Modules, cells, manufacturing, ALMM. This is the permanent home for every article we publish on solar pv — news, analysis, and original data, with named experts and human editorial review.
Thailand's cumulative renewable capacity reached approximately 16 GW by Q1 2026 across solar (10 GW), wind (1.5 GW), biomass (3 GW), small hydro + others (1.5 GW). ERC tender rounds 2024-2026 awarded 5+ GW of solar + wind. Direct PPA framework operationalising for corporate procurement. Net Zero by 2065 target.
South Africa's renewable energy capacity reached approximately 11 GW by Q1 2026 after the 2023-2024 power crisis (loadshedding) catalyzed regulatory reform. REIPPPP Round 7 awarded 3.5 GW in 2025; Round 8 expected H2 2026. JETP $8.5B implementation accelerating coal phase-out. Private generation deregulation enabling corporate procurement.
Africa's installed solar mini-grid capacity reached approximately 8 GW by Q1 2026, serving 25+ million people across Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, DRC. World Bank-funded DARES initiative coordinating $5+ billion in mini-grid deployment. 600+ million Africans still without electricity access; mini-grids essential complement to grid extension.
Vietnam's cumulative solar + wind capacity reached approximately 35 GW by Q1 2026 after the 2024–2025 policy reset (PDP8 implementation, DPPA framework). Rooftop solar dominates with 15+ GW; utility-scale solar at 12 GW; wind at 8 GW including 1.5 GW offshore. The Direct PPA framework is finally unlocking corporate procurement. This deep-dive covers the boom-pause-reset cycle, the DPPA opening, offshore wind, manufacturing supply chain role, and the opportunity for developers.
UAE's cumulative renewable capacity reached approximately 7 GW operational by Q1 2026, anchored by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park (2.5 GW), Noor Abu Dhabi (1.2 GW), and Al Dhafra (2 GW). Masdar leads ambitious global expansion targeting 100 GW renewables by 2030. UAE positioning as Middle East green hydrogen export hub.
South Korea's renewable energy policy in 2026 is shaped by the 10th Basic Electricity Supply Plan targeting 28% renewables by 2030, aggressive offshore wind tenders (target: 14.3 GW by 2030), and the K-Taxonomy for green finance. Hyundai and Samsung's hydrogen ambitions are central. Current renewable capacity at ~30 GW.
Solar panel costs in India in 2026 range from ₹25–35 per watt for premium Tier 1 modules to ₹18–22 per watt for value-tier ALMM modules. A typical 5 kW residential rooftop costs ₹2.5–3.5 lakh installed; PM Surya Ghar subsidy reduces customer outlay to ₹1.5–2.0 lakh. This guide covers per-watt rates, system pricing by size, financing, and how to avoid overpaying.
Solar installation in India in 2026 takes 30–45 days from contract signing to commissioning. The process includes site survey, structural assessment, DISCOM application, equipment delivery, physical installation, electrical connections, inspection, net-metering, and commissioning. This guide walks through every step, what to expect at each stage, and what can go wrong.
Saudi Arabia's renewable energy capacity reached approximately 8 GW operational in Q1 2026, against the Vision 2030 target of 130 GW by 2030. Major projects under construction include Sudair (1.5 GW solar), Shuaibah (600 MW), and the first NEOM green hydrogen (4 GW renewable) commissioning. Massive capacity gap requires 25 GW/year average through 2030. This deep-dive covers the renewable pipeline, NEOM project status, world's lowest solar tariffs, Saudi domestic content rules, and what global developers should know.
RE+ 2026 runs September 8–11 in Las Vegas, the largest North American renewable energy event with 50,000+ expected attendees. After Treasury's tightened IRA domestic-content rules, the show's central question: which module + inverter + BESS suppliers can actually deliver US-cell, US-content solutions at scale by 2028.
PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana subsidy in 2026 provides ₹30,000 for 1 kW, ₹60,000 for 2 kW, and ₹78,000 for 3+ kW residential rooftop solar. Application is online via pmsuryaghar.gov.in. Disbursement is direct benefit transfer within 30–45 days post-installation. This guide covers eligibility, step-by-step application, documentation, and common rejection reasons.
Morocco's renewable capacity reached approximately 4.5 GW by Q1 2026, with the Noor solar complex (580 MW CSP + 70 MW PV) as the flagship. Two subsea power interconnectors to Europe — Spain (existing 1.4 GW) and UK (Xlinks project under development) — position Morocco as Europe's renewable power supplier through 2030.
Mexico's renewable energy capacity reached approximately 28 GW by Q1 2026, with utility-scale solar (12 GW) and wind (8 GW) dominant. The Sheinbaum administration's reversal of AMLO-era restrictions has reopened private renewable investment. Long-term auction structure expected to relaunch by mid-2026 after years of suspension.
