Government officials in the eastern German city of Cottbus have paved the way for the development of Germany's largest floating photovoltaic power plant. The solar power panel will be built on Lake Cottbus Ostsee, an artificial lake formed by a former open-pit lignite mine. Cottbus Mayor Holger Kelch and energy company LEAG announced the upcoming solar power project. Project developers LEAG and EP New Energies can now apply to the authorities for the required construction permits by the end of 2022, as the government sends a green signal for floating PV projects, an official statement said. According to the announced details, the solar project is expected to produce around 20,000MWh of clean electricity per year. Construction on the lake solar project is expected to begin in spring 2023. LEAG has also previously mentioned that the project could be operational next year. Fabian von Oesen, Head of Renewable Energy at LEAG, said: "The Cottbus Ostsee lake covers an area of ​​1,900 hectares. Although the floating solar panels occupies less than one percent of the lake's surface, it will make an important contribution to the climate-friendly power supply of the Cottbus port area. contribute." The size of the lake makes it feasible to install these types of floating PV plants without encroaching on the shores of the lake used for tourism or interfering with planned shipping routes, according to the press release. According to LEAG calculations, the power station generates enough electricity to power 5,700 homes each year. Mayor Holger Kelch added: "Floating PV is just the first step we are taking together. Projects like wind turbines and lake water heat pumps will follow." Lake Cottbus Ostsee will also be the largest artificial inland lake in Germany. Germany wants to have 215GW of installed PV capacity by the end of this decade. In addition, LEAG plans to develop other renewable energy projects on other former fossil fuel project sites in Brandenburg.

On October 31, the 20 MW deep-sea floating solar energy system 500 kW demonstration project of SPIC Shandong Peninsula South No. 3 offshore wind farm successfully generated power, becoming the world's first deep-sea wind-solar floating solar panel demonstration project put into use.   The project is located in the sea area on the south side of Haiyang City, Shandong Province, 30 kilometers offshore and with a water depth of 30 meters. The 500-kilowatt floating offshore photovoltaic unit under construction this time is composed of two annular floating body units, with a single floating body unit having an installed capacity of 250 kilowatts. A total of 770 solar panels are installed on the floating unit with a diameter of 53 meters and an area equivalent to 4 standard basketball courts. The clean electric energy generated by it is collected to the inverter and sent to the peninsula South No. 3 wind turbine platform operating in the same field. Subsequently, it will be sent to the grid through the offshore booster station. This demonstration project verifies the wind and wave resistance of the floating body, anchoring, and power generation components and the weather resistance of the marine environment, and verifies the technical feasibility of wind and solar power grid integration. Different from the existing offshore photovoltaics in sheltered sea areas and offshore areas, this demonstration project is the world's first floating research and construction under the "Double 30" marine environment with an offshore distance of 30 kilometers, a water depth of 30 meters, and an extreme wave height of 10 meters. The demonstration project of offshore solar panel engineering, which adopts the patented elastic thin film technology of Norway Ocean Sun Company, the design of anchoring system and the marine environment-resistant photovoltaic modules customized by GCL Corporation, was jointly constructed by Beijing Sun Energy Company and Tianjin Port and Shipping Company to realize wind power, Photovoltaic power generation in the same field can effectively reduce the project cost and operation and maintenance cost, explore the technical route for the future scale, commercialization and standardization of offshore photovoltaics, and realize the value symbiosis with the industrial chain. According to the person in charge of the project, the ring-shaped anti-wind and wave floating body of the offshore photovoltaic power station is prefabricated by high-density polyethylene pipe fittings, with a height of 0.6 to 0.8 meters. It is anchored to the seabed through 4 mooring points and 12 cables, and the safe distance from the wind turbine is kept at 60 meters. A new type of photovoltaic module platform is built in the middle of the floating body, and customized solar energy power generation components are used according to the sea conditions, which can reduce the impact of waves on the photovoltaic panels. The cooling of photovoltaic equipment by water can effect...

It is understood that the parking lot of National University Science and Technology Park of Shandong University will be put into use on July 7, 2022. The project area is 9084 square meters, of which the road area is 4122 square meters and the green area is 2350 square meters, which can accommodate 196 vehicles. As an important supporting project of the park, the parking lot undertakes an important function of standardized services in the park. The carport in the parking lot of Shandong University National University Science and Technology Park adopts a photovoltaic integrated structure. The solar panel is erected on the steel truss above the parking space. It can also provide lighting for parks and carports, which has the effect of serving multiple purposes with one stone. The carport is equipped with supporting facilities such as charging piles and solar energy storage, which can charge electric vehicles and electric bicycles, realizing the integration of light storage and charging, adding a new look to the green and low-carbon scene, and further moving towards a smart zero-carbon park.

