Most of Australia’s existing homes are old, uncomfortable, and expensive to run. Too many are energy inefficient, and rising electricity and gas prices are making things worse. Mainstream programs are supporting home energy upgrades but the transition isn’t happening quickly enough and risks leaving behind the households that could benefit most. New research shows how local initiatives can make solar and electrification more accessible.

The war on Iran has made crystal clear how shaky our reliance on fossil fuels is. It’s no surprise electric vehicles and transport have become more appealing. In Australia, sales of electric vehicles surged 40–50% in March.

Most Australians now understand the basic promise of rooftop solar: lower power bills, cleaner electricity and, for some households, the option to charge an electric vehicle at home for far less than the cost of petrol. But that promise was built around a particular kind of housing – the detached house with a privately controlled roof, a private meter board and a driveway or garage where the owner can install whatever equipment they need.

As part of its regular update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that Australia’s wettest February in 15 years produced solar irradiance deficits of 15–30% across the country’s central and eastern regions.

Australia and New Zealand’s electricity networks are entering a new phase of the energy transition. For more than a decade the focus has been on building renewable generation and connecting it to the grid. That effort continues, and it will remain essential. But for many network operators the harder task now lies elsewhere: managing how an increasingly complex system works together.

South Australia has opened up more than 11,000 square kilometres of land for the potential development of renewable energy projects as it continues the march towards its target of 100% net renewables by 2027.

Latest figures from the International Renewable Energy Agency show solar contributed the majority of a record 692 GW of renewables capacity added worldwide last year.

LONGi has launched LONGi ONE, an integrated solar-plus-storage product strategy for grid-scale, and commercial and industrial projects, which will be supported by a growing network of 30 new service centres opening in key locations globally by 2028.

A local Victorian council has pre-empted future large-scale renewable energy project proposals by developing a comprehensive clean energy guideline, based on community consultation.

The Australian Energy Council has released its Energy 2050 report addressing what policy makers and industry might do to deliver a net zero system, while balancing affordability, reliability and sustainability.

Building-integrated PV technology company ClearVue Technologies is a step closer to commercial deployment of its metal-backed solar panels after securing global IEC certification for the integrated rooftop system.

A multibillion-dollar pipeline of electricity transmission upgrades is being proposed by South Australia’s network operator ElectraNet as it seeks to keep pace with “unprecedented” levels of connection demand.

Australian solar and thermal energy storage company RayGen says it has achieved a major international milestone with the commissioning of a 1 MW concentrated solar plant in Brazil.

Researchers in Singapore have developed fully vacuum-processed ultrathin perovskite solar cells with absorber layers as thin as 10 nm, achieving high transparency and stable efficiencies up to 12%. These cells balance optical transparency and electrical performance, offering scalable, design-flexible photovoltaics suitable for seamless integration into buildings.

A study from the Institute for Essential Services Reform and Indonesia’s Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs explores how Indonesia can turn its target of deploying 100 GW of solar from mandate to mobilisation.

Trucking company New Energy Transport says electric road freight is possible now and already commercially viable in Australia after completing what it is calling the country’s first fully electric ‘end-to-end’ heavy road freight delivery.

UNSW researchers developed a chemically selective, nitrate-based, single-sided accelerated ageing method for TOPCon solar cells that replicates the mildly acidic environment inside EVA-encapsulated modules. The proposed approach enables rapid, physically meaningful screening of front-side metallisation stability, reliably predicting module-level degradation and reducing development time and costs, according to its creators.

Tongwei is partnering with GS-Solar and Golden Solar to develop a large-scale manufacturing facility for hybrid heterojunction back-contact solar cells that combine HJT passivation, tunneling oxide and polysilicon structures used in TOPCon designs, and the grid-free front-side architecture typical of back-contact technologies.

Sydney-headquartered start-up WinDC has partnered with United States-based Armada in a move designed to address rising levels of utility-scale solar and wind curtailment in Australia and also satisfy ballooning demand for energy-intensive data centre infrastructure.

Agrivoltaic sheep grazing models outperform traditional farming, with higher margins and dual revenue streams from livestock and solar site services, according to a new study out of Canada.

Chinese clean tech manufacturer Sungrow has introduced a hybrid solar energy storage solution that integrates Sungrow’s 1+X modular inverter with a dedicated storage interface, PowerTitan 3.0 with built-in DC/DC module, and the solar-ESS Synergy Management System.

The result was certified by China’s National Photovoltaic Industry Metrology Test Center. The cell utilises a perovskite top device with MBT-ligand-controlled crystallisation on a TOPCon silicon bottom cell, achieving a void-free, high-efficiency tandem structure.

While the world reels from interruption to crude oil supply chains, a new International Energy Agency report shows clean energy technology manufacturing supply chains are at risk, largely due to the world’s reliance on China’s advanced manufacturing and distribution expertise.

A Japanese consortium is piloting agrivoltaics using film-type perovskite solar cells over rice paddies to study energy generation alongside crop production. The three-year project will assess impacts on rice yield, land use, and emissions while testing the technology’s performance and commercial viability.

Researchers in the United Kingdom have developed a smart window that combines switchable polymer-dispersed liquid crystal with integrated PV cells, offering controllable transparency and electricity generation. The system balances light, heat, and solar protection while maintaining high visual quality and stable performance, according to its creators.

Australia’s massive battery pipeline continues to grow, with projects being filed and making their way through key approvals.

Enphase Energy has introduced to Australia and New Zealand an artificial intelligence software platform that helps homeowners reduce costs, up clean energy self-consumption and grant control of key home appliances.

The Australian Rooftop Valuation Report, published alongside the official launch of AI-powered platform GreenSketch, finds Australian homes could be saving a collective $26 billion a year on electricity through solar – more than $3,000 annually for an average household.

Mining giant Rio Tinto will underwrite $7.5 billion of investment in new renewable energy generation and storage in Queensland after inking a deal with the federal and state governments to secure a long-term future for one of Australia’s largest aluminium smelters.

Spanish energy company Iberdrola’s plan to develop a 270 MW / 1,080 MWh battery energy storage system in northern New South Wales has received a boost with the state’s Independent Planning Commission giving its tick of approval.