Two sets of research this past week have confirmed that a second rooftop solar boom is well underway in Australia, driven by the rapidly improving economics of PV panels and storage, and by the rapidly worsening state of retail electricity prices.

Energy minister Josh Frydenberg has sought to clarify recent comments on the storage requirements for new wind and solar farms, saying it would be up to the Australian Energy Market Operator to decide how much is needed.

‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMAL) member Hanwha Q CELLS said it had reached a new production milestone of 1.0 billion high-efficiency ‘Q.ANTUM’ solar cells, equivalent to around 5GW.

German parliamentary elections are coming up this fall, and the German Green Party has adopted a plan for 100 per cent electric vehicles by 2030 for new car sales. But one leader of the party remains skeptical. His criticism showed that we have to get our heads around how fundamentally different electric cars will be.