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Daily News Wrap-Up: APTEL Criticizes MERC for Denying Petitioner Relief


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					</table><p><strong><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/solar-power-generation-hits-36-bu-in-q2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In the second quarter (Q2) of the calendar year 2024, India scaled a new high with solar power generation reaching 36 billion units (BU), a 17.6% increase year-over-year (YoY).</a></strong> India added 10.1 GW of solar capacity in Q1 2024, a 399.4% increase from Q1 2023 when only 2 GW was installed. The country’s cumulative installed solar capacity stood at 82.1 GW at the end of Q1, according to Mercom India Research’s Q1 2024 India Solar Market Update. Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka led the solar power generation during the quarter.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/pm-surya-ghar-targets-each-in-800-districts" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has issued operational guidelines to set up one model solar village in every district of the country under the PM-Surya Ghar:</a></strong> Muft Bijli Yojana. An amount of ₹8 billion (~$95.2 million) has been allocated for this component, with a provision of ₹10 million (~$119,110) in central financial assistance for each model village. The primary objectives of the model solar villages are to facilitate access to clean and green energy in rural areas through rooftop solar systems and to reduce dependency on utilities.</p>
<p><strong><u><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/eesl-invites-bids-projects-across-maharashtra" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Energy Efficiency Services has invited bids for the design, engineering, supply, construction, erection, testing, commissioning, and operation of 70 MW</a></u></strong> of solar power projects in Maharashtra. The scope of work includes comprehensive maintenance of the projects for 12 years. The projects range from 2 MW to 10 MW (Lot 1- 30 MW, Lot 2- 20 MW, and Lot 3 – 20 MW). The last date for submission of bids is September 20, 2024. To qualify, bidders must have participated as an EPC contractor, joint venture partner, or subcontractor in at least one EPC contract similar in size and nature to the proposed contract, completed in the last seven years.</p>
<p><strong><u><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/germany-based-axitec-opens-300-mw-solar-module-plant-in-tamil-nadu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Germany-headquartered solar modules and energy storage solutions company AXITEC has launched a 300 MW module manufacturing plant</a></u></strong> in Tiruvallur, Tamil Nadu. The facility is designed to manufacture solar modules using the N-type TopCon technology in the Domestic Content Requirement (DCR) and non-DCR categories. The company said the plant’s strategic location on the outskirts of Tiruvallur supports effective production and allows for improved control over the supply chain, ensuring the timely delivery of products.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/is-oxfords-disruptive-technology-the-future-beyond-silicon-solar-panels" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Scientists at the Oxford University Physics Department have developed a breakthrough in solar technology that can increase the amount of solar electricity</a></strong> produced without the need for silicon-based solar panels. The innovation, a new light-absorbing material, is thin and flexible and can be applied to the surface of almost any building or everyday object, such as rucksacks, cars, and mobile phones. The university stacked multiple light-absorbing layers into one solar cell to harness a wider range of the light spectrum, allowing more power to be generated from the same amount of sunlight.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/bloom-q2-24-revenue" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fuel cell manufacturer Bloom Energy recorded a revenue of $335.76 million in the second quarter (Q2) of 2024, an 11.5% year-over-year (YoY) growth from $301.09 million</a></strong> due to increased interest in the company’s products and solutions. The company’s net quarterly loss reduced 11.4% YoY to $61.18 million from $69.05 million. The adjusted Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Appreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) for the quarter stood at $10.21 million, compared to an EBITDA loss of $8.42 million in the corresponding period last year.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/solar-tracker-firm-arrays-revenue-dips-50-yoy-in-q2-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">U.S.-based solar tracker company Array Technologies reported a revenue of $255.77 million in Q2 2024, a 50% year-over-year</a></strong> decrease from $507.7 million. The company’s net income also fell by 77.18% to $11.95 from $52.38 million. Adjusted EBITDA shrunk 52.08% to $55.38 million from $115.59 million in Q2 2023.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/non-cash-charges-push-plug-powers-net-loss-up-in-q2-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hydrogen fuel cell solutions provider Plug Power‘s Q2 2024 revenue dropped 44.88% year-over-year to $143.4 million from $260.18 million.</a></strong> The company’s net loss rose to $262.33 million, an increase of 9.88% from $236.39 million in the same period last year. The company attributed the increase in loss to strategic investments, market dynamics, and ~$86 million of non-cash charges such as depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation, provision for common stock warrants, inventory adjustments, and impairment charges.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/rec-silicon-sees-increase-to-37-7-million" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Norway-based polysilicon manufacturer REC Silicon reported revenue of $37.7 million for Q2 2024, a slight increase of 2.7% from $36.7 million</a></strong> in Q2 2023. The company recorded an EBITDA loss of $38.2 million, primarily due to startup costs associated with the Moses Lake facility. The 349% year-over-year (YoY) loss is significantly higher than the $8.5 million loss in Q2 of 2023. The net loss before tax was $50.7 million, an increase of 244% YoY compared to a loss of $14.7 million in the same period last year.</p>


