Solar Energy News
USAID Adds Momentum to Sub-Saharan Off-Grid Solar with $4 Million of New SOGE Grant Awards
USAID will award Scaling Off-Grid Energy Development Grand Challenge grants of up to $500,000 each to Sub-Saharan start-ups that demonstrate commercially promising innovations and show they've raised sufficient capital from private sector investors.
Read more →Haiti Solar Micro-Utility Amps Up, 20x Expansion in Customer Base on Tap
The first to be awarded funding from ElectriFi, pioneering renewable energy micro-utiliy Sigora International aims to expand the customer base of its pilot, community solar microgrid from 5,000 to 136,000 (27,000 accounts).
Read more →Ugandan Off-Grid Solar, Low-Cost Internet Access Poised for a Growth Spurt
Uganda's national off-grid solar and renewable power iniative brightens prospects for the economy, society and the environment. Entrepreneurial African solar start-ups are keen to contribute.
Read more →Hybridized Maldives Microgrid Exceeds Expectations, Diesel Cuts 50 Percent Greater than Projected
Two hybridized solar PV-energy storage microgrids commissioned by Electro Power Systems (EPS) are up and running in the Maldives, part and parcel of efforts to reduce local greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and environmental degradation, raise global climate change awareness and forestall the day when sea level rise forces residents to emigrate.
Read more →Off-Grid Solar-Storage Program Just Scratches the Surface of Navajo Nation Sustainable Energy Potential
The Navajo Tribal Utility Authority has installed small-scale home solar PV-energy storage systems in 20,000 homes and counting. The sustainable energy drive just scratches the surface of the Navajo Nation's local solar and renewable energy generation capacity, however.
Read more →Denver Solar-Storage Microgrid to Deliver Multiple Service Streams, Benefits Today
Project partners Panasonic, Xcel Energy and Younicos lay out the stream of benefits expected from Peña Station NEXT, a 382-acre, sustainabie transit-oriented “multi-stakeholder ‘portfolio microgrid’ under construction adjacent to Denver International Airport (DEN).
Read more →Nigeria Launches National Off-Grid Pay-Go Solar Homes Initiative
20,000 households are expected to benefit by having off-grid, mobile pay-go solar energy systems installed over the next 12 months in the initial phase of Nigeria's Solar Home Systems initiative.
Read more →Solarplaza Shines Light on Blockchain Green Energy Prospects
Amidst growing experimentation, a mix of factors leads energy industry pros to believe Africa has is fertile ground for applying blockchain in the power-energy sectors.
Read more →New Secretary of Defense James Mattis Supports Solar Military Microgrids To 'Remove Tether of Fuel'
As Coalition Forces stormed Baghdad in 2003, the commanders knew they had a significant Achilles heel. They didn't know how long they had to defeat Saddam's regime before the difficulty of delivering fuel throughout the battlefield would catch up with…
Read more →Solar PV, Renewable Microgrids Stand Out in 2017 IRENA/ADFD Joint Facility Awards
Four renewable energy projects in Africa and the Pacific region will receive $44.5 million in IRENA-ADFD Joint Facility loans that come with low interest rates and other favorable terms developers would not be able to qualify for otherwise.
Read more →Off-Grid Solar Hits the Ground Running in Rural Nicaragua, Panama
A chance meeting the clean energy and water poverty he witnessed during his travels across Nicaragua and Panama led Marc Henrich to create Solubrite. Now the solar-social enterprise startup is on the road with the aim of installing another 25,000 small home solar PV systems in rural communities across the two Central American countries.
Read more →Tesla-SolarCity Swoops In On Nascent Island Microgrid Market
Successive news announcements makes it clear that Tesla-SolarCity has had its eyes on island solar-storage microgrids for quite some time.
Read more →Hybrid Solar Microgrids Up and Running in Colombia's Forbidding Darièn
Installed by Cali's Tecmac Ingeniera, the five community solar-diesel microgrids have created jobs for locals and reduced pollution and energy costs, thereby improving human and environmental health, safety and integrity
Read more →USAID, RBL Bank Partner to Expand Off-Grid, Rooftop Solar in India
The $75 million USAID loan guarantee will significantly enhance RBL's ability to extend loans to Indian SMBs installing off-grid and rooftop solar energy systems in poorly served communities, thereby contributing to achieving India's national greenhouse gas reduction, renewable energy and sustainable development goals.
Read more →Solar Microgrid Helps Save Lives, Brighten Prospects in Rural Myanmar
A community solar-energy storage is delivering emissions-free electricity throughout a village in Myanmar's central Dry Zone, enabling health clinic staff to store anti-venom and treat snakebite victims on-site for the first time.
Read more →Haiti Microgrid Developer Wakes Up To Daunting New Role In Wake Of Hurricane Matthew
In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, Sigora was on hand to support emergency relief efforts. Now the clean energy microutility is raising $96k and leveraging its supply chain, private sector networks, and local community ties to get critical assistance…
Read more →Off-Grid Renewable Energy Bringing Universal Electricity Access to Africa
Widely available and cheaper than ever, PV solar is spreading rapidly across sub-Saharan Africa as a first generation of local clean energy entrepreneurs taps into support from U.S. and multilateral public-private partnerships,
Read more →Tabuchi America Joins Electric & Gas Industries Association to Launch ¨Solar Plus Storage¨ Loan Program
The US subsidiary of one of the world's largest solar inverter manufacturers, Tabuchi has partnered with energy efficiency and renewable energy advocacy EGIA to launch the $300 million GEOSmart SolPower residential solar-plus-storage financing program, the largest of its kind to date.
Read more →Sharp Launches New Mid-Tier, C&I Solar-Energy Storage Financing Program
Sharp's Energy Systems & Services Group expects to finance more than 12 MWs worth of hybrid commercial and industrial (C&I) ¨solar plus storage¨ projects in the next 12 months.
Read more →War of Currents Unsettled as DC Microgrid, EV, DER, and Efficient Loads Favor DC
New DC Microgrid Opportunities Are Opening Up, Causing Many To Rethink The Entire Electric Grid. Universities, companies, and governments have been lining up for years to demonstrate the potential of DC microgrids, and the next generation of DC microgrid architectures…
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