Intersolar Europe 2026 runs June 17–19 in Munich as part of The Smarter E Europe — expecting 110,000+ visitors and 3,000+ exhibitors across solar, storage, e-mobility, and smart grids. Key threads: EU module manufacturing ramp, perovskite tandem commercialization, residential BESS+heat pump bundles, and CBAM-driven supply chain shifts.
Indonesia's Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP, $20B+ pledged) implementation has accelerated through 2025-2026. Coal capacity remains at 45 GW with planned early retirements of 9 GW. Renewable additions reached 15 GW cumulative — solar growing fastest. The 'captive coal' carve-out for industrial nickel processing remains a contested issue.
Egypt's cumulative renewable capacity reached approximately 7 GW by Q1 2026 — solar 4 GW (anchored by Benban 1.8 GW), wind 2.5 GW, hydro 2.8 GW. New 10 GW renewable tender pipeline targets export to Europe via GREGY interconnector. Egypt positioning as Middle East-Mediterranean green energy hub.
China's cumulative installed renewable capacity crossed 1,400 GW by Q1 2026 — solar 750 GW, wind 500 GW, hydro 425 GW, plus operational BESS exceeding 80 GW. China manufactures 80%+ of global solar modules and 70%+ of EV batteries. Domestic 2030 renewable target: 3,500 GW combined. This deep-dive covers installed capacity, supply chain dominance, the 14th Five-Year Plan trajectory, offshore wind expansion, and what it means for the rest of the world.
Chile's renewable capacity reached approximately 18 GW operational by Q1 2026, with utility-scale solar (12 GW) and wind (6 GW) dominant. Chile aims to be world's lowest-cost green hydrogen producer, leveraging Atacama (best solar resource globally) + Patagonia (best wind resource globally). HIF Haru Oni and other green ammonia export projects scaling.
Brazil's cumulative installed solar PV capacity crossed 50 GW in Q1 2026, making it the world's third-largest solar market after China and India. Distributed solar (residential + commercial rooftop) dominates with 65% share — a unique market structure driven by net-metering economics. 2026 challenges include tariff policy uncertainty and grid congestion in the Northeast. This deep-dive covers the market structure, net-metering reform, utility-scale acceleration, key developers, and the opportunity for global suppliers.
The best solar inverter for Indian homes in 2026 is a string inverter sized to your solar capacity (5 kW solar = 5 kW inverter). Tier 1 brands like Sungrow, Solis, Goodwe, Growatt, and Delta dominate residential. Hybrid inverters add battery readiness. This guide covers brands, sizing, hybrid vs pure solar, prices, and what actually matters in 2026.
Africa Energy Forum 2026 runs June 23–26 in Cape Town, drawing 2,500+ delegates from across the continent's energy sector. Focus topics: South Africa's REIPPPP expansion, Egypt's solar export potential to Europe, Morocco's green hydrogen ambitions, Nigeria mini-grid scaling, and the continent's just transition partnerships with developed nations.
India installed cumulative solar PV capacity crossed 95 GW by Q1 2026, against the 280 GW by 2030 target. Annual additions averaged 18 GW in 2025 — must accelerate to 35 GW/year to hit target. Storage co-location and DISCOM offtake economics are the binding constraints.
EU WEEE Directive amendments now mandate 85% material recovery from solar modules. India's draft e-waste rules expected H2 2026 will create a domestic recycling obligation. Glass-aluminum recovery is commercially viable; silver and silicon recovery economics remain marginal — driving R&D in dedicated PV recycling technology.
India agrivoltaics pilot projects have scaled to over 250 MW across Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Rajasthan in 2026. Vertical bifacial installations and elevated single-axis trackers dominate. Power+crop yields are positive across rice, wheat, and horticulture pilots, though land-use approvals remain complex.
Solar carport installations at Indian commercial properties — IT parks, malls, hospitals — crossed 180 MW cumulative by Q1 2026. EV charging integration and ToD tariff arbitrage drive the economics. Mall and tech park installations dominate; airport-scale projects emerging in tier-1 cities.
PM-KUSUM scheme has deployed approximately 2.8 million solar agricultural pumps and 4 GW of grid-connected solar capacity by Q1 2026. State implementation varies dramatically — Maharashtra and Rajasthan lead; Punjab, Haryana lag. Component-A grid-connected projects pivoted from utility-scale to MSME-led plus DISCOM partnership models.
Combined ALMM-listed module capacity in India crossed 100 GW in Q1 2026, driven by Waaree, Adani Solar, Vikram, and Goldi commissioning new 5 GW+ lines. Cell capacity still lags at 60 GW, leaving a 40 GW cell-to-module gap that imports continue to fill.