Last week, Greece was powered entirely by renewable energy for the first time in its history, according to Greece's Independent Transmission Operator (IPTO). Last Friday (October 7), Greece was completely reliant on renewable energy to generate electricity for about five hours, reaching an all-time high of 3,106MWh at 8 o'clock (GMT). "For the first time in the history of the Greek electricity system, 100% of demand is being met by renewable energy," the IPTO said. "As IPTO becomes grid-connected onshore and offshore, new power capacity is being created for higher penetration of renewable energy, which will make our energy mix greener for years to come." Renewables accounted for 46 percent of Greece's electricity mix as of August, up from 42 percent in the same period in 2021, according to Greek climate think tank The Green Tank. Premium has previously reported on the Greek solar panel market "about to take off". The Greek PV industry benefits from growing corporate demand for renewable off-take agreements and EU clean energy policies. In fact, the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, has approved a 2.27 billion euro ($2.56 billion) plan in Greece to support Greece's development of 4.2GW of installed solar energy system capacity. Previously, the Commission assessed the scheme under EU state aid regulations. This program aims to support a variety of renewable energy sources, including solar photovoltaics and solar-storage in Greece and abroad. Greece aims to achieve 25GW of installed renewable energy capacity by 2030, currently, this figure is about 10GW.

According to foreign media reports, the European Union will develop a plan to "digitize the energy system" and will officially announce it next week. The plan would require the EU to invest 565 billion euros (about 3.94 trillion yuan) in infrastructure by 2030 to achieve its green plan and end its reliance on Russian fossil fuels. It is reported that the document proposes several green action plans: install solar panels on the roofs of all commercial and public buildings in the EU by 2027; install photovoltaic systems on all new residential buildings in the EU by 2029; Install 10 million heat pumps in the next 5 years; put 30 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by the end of 2030. According to the "Washington Post" report, affected by the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, due to the sharp reduction in natural gas supply by Russia, Europe is facing a severe winter dilemma, and energy prices have risen by about 1,000% compared with before the conflict. According to the report, as the conflict continues, European energy prices have soared and the cost of living has risen sharply, which has also made it difficult for many Europeans to bear. Judging from the performance of European countries, the United Kingdom has set off a wave of pet abandonment, Poland is even preparing to burn garbage for the winter, and the German people have begun to clean up the stoves used for burning coal and wood to survive the winter. Against such a background, European consumers have no choice but to rely on burning wood for fire, which in turn drives up the price of wood, and even makes some risky periods of illegality, so that theft cases surge. The UK has seen a new wave of installations of residential photovoltaic power generation systems due to soaring gas and electricity energy prices in Europe. As a result, the market of related photovoltaic solar system has risen, and some products have even been in short supply. A photovoltaic module manufacturer said that compared with last year, orders for photovoltaic products have increased by 4 times this year, and the supply is in short supply, and the delivery time has been delayed from the past two or three weeks to two or three months. Data show that in the first half of this year, the installed capacity of solar energy power generation systems in the UK reached 556MW, an increase of 80% year-on-year. According to the latest data released by the German Federal Network Agency, in the first half of this year, Germany installed a total of 3.2GW of photovoltaic power generation systems, compared with 2.75GW in the same period last year, a year-on-year increase of 16.4%. In June this year, Germany's newly installed photovoltaic capacity was 615MW, compared with 428.5MW in the same period last year, a year-on-year increase of 43.5%. In addition, as of the end of June this year, all subsidized PV installations in Germany totaled 55.9GW. In order to ensure energy security, the German government has formulated a...

