• May 07, 2025

Array Technologies, a global supplier of solar tracking technology products, has expanded its SmarTrack software by adding backtracking and diffuse reflection optimization features to its Array STI H250 dual row tracker. This improvement applies the algorithm training and optimization tools that have been tested on the DuraTrack platform to the H250 system in the global market. Neil Manning, President and Chief Operating Officer of Array, said: "Our H250 tracker has long been a trusted solution in markets with extremely challenging site conditions, and the addition of SmarTrack Backtracking and Diffie has taken its performance to the next level. By applying algorithm training and real-time sensor data, we assist our clients in optimizing solar energy output in more regions and terrain types, ultimately improving project returns. ” The H250 tracker is designed specifically to tackle irregular terrain challenges. SmarTrack backtracking and diffuse reflection technology aim to improve energy output in complex environments and variable weather conditions. These tools can help trackers automatically adjust, minimizing shadows and capturing light to the maximum extent even on cloudy days. The array based SmarTrack backtracking technology utilizes algorithm training, terrain analysis, and production data to reduce shading and increase morning and evening power generation. The system adjusts based on the slope characteristics of each motor group to continuously increase power generation. By analyzing real-time global horizontal irradiance sensor data, the system can flatten the tracker angle, thereby capturing more diffuse light and increasing power generation in situations where direct sunlight is limited. These features have been tested in Spain and Brazil and can be immediately deployed to new and existing H250 projects. Combining Array's hardware and integrated software platform, SmarTrack is currently optimizing over 5 gigawatts of solar power generation capacity globally.

• May 06, 2025

During the installation of brackets and panels in large-scale solar projects, thousands of bolts must be tightened with appropriate torque to ensure a secure connection of the array. Tightening bolts too tightly can damage the long-term structural integrity of the system. Loosening the bolts can cause the components to loosen. Therefore, appropriate torque during installation is an important factor in ensuring successful operation and maintenance. Mark Kelly, Product Marketing Manager at Milwaukee Tools, said he has seen audit results for solar projects showing a wide range of torque values, with up to 80% of bolts in incorrect positions at some sites despite passing quality inspections. Incorrect torque is a common issue in solar projects, "Kelly said. The traditional two-step method involves first tightening the bolts with an impact wrench, and then manually tightening them with a click torque wrench, which heavily relies on the operator's skills. This can result in poor torque repeatability and severe overtightening There are various tools and techniques to ensure torque consistency. The torque rod will absorb additional impact force when it reaches the preset torque level. Some installers avoid using battery powered tools to prevent insufficient torque due to low battery voltage. More technicians rely on markings to record the degree of bolt tightening, in order to see if it has changed over time. However, not all of these suggestions are 100% reliable. Milwaukee's goal is to improve this field for solar installers. The company's M18 FUEL impact wrench is equipped with a TORQUE-SENSE sensor, which helps to obtain repeatable torque values. Kelly said, "This tool provides repeatable torque results, ensuring consistent and reliable fastening, which is crucial for the quality and safety of solar installations It does not require additional additions to existing impact wrenches like torque rods, as all core components are integrated inside the impact wrench. No need for two-step operation, only one tool is needed to provide the required torque value. Milwaukee also offers "one click" technology, which can record each trigger pull and capture data such as target torque levels and error reports. The recorded data helps to detect potential issues early, enabling proactive maintenance and reducing downtime. Kelly stated that access to ONE-KEY data can be customized according to project requirements, but typically individual installers, EPCs, and asset managers can see torque figures. EPC can access data to help ensure that torque control settings are fully utilized and manage tool usage across multiple projects. Project managers can track tool performance, utilization, and maintenance plans to optimize project efficiency, "he said. The quality assurance team can use this data to verify whether the installation meets the required standards and generate reports for auditing. Each tool owner can customize settings, track tool locations, and monitor usage...

• April 30, 2025

International Labor Day is an important holiday celebrated by workers worldwide, with the following core message: Origin and Historical Background Background of the Workers' Movement: Originating from the Chicago Workers' Strike in the late 19th century in the United States. On May 1, 1886, over 200000 workers in Chicago went on strike to fight for an 8-hour workweek. Establishment time: In 1889, the Paris Congress of the Second International passed a resolution to designate May 1st as International Labor Day to commemorate the workers' movement. Historical significance: It symbolizes the victory of the working class in fighting for their rights and marks a milestone in the unity and struggle of workers. Time and Scope Date: May 1st every year, recognized as a statutory holiday in over 80 countries worldwide. Exception countries: Due to historical reasons, countries such as the United States and Canada have set Labor Day on other dates. Alternative names and international names Common names: International Labor Day, also known as "May Day" or "International Day of Demonstrations and Processions". English expression: The official name is "International Workers' Day", and it is also widely used as "May Day" or "Labour Day". China's Labor Day Introduction time: In December 1949, the State Council of the Central People's Government of China officially designated May 1st as Labor Day. Commemorative activities: After 1989, the State Council commended the national model worker and exemplary individual every five years to promote the spirit of labor. International Labor Day is not only an opportunity for vacation and celebration, but also a manifestation of the spirit of global solidarity among workers.

