Off Grid

The 34 MW / 68 MWh Contego project near Burgess Hill in West Sussex, United Kingdom, will be one of the largest battery energy storage developments in the UK, with a system of 28 Tesla Megapack lithium-ion batteries, using Tesla's Autobidder AI software for real-time trading and control. Due to be completed in June 2021 and operational soon after, it is part of a strategic energy storage pipeline to be launched globally by FRV.

The project will develop an energy efficient, all in one, solar powered PC, which can be assembled locally. Once the pilot project is complete, the company aims to provide computer access to over 10,000 students in Madagascar every year.

Teijin Limited and Applied Electric Vehicles have developed a polycarbonate solar roof for future mobility applications. The green solution marks another major step toward the companies' shared vision of zero-emission mobility.

In February 2021, The US agency DARPA awarded contracts to Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation and Martin Defense Group (formerly Navatek) to build demonstration versions of the new Manta Ray unmanned underwater vehicle with an energy-harvesting system to power it indefinitely, allowing the robot submarine to carry out missions lasting months or years without returning to base or refueling.

Eco Wave Power has officially commenced preparation works for installation of floaters on the sea wall of the Port of Jaffa, Israel.

The Shoprite Group now generates enough electricity to power over 1 100 households - 12 300 MWh of electricity - a year from solar energy, following the installation of rooftop PV panels at 19 sites in South Africa and Namibia.

A new project in Madagascar is using 3D printing to create new schools. Non-profit organisation Thinking Huts has partnered with architectural design agency Studio Mortazavi to create the world's first 3D-printed school on the campus of a university in Fianarantsoa, Madagascar. It is aiming to tackle the shortage of educational infrastructure which in many countries contributes to fewer children getting a good education.

Perovskites are a leading candidate for eventually replacing silicon as the material of choice for solar panels. They offer the potential for low-cost, low-temperature manufacturing of ultrathin, lightweight flexible cells, but so far their efficiency at converting sunlight to electricity has lagged behind that of silicon and some other alternatives.

Among the Li-ion batteries competitors, the Redox Flow Battery (RFB) system is one of the main competitors currently approaching the market.