Indian solar+BESS hybrid tender awards crossed 12 GWh of storage capacity in 2026 year-to-date, paired with 8 GW of solar. The dominant configuration is 4-hour BESS at 50% of solar capacity. Lowest discovered tariff for the hybrid offering hit ₹3.42/kWh — within striking distance of standalone solar.
Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) global market reached 4.2 GW cumulative installed capacity by Q1 2026, growing 28% year-over-year. Glass-glass curtain wall and structural skylight applications drive premium commercial growth. Per-watt cost premium has narrowed to 35% over conventional facade — still significant but architecturally justifiable.
String inverters captured 64% of 2025 global utility-scale solar inverter shipments, up from 52% in 2023. Central inverters retain a foothold in very large (200+ MW) projects and high-temperature deserts. The cost per watt is now within 3% — the choice depends on plant layout, O&M model, and serviceability. This deep-dive covers how each works, the cost breakdown, serviceability math, climate considerations, and a decision framework for developers.
Robotic cleaning systems for utility-scale solar have reached 8 GW under contract globally by Q1 2026. Water-free dry cleaning robots dominate in MENA and Rajasthan; water-based systems remain common where soiling and water both abundant. Per-MW operating cost has dropped 40% over three years.
Bifacial module share in Indian SECI utility-scale tender awards crossed 78% in Q1 2026, up from 62% in Q1 2025. Falling per-watt price premiums (now under ₹0.5/W) and improved tracker compatibility have shifted developer math decisively toward bifacial.
Indian residential solar financing crossed ₹4,800 crore disbursed in 2025, growing 65% year-over-year. Public sector banks (SBI, BoI) now offer rooftop solar loans at 8.5–9.5% with 7-year terms. NBFC and fintech players (Mufin Green, GoBOLT) target the unbanked segment with smaller-ticket financing.
Soiling-induced generation losses in MENA and Rajasthan desert solar installations average 4–8% annually without cleaning intervention. Worst-case dust storm events can cause 25–35% short-term generation drops. Operators have converged on weekly to bi-weekly cleaning frequency with robotic systems.
Tier 1 TOPCon bifacial module pricing for India delivery sits at $0.094/W in May 2026 — a 7% drop quarter-on-quarter. Polysilicon at $5.80/kg and cell pricing at $0.029/W have stabilised. Indian developers signing Q4 commissioning contracts should target $0.090/W or lower. This deep-dive breaks down the full price stack, regional variations, what drives module costs, and a procurement playbook for developers.
After three years of M10 vs G12 wafer-size competition, the industry has settled into stable coexistence in 2026. M10 (182mm) dominates residential and commercial applications at 56% share; G12 (210mm) leads utility-scale at 38%. Module-level standardisation has largely stabilised.
MNRE's May 2026 ALMM List-III update adds 12 GW of newly certified module capacity and removes 1.8 GW from non-compliant producers. The update brings total ALMM-listed capacity to over 100 GW. Eight new producers cleared, including three with under 1 GW capacity.
Field studies show modern Tier 1 PERC and TOPCon modules degrading at 0.40–0.55% per year — well within manufacturer warranties of 0.55% but worse than marketing claims of 0.30%. HJT shows slightly lower degradation. Bifacial modules show similar rates to mono-facial of the same cell technology.
India has installed roughly 14 GW of rooftop solar against the 30 GW national target. With 18 months remaining, closing the 16 GW gap requires a 3× pace acceleration. PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana subsidy uptake has accelerated since Q4 2025, but DISCOM net-metering bottlenecks remain the binding constraint.
Modern utility-scale solar plants routinely operate DC/AC ratios of 1.35–1.50, accepting deliberate inverter clipping in exchange for more morning/evening generation and grid-services value. Optimal ratio depends on tariff structure, climate, and bifacial gain. Clipping is no longer an EPC mistake — it's a design tool.
Southeast Asia's floating photovoltaic pipeline crossed 5 GW in 2026, led by Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines. Reservoir and hydropower dam co-location accounts for 72% of the pipeline. Per-watt capex premium versus ground-mount has compressed to 12% from 25% in 2022.
India's solar O&M market crossed 75 GW under formal contract in 2026, growing 22% year-over-year. Specialised O&M providers (Mahindra Susten, Tata Power, Sterling and Wilson) dominate utility-scale; OEM-led O&M emerging for newer plants. Per-MW annual O&M cost has stabilised at ₹3–5 lakh.
Treasury's January 2026 final rules on the IRA's 10% domestic-content adder tightened cell-eligibility tests. To qualify, modules must use US-manufactured cells (not just assembled-in-US modules with imported cells) by January 2028. Mexico-assembled modules with Chinese cells no longer qualify.