Daily New Wrap-Up: Solar Power Generation Hits 36 BU in Q2 2024


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					</table><p>Scientists at the <a href="https://www.physics.ox.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oxford University Physics Department</a> have developed a breakthrough in solar technology that can increase the amount of solar electricity produced without the need for silicon-based solar panels.</p>
<p>The innovation, a new light-absorbing material, is thin and flexible and can be applied to the surface of almost any building or everyday object, such as rucksacks, cars, and mobile phones.</p>
<p>The university stacked multiple light-absorbing layers into one solar cell to harness a wider range of the light spectrum, allowing more power to be generated from the same amount of sunlight.</p>
<p>The material has been independently certified to deliver over 27% energy efficiency, for the first time matching the performance of traditional, single-layer, energy-generating materials.</p>
<p>&#8220;During just five years of experimenting with our stacking or multi-junction approach, we have raised power conversion efficiency from around 6% to over 27%, close to the limits of what single-layer photovoltaics can achieve today,&#8221; said Shuaifeng Hu, a Postdoctoral Fellow at Oxford University Physics. &#8220;We believe that, over time, this approach could enable the photovoltaic devices to achieve far greater efficiencies, exceeding 45%.&#8221;</p>
<p>The &#8220;ultra-thin&#8221; material is only a micron thick, 150 times thinner than a silicon wafer.</p>
<p>&#8220;By using new materials that can be applied as a coating, we&#8217;ve shown we can replicate and outperform silicon while also gaining flexibility. This is important because it promises more solar power without the need for so many silicon-based panels or specially-built solar farms,&#8221; said Junke Wang, Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions Postdoc Fellow at Oxford University Physics.</p>
<p>Since 2010, the global average cost of solar energy has fallen by almost 90%. It is nearly a third cheaper than that generated from fossil fuels. Innovations promise additional cost savings as new materials, like thin-film perovskite, reduce the need for silicon panels and purpose-built solar farms.</p>
<p>&#8220;The latest innovations in solar materials and techniques demonstrated in our labs could become a platform for a new industry, manufacturing materials to generate solar energy more sustainably and cheaply by using existing buildings, vehicles, and objects,&#8221; Henry Snaith, Professor of Renewable Energy at the university, said.</p>
<p>Researchers from Monash University, the University of Oxford, and the City University of Hong Kong recently <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/self-healing-perovskite-solar-cell" target="_blank" rel="noopener">developed</a> a &#8220;self-healing&#8221; mechanism for perovskite solar cells. The breakthrough was creating a &#8220;living passivation strategy&#8221; using a specially designed material called HUBLA (hindered urea/thiocarbamate bond Lewis acid-based material). The material can repair the perovskite layer when exposed to heat and moisture.</p>


Is Oxford’s Disruptive Technology the Future Beyond Silicon Solar Panels?


