Changing Wafer Sizes Will Cost Cell and Solar Module Manufacturers
The past few years have witnessed significant changes in solar manufacturing with the introduction of new technologies such as half-cut and even triple-cut, passivated emitter, and rear cell (PERC), bifacial, ...
Mercom India’s Most Read News Stories from 2020
2020 is almost behind us. The year threw unique challenges at us while some interesting developments took shape in the renewable industry. Mercom revisits announcements and policy developments that interested ...
US Extends 26% Solar Investment Tax Credit Until 2022
The United States Congress has passed a bill providing a two-year extension on its solar investment tax credit (ITC) facility, allowing solar power projects across the residential, commercial, industrial, and utility-scale segments ...
Top Five Funding Deals of 2020 in the Indian Solar Market [Infographics]
After a sluggish start to the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown, activity in the solar sector picked up in the third quarter (Q3) of 2020, ...
Where Does India’s Rooftop Solar Market Stand Since COVID-19 Lockdown?
India's rooftop solar industry has started recovering steadily from the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the country returning to normalcy following the easing of lockdown restrictions in phases ...
African Development Bank Pledges $50 Million to Help Energy Access Companies Tackle COVID-19
The African Development Bank's (AfDB) board of directors (BoD) has approved a $20 million concessional investment from the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) to establish the COVID-19 off-grid recovery ...
European Commission Plans to Expand Offshore Wind Capacity to 300 GW by 2050
The European Commission (EC) has unveiled a strategy to help achieve the European Union’s (EU) climate neutrality target by 2050. The plan suggests increasing Europe’s offshore wind capacity up to ...
This Process Uses Sunlight to Turn Hazardous Medical Waste into Clean Hydrogen Fuel
A joint team of researchers from India and Wales, led by Swansea University researchers, said they were developing a new process to convert hazardous medical waste into clean hydrogen fuel ...
India Will Lead The Renewable Energy Upswing in 2021: IEA Report
The International Energy Agency's (IEA) latest report 'Renewables 2020' forecasts the impact of COVID-19 on the renewable sector. According to the report, the renewables used for generating electricity will grow ...
GIZ Floats Tender for Solar-Powered Cold Storage Units To Help Farmers
The Indian wing of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), a Germany-based development agency, has floated a tender for ten solar-powered cold storage units for its projects in Karnataka and ...
Shortage of Solar Modules Likely to Continue Until First Half of 2021: Interview
2020 has been a difficult year. As the year draws to an end, the world is still dealing with challenges posed by the pandemic. For the Indian solar industry, this ...
European Commission Announces €1 Billion Fund to Promote Sustainable Projects
The European Commission (EC) announced that it would launch a €1 billion (~$ 1.16 billion) European Green Deal call for research and innovation projects to tackle the climate crisis and ...
Nigeria Bets on Solar to Create Jobs Post COVID-19 Disruption
Nigeria is currently facing one of the most significant economic downturns in its history due to COVID-19. While the country is grappling with a recession, the government has outlined an ...
Wind Project in Maharashtra Gets Extension for Disruptions Due to COVID Lockdown
The Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) extended the commissioning date of the 76.5 MW wind project being developed by Clean Wind Power (Bhavnagar) Private Limited on the grounds of force ...
Shapoorji Pallonji Defers Repayment of Sterling & Wilson Solar’s Loan
The Shapoorji Pallonji Group has told the subsidiary company, Sterling and Wilson Solar Limited (SWSL), that it would defer the payment of the loan amount of over ₹10 billion (~$135.8 ...
COVID-19 Relief: Delhi Reduces Fixed Power Charges for C&I Consumers by 50%
In a huge respite for the electricity consumers in the national capital, the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) has reduced fixed charges by 50% for industrial and non-domestic consumers. The ...
RBI Increases Priority Sector Lending Cap to Renewables by Two-Fold
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has come out with the details for the priority sector lending. The apex bank has increased the lending limit for the renewable sector. The ...
WiseEnergy Signs 550 MW Solar Asset Management Contract in India with Actis: Interview
With rapid installation targets and large existing operating base of assets, solar asset management is fast gaining traction in the Indian market. Solar asset management includes all aspects of solar ...
Suzlon Net Loss Widens to Nearly ₹4 Billion in Q1 of FY 2021
Suzlon Group, a renewable energy solutions provider, announced its financial results for the first quarter (Q1) of the financial year (FY) 2020-21. The company registered revenues of ₹5.13 billion (~$70.1 ...
India’s Power Demand is Almost Back to Pre-COVID Levels: POSOCO Report
Data from POSOCO, the National Load Despatch Centre (NLDC), has shown that power demand in the country rose after it dipped during the COVID-19-induced nationwide lockdown. The data showed that ...
Azure Power Posts 16% Revenue Increase in FY Q1 2021
Azure Power has announced the consolidated results for the first quarter (Q1) of the financial year (FY) 2021. According to the financial statement released by the company, the company registered ...
Renewable Projects Under Development During Lockdown Get Five-Month Extension
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has issued a notification saying that all under-development renewable projects as on the date of the lockdown would be given an extension ...
Power Transmission Projects Affected by COVID-19 Lockdown Get Five-Month Extension
Considering the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown, the Ministry of Power (MoP) has decided to extend the scheduled commercial operation date (SCoD) of the interstate power transmission projects that ...
As Government Shifts Focus to Solar Manufacturing, RPO Enforcement Becomes More Critical
India's push towards transforming the energy sector began a decade ago with the formulation of the National Solar Mission. To enforce policies for renewable energy expansion and create demand, the ...
Solis to Take Its Solar Inverter Production Capacity to 20 GW by Q1 2021: Interview
In the calendar year (CY) 2019, Solis was among the top five solar inverter suppliers to India. The top five suppliers together accounted for 76% of shipments to the Indian ...
