Tata Power Solar, Vikram Solar, Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL), Adani Infra India, and Hild Energy emerged as the top utility-scale solar engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) service providers in the calendar year (CY) 2022, according to Mercom’s recently released India Solar Market Leaderboard 2023. The report covers market shares and rankings across the Indian solar supply chain and provides the most accurate and comprehensive coverage of India’s solar industry leaders. The report notes notable shifts in market share rankings compared to the previous year.

South Eastern Railway has invited bids for the empanelment of agencies for setting up 13.54 MW of grid-connected rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in railway zones of Odisha, Jharkhand, and West Bengal through public-private partnerships. The projects will be developed on Design, Build, Finance, Operate, and Transfer basis. The select bidder will be required to operate and maintain the rooftop solar projects for 25 years.

The Indian Energy Exchange has reported a profit after tax of ₹883 million (~$10.7 million), a slight decrease of 0.1% year-on-year (YoY) in the fourth quarter of the financial year 2023. The high input costs impacted the sell-side liquidity as the government attempted to meet the rising power demand by increasing the coal supply during the quarter. During the quarter, the total volumes on the Exchange declined 3% YoY to 26.1 billion units (BU). The volume of electricity traded during the quarter was 24.3 BU, a decrease of 2% YoY, and the total certificates traded during Q4 amounted to 1.8 BUs, an 18% YoY decrease.

Oxford PV, a UK-based solar cell manufacturing company, has achieved a new world record conversion efficiency of 28.6% for a commercial-sized solar cell by depositing a thin film of the material perovskite onto a conventional silicon solar cell. The achievement surpasses the average efficiency of mainstream silicon-only solar cells, which typically range from 22% to 24%. The efficiency record has been independently certified by Fraunhofer ISE and showcases the potential of combining perovskite and silicon materials in tandem solar cells.

RWE, a Germany-based power producer, has acquired the remaining 49% stake in Nordseecluster, a 1.6 GW cluster of offshore wind farms from Northland Power, for approximately €35 million (~$37.5 million). Canada-based Northland Power is a renewable energy project developer with ownership or economic interest in 2.6 GW operating capacity. The Nordseecluster offshore wind farm is located north of the island of Juist in the German North Sea and was a joint venture by RWE and Northland before the transaction.

NTPC Renewable Energy has invited bids for an HT power cable supply package for a 1,255 MW solar block of Khavda Renewable Energy Park in the Kutch district of Gujarat. The package includes manufacturing, testing, packing, and supply (including freight and insurance) of 33 kV grade power cables. The cables should be 19/33 kV (E) grade, with a stranded compact circular aluminum conductor and 90% armor coverage. The total length of the cables needed for the project is 835 kilometers.