• April 29, 2025

As part of the Earth Week celebration, Fullerton College held a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of a new solar powered ceiling system developed in collaboration with ForeFront Power. ForeFront Power is a leading developer and asset management company for commercial and industrial scale solar and energy storage projects. The 1-megawatt DC solar powered parking roof array is located in the 5th student parking lot adjacent to the neighboring Baker Sports Field, and is expected to save nearly $6 million in energy costs for Fullerton College over the next 20 years. The purpose of Fullerton College's project is to save on water and electricity costs, reduce carbon footprint, and advance its sustainable development goal of converting campus energy consumption to 100% renewable energy. The solar carport system will generate 1.8 million kilowatt hours of renewable energy, enough to meet the annual electricity needs of over 300 households. These energy outputs will offset approximately 19% of the college's electricity consumption. Dr. Cynthia Olivo, President of Fullerton College, said, "Fullerton College has been established for over a hundred years and is moving towards the future by implementing clean energy solutions. These solutions will enable us to reliably produce clean energy, reduce harmful emissions, and reinvest the saved energy back into student success. Earth Week is the best time to reaffirm our responsibility to the planet and future generations This is a pilot solar energy project in the community college district of North Orange County, aimed at demonstrating how solar energy can benefit other campuses in the district. This project is the result of a preliminary solar feasibility study completed in 2021, which helped the college determine the project site and implement the college's 2023-2026 campus sustainable development plan. The plan approves the development of a solar carport project for student plot 5 through a power purchase agreement (PPA) signed with ForeFront Power. The Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) signed with ForeFront Power enables Fullerton College to develop its projects without upfront costs and bond funds. According to the terms of the power purchase agreement, ForeFront Power is responsible for developing, owning, and maintaining the solar energy portfolio, and charging the college a fixed rate lower than the utility's electricity bill, which remains unchanged for the 20-year term of the agreement. ForeFront Power will continue to operate and maintain the system for free, while the college benefits from budget certainty as utility bills will not increase in the coming decades. Fullerton College has chosen ForeFront Power to develop, finance, and construct its solar and energy storage portfolio through SPURR's Renewable Energy Centralized Procurement (REAP) program. SPURR is a joint authority composed of hundreds of public education institutions, utilizing competitive bidding, integrating purchasing p...

• April 28, 2025

This week, Boviet Solar held a ribbon cutting ceremony for its 2 gigawatt solar panel assembly plant located in Greenville, North Carolina. The factory began fine-tuning its production line a few weeks ago, and many local and state legislators attending the ceremony, as well as Democratic state governor Josh Stein, praised it as a successful example of manufacturing in eastern North Carolina. Xie Zhaochun, Global General Manager of Bovit Solar, and Sienna Cen, President of Bovit Solar USA, also attended the ribbon cutting ceremony. The solar panel factory has hired 370 employees and will produce single-sided and double-sided solar panels for the US market. Under generous incentives from the state government, Bovit Corporation invested nearly $300 million to renovate an existing 521460 square foot (approximately 51000 square meter) building located in the Indigreen Enterprise Park. The company has also built another 500000 square foot (approximately 47000 square meters) factory nearby, which will produce 3 gigawatts (approximately 3 million kilowatts) of solar cells annually. The battery factory of Bovit Company has broken ground and is scheduled to start production in the second half of 2026. Bovit Company stated that after the completion of the two parks, it will hire 1300 employees in Greenville. I really wish I could talk more about my experience of visiting a solar panel factory this time, but surprisingly, it has become routine - I never thought that reporting on the US solar panel manufacturing market would say that before. The assembly line is running well, and the workers are also performing their respective duties. Everything is running well, like a well functioning machine, and this is precisely the current situation of rapid expansion of solar energy production capacity in the United States. I have communicated with many EPC and installation companies who participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony, and they all said the same thing: Boviet is a consistent and trustworthy company, and they have established a good cooperative relationship with Boviet. They are excited about this new factory located in the United States, but they are more looking forward to the production of the battery factory so that they can receive more incentives for localization. Bo Wei Solar Energy Company was established in Vietnam in 2013 and currently provides support to a local battery and solar panel manufacturing company. Although Bowei Solar Energy Company is not affiliated with Chinese companies, it is currently a subsidiary of Ningbo Bowei Alloy Materials Co., Ltd., a Chinese material manufacturer. About a dozen Bowei Solar employees from Greenville went to Vietnam for six weeks to learn assembly line operations. At the ribbon cutting ceremony, many supervisors and operators led a tour of the factory that was currently in production. The current solar panel factory was once the location of Denso Manufacturing Company, which produced wiper engines, electric...