Single-axis trackers dominate 91% of utility-scale solar installations globally. Dual-axis trackers, despite a 10–15% generation uplift, struggle to justify their 60% capex premium. Only specific high-DNI, high-tariff geographies — primarily off-grid microgrid applications — make dual-axis economics work.
Perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells have crossed 34% laboratory efficiency in 2026, with first commercial module shipments from Oxford PV and LONGi expected H2 2026. Production scale remains pilot-level. Long-term stability — historically the blocker — has improved materially in 2024–2026 thanks to encapsulation advances.
TOPCon owns 78% of new module shipments in 2026, PERC has collapsed to under 10% of new capacity (legacy lines only), and HJT holds 11% with the strongest efficiency floor. PERC is now firmly a sunset technology. The real 2026 question is TOPCon's defence against HJT's narrowing capex gap. This complete comparison covers how each cell works, efficiency, cost, degradation, and which to choose for your project.
Best-in-class crystalline silicon cell efficiency records hit 27.3% in Q1 2026 (NREL-certified), up from 26.8% one year earlier. Critically, mass-production efficiency for TOPCon and HJT now sits within 1.5 percentage points of laboratory records — the smallest gap in solar history. This deep-dive covers the records by technology, why the lab-to-production gap is closing, the Shockley-Queisser limit, and what perovskite tandems will change.
SECI and state DISCOMs cleared 4.2 GW of standalone battery energy storage capacity in the January–March 2026 window, with the lowest discovered tariff falling to ₹2.18/kWh — a 14% drop versus Q4 2025.
TOPCon will dominate module shipments through 2027, but HJT's per-watt manufacturing cost gap has closed faster than analysts forecast in 2025. Here is the data — and why developers in India should keep a 12-month watching brief on HJT before committing to TOPCon-only pipelines.
Wind+solar hybrid projects optimised for complementary generation patterns deliver 25–35% higher capacity factor than either standalone. Indian SECI wind+solar+BESS tenders awarded 3.2 GW in 2025–2026 at tariffs of ₹3.10–3.50/kWh — within 15% of standalone solar despite the firming.
Global solar glass production capacity reached an effective 4,200 tonnes per day in 2026, matching peak quarterly demand for the first time since the 2021 supply crunch. Chinese producers dominate (Xinyi Solar, Flat Glass Group, CSG). Solar glass pricing has stabilised at $2.30/m² for 2.0mm bifacial-grade after the 2022–2024 volatility.
MNRE's expected ALMM List of Approved Cells (first edition Q3 2026) combined with PLI scheme Phase 2 awards (announced Q1 2026) is reshaping Indian cell manufacturing. Reliance, Adani, Avaada Electro, Premier Energies, and Waaree are scaling commercial cell production. Domestic cell capacity should cross 100 GW by end-2027.
Solar cell manufacturers globally have retrofitted approximately 18 GW of PERC cell lines to TOPCon capability in 2025–2026. Conversion economics work when residual PERC line life is 5+ years and ALMM/IRA market access matters. Per-GW conversion capex ranges from $25–45 million depending on existing line vintage and required equipment changes.
India's solar mounting structure market reached ₹4,500 crore in FY 2025, dominated by hot-dip galvanised steel structures from Tata Bluescope, Mahindra Sustainable Energy, and Rinac. Aluminum and corrosion-protected variants gaining share in coastal projects. Single-axis tracker pile and beam systems dominate utility-scale; rooftop uses lighter HDG products.
India's top 10 solar EPC contractors collectively executed 22 GW of new utility-scale capacity in 2024–2026. Tata Power Solar, Sterling and Wilson Solar, Mahindra Susten, Larsen & Toubro, and Jakson Green dominate. BESS-capable EPC capacity is the new differentiator as hybrid projects scale.
Polyolefin elastomer (POE) encapsulant has captured roughly 35% of premium solar module production in 2026, displacing ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) for TOPCon, HJT, and bifacial modules. POE's superior PID resistance and lower moisture permeability justify the 30–40% cost premium for performance-critical applications.
The EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism enters its definitive phase in 2026 with an expanded scope that now touches polysilicon, ingots, and select inverter components. Chinese and Indian exporters face new embedded-emissions reporting obligations that will reshape EU module sourcing through 2028.
Indian developers are increasingly co-locating BESS with new solar projects rather than building them at separate sites. Co-location halves interconnection cost, simplifies PPA structure under hybrid tenders, and enables shared O&M. Standalone BESS at separate sites still wins for grid services revenue at strategic substation locations.
Heterojunction (HJT) cell line capex has dropped from $130 million per GW in 2022 to $95 million per GW in early 2026, narrowing the gap with TOPCon ($85 million per GW). Silver-to-copper paste transition and indium-free TCO are the primary cost drivers. The cost crossover with TOPCon could arrive by 2027.