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					</table><p>Researchers at the <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Oxford</a> have conducted a study revealing the mechanisms that cause failures in lithium metal solid-state batteries (Li-SSBs). The findings offer a path to overcome these challenges and potentially lead to a transformative improvement in electric vehicle (EV) battery range, safety, and performance.</p>
<p>The team said their research could also have far-reaching implications for electric aviation, propelling the development of electrically powered aircraft.</p>
<p>Li-SSBs differ from conventional batteries by replacing the flammable liquid electrolyte with a solid electrolyte and utilizing lithium metal as the anode.</p>
<p>The use of solid electrolytes enhances safety, while the incorporation of lithium metal allows for greater energy storage capacity.</p>
<p>However, a critical hurdle Li-SSBs face is the occurrence of short circuits during the charging process caused by the formation of dendrites. The study finds that these filament-like structures composed of lithium metal penetrate the ceramic electrolyte, leading to performance degradation and safety concerns.</p>
<p><strong>Analyzing the Li-SSB</strong> <strong>Failures</strong></p>
<p>As part of a collaborative effort between the University of Oxford&#8217;s Departments of Materials, Chemistry, and Engineering Science, researchers utilized advanced imaging techniques, specifically X-ray computed tomography at Diamond Light Source, to visualize dendrite failure during charging.</p>
<p>The study reveals that dendrite cracks initiate and propagate through distinct underlying mechanisms. Cracks form due to lithium accumulation in sub-surface pores, and further charging increases the pressure until the cracks propagate.</p>
<p>The propagation occurs through a wedge-opening mechanism, with lithium partially filling the crack and driving it open from behind.</p>
<p><strong>Implications for Future Li-SSB Development </strong></p>
<p>The researchers said the newfound understanding of dendrite behavior in Li-SSBs holds viable promise for overcoming technological challenges.</p>
<p>Dominic Melvin, co-lead author of the study, emphasized the importance of balancing pressure within the lithium anode. The study reveals that while pressure is necessary to avoid gaps at the interface with the solid electrolyte during discharge, excessive pressure can be detrimental, increasing the likelihood of dendrite propagation and short-circuiting during charging.</p>
<p>The insights open avenues for refining battery designs and optimizing operating conditions to mitigate dendrite formation and enhance battery performance.</p>
<p>Professor Sir Peter Bruce, a key researcher involved in the study, highlighted the significance of comprehending how a soft metal like lithium can penetrate a dense ceramic electrolyte and hopes that the insights will help the progress of solid-state battery research toward a practical device.</p>
<p>According to a recent report by the Faraday Institution, solid-state batteries have the potential to fulfill substantial portions of global battery demand.</p>
<p>By 2040, they are projected to meet 50% of battery demand in consumer electronics, 30% in transportation, and over 10% in aircraft applications.</p>
<p>Professor Pam Thomas, CEO of the Faraday Institution, emphasized the importance of research initiatives like these, which tackle the mechanistic understanding of solid-state battery failures, as these endeavors pave the way for strategies that cell manufacturers can adopt to avoid such failures and drive advancements in battery technology.</p>
<p>A recent study by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/kit-researchers-battery-passivation-puzzle" target="_blank" rel="noopener">found</a> that the formation of the solid electrolyte interphase, which is crucial for the functioning of lithium-ion batteries, occurs through the aggregation of solutions rather than directly at the electrode. The findings offer insights into developing more efficient and long-lasting batteries in the future.</p>
<p>In April this year, Nanyang Technological University NTU Singapore <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/researchers-use-biomass-to-recover-metals-from-battery-waste" target="_blank" rel="noopener">partnered</a> with Se-cure Waste Management (SWM), a Singapore-based battery recycling and processing firm, to recycle spent lithium-ion batteries using biomass.</p>