• April 27, 2025

The New Jersey Public Utilities Commission (NJBPU) has approved the launch of the third round of competitive solar incentive program (CSI) bidding. The CSI program aims to reduce the cost of solar energy development and encourage the development of grid scale and other eligible solar projects in New Jersey. The committee has determined that the third round of bidding for the CSI program will commence pre qualification on May 14, 2025, and the bidding deadline will be July 23, 2025. The CSI program has significantly increased the solar installed capacity in New Jersey, with a current installed capacity exceeding 5 gigawatts and reducing costs for taxpayers. Today's action by the board of directors demonstrates the bright future of solar energy in New Jersey and reinforces the actions we have taken over the years to expand solar coverage in our great state, "said Christine Guhl Sadovy, President of the New Jersey Business Utility Association. In the past seven years, through our powerful solar energy projects, including Community Solar Energy (CSI) and Community Solar Energy, we have doubled the solar power generation of our grid. The growth of solar energy in New Jersey and the entire region has helped taxpayers save hundreds of millions of dollars in electricity bills. I am very much looking forward to how the next round of community solar projects will develop. ” The development of clean energy in New Jersey and the entire PJM region has saved New Jersey taxpayers billions of dollars in costs. If there were no onshore wind and solar resources from PJM participating in PJM's 2024 capacity auction, the liquidation price would be about 60% higher, which would result in an additional loss of approximately $1.1 billion for New Jersey taxpayers in the coming year. In the last CSI tender in 2024, the committee awarded over 310 megawatts of solar power generation capacity and 80 megawatt hours of energy storage capacity. These winning projects can provide sufficient electricity for 42000 households annually. This bidding highlights a significant policy achievement, which is the ability to develop large-scale solar projects in a competitive manner, thereby reducing costs for taxpayers in New Jersey. This is the cheapest solar project incentivized by the committee so far. Since 2017, New Jersey has helped taxpayers reduce solar energy costs by over 50%. In the third bidding, in order to promote competition, the board of directors approved the proposal to adjust the capacity target of the existing power grid supply projects, allowing construction on industrial land and floating solar projects. The capacity target for the fourth batch of net metering non residential projects exceeding 5 megawatts has been reduced from 40 megawatts to 15 megawatts to encourage more companies to actively participate in bidding for other batches. The board of directors established a consistent bidding schedule and emphasized the improvement of interconnection processes to supp...

• April 25, 2025

The New Jersey Public Utilities Commission (NJBPU) has approved the expansion of the New Jersey Community Solar Program (CSEP), adding 250 MW of capacity blocks. Since the first allocation of CSEP capacity in November 2023, over 500 megawatts of community solar projects have been registered under the program throughout the state. Christine Guhl Sadovy, Chair of the New Jersey Public Utilities Commission, said, "New Jersey's leading community solar program has saved and will continue to save participants millions of dollars in costs. By launching a new round of projects, we are advancing smart policies to ensure that all participants can save 20% on costs, regardless of their income level, whether your roof is suitable for installing solar energy, or whether you rent a house, ultimately helping more New Jersey households afford solar energy. Use the New Jersey Public Utilities Commission's Community Solar Project Finder to find existing projects near you and start saving money CSEP is one of the most effective and quickest methods to reduce energy bills. Community solar users participating in CSEP can receive guaranteed savings, and their community solar credit limit in their bills can enjoy a discount of 15% or higher. CSEP currently serves over 28000 users in New Jersey, who have received over $37 million in billing credit lines since the pilot project was launched, resulting in net savings of over $7 million. The addition of a 250 MW capacity block is key to helping more New Jersey taxpayers afford their electricity bills. Community solar energy enables utility users who do not have their own roofs or houses, rent, or cannot afford the upfront cost of solar energy to participate in community solar projects located within their power service areas, and must reserve at least 51% of capacity for low - and middle-income (LMI) users. In addition to opening up more capacity blocks for new projects, the Community Solar Energy Project (CSEP) has also made procedural changes to simplify the participation process and reduce barriers to cost savings. CSEP allows LMI users to prove their eligibility on their own. In addition, local governments can now submit registrations for automatic registration projects, allowing municipal authorities to choose households that are difficult to cover to directly subscribe to community solar projects and receive savings without residents taking action. The committee has also recently implemented consolidated billing, where users will see both subscription fees and net savings on their utility bills, without the need for community solar suppliers to issue separate bills. The new 250 MW capacity block will open for new project registration on April 30, 2025. The project will be included in CSEP on a first come, first served basis, but project registrations submitted within the initial registration period of 10 working days will be considered as simultaneous submissions and will be awarded based on the highest discount prov...

