Hannover Messe 2013: Energy focus with low solar participation

Written by Anne Fischer | 16 April 2013
Posted in Editors Blogs

Hannover Messe, the largest industrial show worldwide attracted some 225,000 visitors to Hannover, Germany, during the five exhibition days; some 50% came from abroad. Although the theme was “Integrated Industry”, renewable energy and sustainability was a strong focus.

Energy Storage Summit

Written by Andreas Breyer | 25 March 2013
Posted in Editors Blogs

As storage solutions are seen as a key element to fully exploiting the potential of renewables, the interest in storage technologies has increased tremendously in the last years. The second Energy Storage Summit in Düsseldorf (Germany) is a good example: With some 530 participants coming from 33 countries the conference grew significantly compared to last years’ event. One key message of the conference was that the different disciplines of renewable energy cannot be regarded separately any more.

Solar Industry Heads East

Written by Anne Fischer | 31 January 2013
Posted in Editors Blogs

PV America East 2013 gets underway next week in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where over 4000 solar industry professional are expected to attend this year, with nearly 100 companies exhibiting. Solar Novus Today will continue to report from the trade show floor with news from companies such as ET Solar, Mage Solar and more.

The "Sun" King and his Castle

Written by Andreas Breyer | 28 January 2013
Posted in Editors Blogs

Now it is official: After the losses in the past months have been adding up, SolarWorld – the former star of the PV industry – has officially admitted financial problems.

Roofing Colour for Energy Efficiency

Written by Sarah Orio | 18 December 2012
Posted in Editors Blogs

The colour of a roof can affect its energy efficiency, according to a recent study by Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, which claims that painting roofs white is as environmentally friendly as taking cars off the roads for half a century. The scientists found that the simplest way of engineering an environment that can cope with global warming is to increase the reflectivity of the roof, so more of the incoming sunlight is directed back into space. (Results of the study were published in Environmental Research Letters.)

Climate Change and the Solar Industry

Written by Jessica Lyons Hardcastle | 12 November 2012
Posted in Editors Blogs

Climate change leads to more intense, longer storms, drought and heat, according to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. And severe weather is costly to human lives and the economy, as Hurricane Sandy has recently reminded us when it hit the east coast of the United States. Unlike nuclear power plants that were shut down, and natural gas explosions in New York and New Jersey as a result of the superstorm, shutting off gas and electricity to millions, solar power is a relatively safe form of energy.

Solar to Add Sheen to Tamil Nadu's Gloomy Power Story

Written by Varun Mittal | 07 November 2012
Posted in Editors Blogs

Tamil Nadu state is often dubbed the “Detroit of India” because it is among the top 10 global auto manufacturing hubs, is one the most developed states in India with an annual growth rate of 8% as compared to national average of 7.4%. The state has an aggressive plan to increase manufacturing so that the gross domestic product is 23%, compared to today’s 17%.  It comes as no surprise that the significant economic development has created a power deficit.

Rural Development with Renewables

Written by Andreas Breyer | 31 October 2012
Posted in Editors Blogs

Rural areas attract a large portion of the deployment of renewable energies. But do they really benefit from it? Using case studies assessing 16 rural regions in Europe, Canada and United States, the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) has investigated this in a two year on-field research project. Solar Novus Today Senior Editor Andreas Breyer has asked Raffaele Trapasso, Economist with the OECD Rural Development Program and author of the OECD report titled “Linking Renewable Energy to Rural Development” about the major results and the role of solar energy herein.