind them and how they are being deployed in the field

In arid regions soiling can greatly impact the energy yield of PV systems and drive up their O&M costs. Benjamin Figgis, Amir Abdallah, Maulid Kivambe, Brahim Aissa, Kamran Ali, Cédric Broussillou and Veronica Bermudez of the Qatar Environment & Energy Research Institute, and Klemens Ilse of the Fraunhofer Center for Silicon Photovoltaics, review the main challenges associated with soiling of PV plants globally, and the most promising techniques for dust prevention and cleaning in dry climates, drawing on research results from six years of PV performance and soiling studies at QEERI’s Outdoor Test Facility in Doha.

The huge upsurge in lithium-ion battery deployment expected over the next two decades poses a problem: what to do with cells that have reached the end of their useful life. Stefan Hogg investigates the importance of lithium recyling in the transition to a low carbon energy system.

The rapid acceleration in energy storage deployment expected over the coming years will require innovation in the quality and safety standards underpinning new battery and associated technologies. VDE’s Jan Geder looks at the technical work underway to ensure the coming storage boom has firm bankability and insurability foundations.

The EU’s clean energy policy framework for the first time recognises energy storage as a key part of the future energy system. It is far from perfect, but lays the foundation for storage to become an integral part of efforts to decarbonise the energy system, writes Brittney Elzarei.