Indian startup Solavio Labs raises Canadian fund
The solar panel-cleaning robot startup, which saw its sales jump 125 times last year, has thus far raised three levels of funding amounting to INR 2 crore from government bodies in India, Dubai, and Canada.
High hopes from PLI scheme for solar manufacturing
India’s production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme—which targets 10 GW of integrated solar PV manufacturing capacity within two years—will spur demand for locally produced materials like ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) sheets, solar glass, backsheet and junction boxes, too.
Roshan Energy signs lithium battery production agreement with US firm
The Telangana-headquartered lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery manufacturer has teamed up with Las Vegas-headquartered Barrel Energy to develop and manufacture lithium batteries for electric vehicles. The joint venture will establish factories in India and North America.
Quantum dot solar cells and the search for stability
In various forms, quantum dot technology has attracted plenty of attention among PV researchers recently. And as efficiencies have crept past the 15% mark, the community is beginning to look at other factors limiting the viability of quantum dot solar cells in a commercial setting. Scientists in Germany examined the degradation mechanisms affecting different quantum dot materials; and suggest a standardization of stability testing to enable comparability of results.
Battery major Amara Raja plans 50 MW solar plant
The Indian automotive battery major has announced the setting up of a 50 MW solar power plant in Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh. The plant—to be built at INR 220-crore investment—will help reduce the manufacturer’s carbon footprint while lowering its electricity bill. The firm, which has already set up a pilot plant facility for Lithium-ion cell development, is also mulling investments into energy storage for the renewables sector.
Modeling the potential of lead-free perovskites
Scientists in India modeled the performance of tin-based perovskite (methylammonium tin triiodide) finding that with careful optimizations the material could achieve efficiencies beyond 28%.
New model to predict PV module cleaning cycles and resulting profits
A group of scientists in Bangladesh has developed a model to determine the optimal cleaning schedule for a PV installation at any location in the globe, requiring only the average insolation and soiling rate for a given site to make the calculation. The study also draws new conclusions regarding the influence of sandstorms and rain on soiling, and aims to be among the first studies to paint a global picture of soiling trends by region.
New Premier solar factory to begin production by April
Indian solar manufacturer Premier Energies is setting up a factory in Telangana with an annual cell and module production capacity of 750 MW. The fab will be equipped to produce large-format panels with wafer sizes up to 210mm.
India eyes 10 GW of ingot-to-module solar factory capacity within two years
Under a production-linked incentive scheme, the government will reward manufacturers for building vertically integrated PV production lines. The scheme aims to attract 10 GW of production capacity by April 2023.
Waaree lithium batteries run electric forklifts at Chennai airport
The energy storage system arm of Waaree Group has designed and developed Lithium batteries to power ACE Ltd’s electric forklifts running at Chennai airport.