• April 24, 2025

Chemitek Solar has launched Anti Static Solar Armor 2.0, a new version of its easy-to-use anti-static and anti fouling coating for photovoltaic (PV) panels. The upgraded anti-static solar armor 2.0 formula ensures durability for at least one year under normal stain conditions, ensuring that solar panels remain clean for a longer period of time and reducing the need for frequent touch ups. This formula significantly reduces the adhesion of pollutants such as dust, pollen, and organic matter, making subsequent cleaning faster and more efficient. By forming a durable protective layer, the accumulation of dirt is minimized to effectively support the long-term performance and maintenance of photovoltaic panels. The combination of anti-static and anti adhesion properties can slow down the accumulation of dirt, thereby increasing energy production by up to 5%. This product is designed specifically for use with robots (such as Solarcleano or Sun-X) and brush tractors (such as Sunbrush), and can be used in routine cleaning operations by simply mixing it directly in cleaning water. This convenient way of easily integrating into regular cleaning can avoid additional operations and costs. Adhering to the concept of sustainability, the anti-static solar armor 2.0 adopts biodegradable, non-toxic, water-based materials that do not contain solvents and irritating chemicals such as ammonia. Its pH neutral components ensure that it is harmless to the environment and solar panel components. The anti-static solar armor 2.0 has passed T Ü V safety and reliability certification, ensuring that it meets the highest industry standards. It provides optimal protection for sensitive photovoltaic modules, including anti reflective coatings (ARC). We have developed a brand new anti-static solar armor 2.0 with the goal of achieving a lifespan of at least one year to align with the annual cleaning cycle of most photovoltaic power plants worldwide. The new version will continuously protect the components between two cleanings, minimizing pollution losses throughout the year, "said C é sar Martins, CEO of Chemitek. The anti-static solar armor 2.0 will be officially released at the 2025 European International Solar Energy Exhibition.

• April 23, 2025

The Sixth District of the African Methodist Church (AME) has announced a new plan to establish microgrids in churches across Georgia, with the goal of installing five systems by 2026. The initiative in the sixth district covers all AME churches in Georgia (482 churches), which can ultimately deploy microgrids to enhance community resilience and energy independence, marking an important step for AME churches in their ongoing commitment to environmental management. Since 2023, the sixth district has been developing this innovative project, which includes installing solar panels, electric vehicle charging stations, battery energy storage systems, and implementing energy-saving measures. The project also introduces bidirectional charging technology, enabling church facilities to serve as energy hubs and emergency centers for the community, where community members can charge medical equipment, store medication, and seek shelter in emergency situations. It is expected that the typical solar energy system of each church will generate an average of 70 megawatt hours of electricity per year, and each system is expected to offset approximately 93.5% of the church's annual energy consumption, recovering costs in just eight years. The 482 churches in the sixth district have a total annual power generation of approximately 34 gigawatt hours, which is sufficient to power over 3000 households. The project is based on the Climate Change Resolution of the African Methodist Church (AME), which commits the denomination to climate action and supports policies for creating healthy communities and a clean energy future. The resolution was passed at the 50th General Assembly in Philadelphia, outlining the biblical basis for addressing climate change and encouraging the church to take practical measures to achieve sustainable development. Georgia is particularly vulnerable to power outages caused by extreme weather events, such as Hurricane Helene in September 2024, which caused power outages for over 1.3 million residents across the state. Some members of the African Methodist Church have experienced power outages for over three weeks. Georgia residents' electricity bills are also higher than the national average, and it is expected that electricity bills will continue to rise. So far, with the help of the faith based environmental non-profit organization Georgia Interfaith Power and Lighting Company (GIPL), the Sixth District has completed feasibility studies for 13 churches and plans to complete a total of 70 studies by the end of the year. This ambitious goal demonstrates the Church's determination to quickly and effectively address climate change. To support the implementation of this ambitious clean energy vision, AME Church's Sixth District will collaborate with Capital Good Fund. Capital Good Fund is a non-profit community development financial institution (CDFI) and a federal beneficiary of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's "Solar Energy for All" progr...