Oxford Researchers Reveal Reasons Behind Solid-State Battery Failures


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					</table><p>Researchers claimed to have developed improved thin perovskite films with reduced defects and better stability under higher temperatures by introducing dimethylammonium chloride as a new crystallization agent after substituting the largely used solvent dimethyl-sulfoxide.</p>
<p>The research was jointly conducted by <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oxford University</a>, <a href="https://www.monash.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Monash University</a>, and Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics (<a href="https://www.acap.net.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ACAP</a>).</p>
<p>During testing, the researchers discovered that the device with dimethylammonium chloride as the solvent operated above the T80 threshold for more than 1,600 hours under the direct sun at 65 degrees Celsius.</p>
<p>The initial time taken by a solar cell to reduce to 80% of its initial efficiency, which is a common benchmark in research, is termed T80.</p>
<p>However, the conventional device that used dimethyl-sulfoxide as a solvent stopped functioning when exposed to high temperatures.</p>
<p>The teams from Oxford and Monash universities observed that devices fabricated with the new solvent attained 70% of their original efficiency under accelerated aging conditions.</p>
<p>The new perovskite solar cells age by a factor of 1.7 for every 10 degrees Celsius increase in temperature, while the same increases two-fold in commercial silicon devices.</p>
<p>Materials scientists worldwide are conducting studies to achieve constant stability in perovskite solar cells to enable mass production and commercialization.</p>
<p>The latest work published in the journal Nature Materials evaluates the perovskite crystallization method, which directly impacts the device’s stability.</p>
<p><strong>The experiment </strong></p>
<p>Conventionally, solvents like dimethyl-formamide or dimethyl-sulfoxide are <a href="https://mercomindia.com/scientists-use-green-solvent-to-achieve-perovskite-solar-cells/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">used</a> in the crystallization process of perovskites.</p>
<p>Using these two solvents often leads to degraded crystal quality and poor microstructure of the polycrystalline perovskite films when exposed to direct sunlight.</p>
<p>In the current experiment, researchers pursued a high-temperature dimethyl-sulfoxide-free processing technique wherein dimethylammonium chloride was used as an additive to control the perovskite intermediate precursor phases.</p>
<p>The scientists subjected large groups of 138 sample devices to aggressive aging and testing under direct sunlight and at high temperatures in the laboratory.</p>
<p>After the team controlled the crystallization process of perovskite solar cells using dimethylammonium chloride, it introduced and tuned the grain size, texturing orientation, and crystallinity of a system with formamidinium-cesium.</p>
<p>Last month, a team of researchers from Northwestern University, the University of Toronto, and the University of Toledo <a href="https://mercomindia.com/researchers-claim-solar-cell-shows-27-4-efficiency/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> to have developed an all-perovskite tandem solar cell that achieved a power conversion efficiency of 27.4%, which is more than the efficiency of 25.5% <a href="https://mercomindia.com/2d-cations-tin-lead-perovskite-solar-cells/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">achieved</a> by scientists at the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory in June.</p>


Researchers Improve Stability of Thin Perovskite Films Using New Solvent


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					</table><p>Transitioning to a decarbonized energy system by around 2050 will save the world at least $12 trillion compared to continuing our current levels of fossil fuel use, according to a peer-reviewed study by <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oxford University</a> researchers.</p>
<p>The research, published in the journal Joule, shows that rapidly transitioning to clean energy results in lower system costs than a fossil fuel system while providing more energy to the global economy and expanding energy access to more people internationally.</p>
<p>A ‘Fast Transition’ scenario, under which the study was conducted, shows a possible future for a fossil-free energy system by around 2050. It will provide 55% more energy services globally than today by ramping up solar, wind, batteries, electric vehicles, and clean fuels such as green hydrogen (made from renewable electricity).</p>
<p>The researchers analyzed thousands of transition cost scenarios produced by major energy models. They used data from 45 years of solar energy costs, 37 years of wind energy costs, and 25 years of battery storage. Conducted before the Russia-Ukraine crisis, the study takes account of fossil energy cost fluctuations using more than a century’s worth of fossil fuel price data.</p>
<p>They found the real cost of solar energy dropped twice as fast as the most ambitious projections in these models.</p>
<p>The research also found that the costs for key storage technologies will likely fall dramatically. Hence, ambitious policies were needed to dramatically accelerate the transition to a cleaner, cheaper, more energy-secure future, bringing benefits to the economy and the planet.</p>
<p>“Past models predicting high costs for transitioning to zero carbon energy have deterred companies from investing and made governments nervous about setting policies that will accelerate the energy transition and cut reliance on fossil fuels. But clean energy costs have fallen sharply over the last decade, much faster than those models expected. Scaling-up key green technologies will continue to drive their costs down, and the faster we go, the more we will save,” said Rupert Way, a postdoctoral researcher at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.</p>
<p>The recent Renewable Capacity Statistics 2022 report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) <a href="https://mercomindia.com/257-gw-new-renewable-capacity-added-globally/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">revealed</a> that the renewable generation capacity increased by 9.1% to 257 GW in 2021 compared to the previous year, taking the cumulative global renewable generation capacity to 3 TW (3,064 GW).</p>
<p>India can cut its overall cost of electricity in half and reach net zero before 2050 by <a href="https://mercomindia.com/going-renewables-cut-electricity-cost/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">developing</a> a 100% renewable energy power system, according to modeling by Finnish power conglomerate <a href="https://www.wartsila.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wartsila</a> and the Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology.</p>


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