Stay informed about the latest developments in cabinet manufacturing, IP rating standards, outdoor enclosure technology, and industrial cabinet solutions.
Around Japan, competition is intensifying on the research and development front. Major petroleum distributor ENEOS is developing transparent solar cells using organic materials to generate electricity from infrared and ultraviolet light. Building materials giant YKK AP is aiming to create building materials that integrate solar cells.
The photovoltaic cells will be manufactured in Japan and the glass will be manufactured with cooperation from local partners. I hope that we can spread our photovoltaic power generation glass to many countries.” Advanced glass developed in Japan may come to change the windows and walls of the world.
"Even with just a 1% efficiency, installing solar panels on windows across Japan would lead to an annual reduction of 17 million tons of carbon dioxide," Sakamoto notes. The Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) has plans to install lightweight and flexible perovskite solar cells on the exterior of a 230-meter skyscraper in Tokyo.
The country is already a leader in bioplastics and hydrogen energy, and in 2009, it was a Japanese university research team that found that certain crystalline minerals called perovskites are photovoltaic, converting light into a voltage, opening the door to new types of transparent solar cells (pictured above).
He added that Penang Port is exploring the possibility of setting up solar panels on stilts on shallow water pockets in its premises, “like a solar farm”. On the other hand, he said the global cruise business is expected to “go fully shore-power” by 2030.
The Penang government is assessing several strategic locations, including dams and coastal water bodies, to implement floating solar projects as part of efforts to strengthen its Renewable Energy (RE) sources. — NSTP/GHAZALI KORI Get breaking news fast — follow us on WhatsApp and Telegram.
He said that land-based solar farms were not ideal for Penang due to the scarcity and high value of available land. Therefore, he said, installing solar panels on water surfaces was seen as a more practical alternative. "Floating solar is a real possibility for Penang because we are surrounded by water.
The Star has learnt that this entails creating a solar farm that floats on a sheltered quarter of Penang’s harbour stretching over 4ha, the size of three World Cup football fields. On a sunny day, it is expected to churn out 30 megawatts of electricity, which theoretically will be enough for 6,000 homes.
China is advancing a nearly 1.3 terawatt (TW) pipeline of utility-scale solar and wind capacity, leading the global effort in renewable energy buildout. This is in addition to China’s already operating 1.4 TW of solar and wind capacity, nearly 26% of which (357 gigawatts (GW)) came online in 2024.
Techno-economic assessment of concentrated solar power technologies integrated with thermal energy storage system for green hydrogen production. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 72: 1184–1203. Kangas, H. L., Ollikka, K., Ahola, J., Kim, Y. (2021). Digitalisation in wind and solar power technologies.
Assessment of concentrated solar power generation potential in China based on Geographic Information System (GIS). Applied Energy, 315: 119045. Gokon, N. (2023). Progress in concentrated solar power, photovoltaics, and integrated power plants towards expanding the introduction of renewable energy in the Asia/Pacific region.
Concentrating solar thermal power as a viable alternative in China’s electricity supply. Energy Policy, 39: 7622–7636. Chen, F., Yang, Q., Zheng, N., Wang, Y., Huang, J., Xing, L., Li, J., Feng, S., Chen, G., Kleissl, J. (2022). Assessment of concentrated solar power generation potential in China based on Geographic Information System (GIS).
Jain, Das made a Geographic Information System (GIS) -based multi-criteria assessment of the solar PV and onshore wind energy potential in India. However, since analysis confined to the spatial scale only was not comprehensive, further analysis on the complementary potential of wind power and PV power at temporal scale was needed.
China has made considerable efforts with respect to hydro- wind-solar complementary development. It has abundant resources of hydropower, wind power, and solar power and shows promising potential for future development.
The successful grid connection of a 54-MW/100-kWp wind-solar complementary power plant in Nan’ao, Guangdong Province, in 2004 was the first wind–solar complementary power generation system officially launched for commercialization in China.
Pumped storage is the most economical and reliable energy storage technology in China at present, and it has vast development prospects under encouraging policies . The installed capacity of pumped storage in China was about 31 million kW in 2020, and it is expected to increase to about 120 million kW by 2030 .
