[SMM PV News] CHN Energy Commissions 4 GW Lingwu PV Base on Subsidence Land

Australia's large-scale solar and wind assets generated 5.0 TWh of clean energy in February 2026, an 11% year-on-year increase. New South Wales led total output, while Western Australia hosted the 'top-performing' individual assets by capacity factor, including the 100 MW Merredin Solar Farm (41.2%) and Warradarge wind farm (60.5%). Crucially, battery energy storage systems are rapidly scaling. Monthly grid discharges jumped 266% to 245 GWh, supported by an 8.2 GW utility battery pipeline. Meanwhile, New Zealand's utility solar and wind output grew 28% to 294 GWh.

Trial operations have commenced at the 1 GW Basra solar power plant, Iraq's first gigawatt-scale PV project. Currently, 61 MW of the first 250 MW unit is active, with full grid connection planned once the unit reaches its peak capacity. Developed by a consortium of TotalEnergies (45%), Basrah Oil Co. (30%), and QatarEnergy (25%), the 900-hectare facility aims for full commissioning by 2028 to power 350,000 homes. This marks a massive leap for Iraq, which had only 42 MW of solar in 2024, as it targets 12 GW of solar capacity by the end of the decade.

Greece expects to curtail up to 3.7 TWh of renewable energy in 2026, a 75% increase from 2025, pushing curtailment rates to 12% of total green generation. Last year's grid congestion and negative prices already caused ~20% revenue losses for PV producers. While pairing solar with battery storage is the clear solution, domestic banks are currently refusing to finance these projects due to a lack of reference sites. Despite 900 MW of subsidized storage not yet operational, investors are now targeting a 4.7 GW pipeline of 'merchant-style' standalone batteries. However, flat domestic demand and unresolved regulatory frameworks continue to pose risks.