Saudi Arabia has launched five new renewable energy projects to produce electricity sustainably, as the world's largest oil exporter pursues a goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. The wind and solar energy system projects, with a combined capacity of 3,300 megawatts, were launched by Saudi Electricity Procurement Company as the main buyer, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday. Of the five projects, three will utilize wind energy and two will utilize solar energy, Spa reported. The total output of wind energy projects is 1,800 MW, with one project in Yanbu with a capacity of 700 MW, another in Al Ghat with a capacity of 600 MW and the third in Waad Al Shamal with a capacity of 500 MW. The news agency said the total capacity of the new solar panel projects is 1,500 MW, with one in Al Henakiyah 1,100 MW and the other in Tubarjal 400 MW. Under its Vision 2030 economic plan, Saudi Arabia is focusing on renewable energy. In December, Saudi Arabia announced plans to invest more than $100 billion in renewable energy projects. It aims to increase the share of natural gas and renewables in its electricity mix to 50% by 2030. The projects are part of the fourth phase of Saudi Arabia's National Renewable Energy Plan overseen by the Ministry of Energy. Saudi Arabia is the largest electricity consumer in the region and its electricity demand is growing rapidly. Total electricity demand in Saudi Arabia is expected to reach 365.4 terawatt-hours (TWh) by 2030, up from 299.2 terawatt-hours in 2018, according to a report by the Riyadh-based King Abdullah Petroleum Research Center.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will develop 241GW of solar PV by 2030, a technology that will dominate the new capacity. According to a report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), by the middle of this century, if countries in the ASEAN region adopt 100% renewable energy power supply, their installed capacity can reach 2.4TW. In this scenario, solar PV will account for nearly 60% of installed renewable energy capacity by 2050. Regardless of the scenarios studied in the report (the share of renewable energy mix in 2050 ranging from 34% to 100%), solar PV will be the "flagship resource for ASEAN decarbonisation". From 2018 to 2020, due to the rapid expansion of solar photovoltaics, the share of installed renewable energy capacity in ASEAN member countries increased from 28% to 33.5%. Turning to investment needs, the report said that to support a full transition to renewable energy between 2018-2050, more than $1.2 trillion in solar panel alone will be required. Investments at the end of the decade stood at $156 billion. Indonesia (24.18GW), Vietnam (17.86GW) and Thailand (11.15GW) will lead other countries in annual solar PV additions and will become countries with annual installed capacity exceeding 10GW by 2050. IRENA estimates that ASEAN countries as a whole will add 64 GW of solar PV capacity annually by 2050. Earlier this year, Vietnam deemed its solar energy target for the decade "too high", largely due to grid constraints that have disrupted renewable energy development. The target set by the Vietnamese government falls well short of IRENA's outlook for the country over the next few decades. IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera said, "As the region commits to more ambitious climate goals, including net zero emissions, we must now start planning in earnest. While ASEAN has ambitious renewable energy in the short term target, but this area needs to be considered and planned for long-term development." In addition, solar PV hotspots in the region are located in Sumatra, Nusa Tenggara in Indonesia, as well as in Vietnam, Thailand and the Philippines. Along with Indonesia's Java-Bali, these three countries are also the most electricity-hungry countries in the ASEAN region. By 2050, with 100% renewable energy, Indonesia's two islands alone will import more than 1,000TWh of electricity, three times the UK's electricity demand in 2021. This requires nearly $200 billion in grid investment across the region in the short term, while scaling up national and international transmission to better integrate renewables. Singapore is one of the countries heavily reliant on renewable energy imports due to a lack of land supply, with the city-state planning to import up to 4GW of low-carbon electricity by 2035. According to IRENA, several ASEAN countries have large quantities of key mineral resources that can be used in renewable technologies and require manufacturing support policies to enable solar PV module and cell...

Spain announced that its fourth round of renewable energy tenders will be held on November 22, including 1.8GW of solar photovoltaic projects and 1.5GW of wind energy, new energy installations aimed at accelerating the decarbonization of Spain's power system. The country’s Ministry of Ecological Transformation (MITECO) also announced that it will also accept upgrades or hybrid system projects of existing projects in this latest round of tenders. In addition, if part of the allocated capacity is not fully used for solar energy sytem or wind 1.5GW, then this capacity can be transferred to other technologies. This will be the fourth tender held in Spain. The first tender was held in January 2021, when more than 2GW of solar system projects were signed; the second, in October 2021, signed only 866MW of solar. The third tender, originally scheduled for April this year, will finally take place on October 25 and will procure 520MW of renewable energy, including 140MW of distributed solar. The announcement comes as Spain will implement a series of measures over the next few months to bring about a 5% reduction in natural gas consumption. This is in line with the EU's pledge to reduce gas demand and accelerate renewable energy development ahead of winter, with European solar development expected to hit a record 40GW this year. Earlier this year, the Spanish government said it would impose a windfall profits tax on power companies and banks starting next year to help Spaniards deal with soaring inflation. In addition, MITECO announced the launch of a public proposal to accelerate the development of energy storage co-located with renewable energy projects.