Newsletter N9

April 2019

PowerTreeTM at Solar Decathlon Africa

Ifrane, 30 April, 2019

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Decathlon is a collegiate competition, comprising 10 contests, that challenges student teams to design and build highly efficient and innovative buildings powered by renewable energy. The winners will be those teams that best blend design architectural and engineering excellence with innovation, market potential, building efficiency, and smart energy production. In the summer of 2018, DOE merged its two student building design competitions into one Solar Decathlon competition.

The combined competition features two tracks, the Design Challenge and the Build Challenge. The Solar Decathlon provides a hands-on experience and unique training that prepares the competing students to enter the clean energy workforce. This international competition has been a driving force in raising awareness about clean energy since its inception in 2002. Technologies and solutions used in Solar Decathlon homes have advanced the residential building industry both in the United States and abroad.

After the first Solar Decathlon was held in 2002, the competition occurred biennially in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017. Open to the public and free of charge, the Solar Decathlon allows visitors to tour energy- and water-efficient houses, and gather ideas to save energy and conserve water in their own homes.

Since the first competition in 2002, the Solar Decathlon has expanded internationally to include competitions in Europe, China, Latin America and Caribbean, the Middle East, and Africa. For example, Solar Decathlon Europe was established under a 2007 memorandum of understanding between the United States and Spain, which hosted competitions in 2010 and 2012. France hosted in 2014. The next Solar Decathlon Europe is planned for 2019 in Szentendre, Hungary.

On November 15, 2016, the Moroccan Ministry of Energy, Mines, Water, and the Environment (MEMEE); the Moroccan Research Institute in Solar Energy and New Energies (IRESEN); and DOE signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on the development of Solar Decathlon Africa. The competition is planned for 2019 and has counts with 20 competing teams with participant universities and research centers from Morocco, US, Italy, Malaysia, France, Senegal, Nigeria, Germany, South Africa, India, Mali, Burkina Faso, Algeria, Cameroon, Tanzania, RD of the Congo, Turkey and Egypt.

On April 30th, BSQ Solar has signed an agreement with Al Akhawayn University to sponsor its DarnaSol team that will be

participating in this first edition of Solar Decathlon Africa. BSQ Solar will be producing and donating a 2,5kW PowerTreeTM HCPV system to be installed at the Darnasol project during the contest. Darnasol team is led by Al Akhawayn University and has as members, Helwan University of Egypt, the International University of Grand Bassam, in Côte d'Ivoire, the Faculté des sciences Appliqués de Kasdi Merbah in Ouargala, Algeria, and the University of Maryland, College Park.

Al Akhawayn University is an independent, public, not-for-profit, coeducational university located in Ifrane, Morocco, 70 km from the imperial city of Fez, in the midst of the Middle Atlas Mountains. The medium of instruction is the English language. Its creation was largely funded by King Fahd of Saudi Arabia and officially inaugurated by the former King Hassan II of Morocco on January 16, 1995. The Arabic name al-akhawayn, literally the "two brothers," refers to the two respective kings.

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NREL reports a new efficiency record at the Fes CPV-15

Fes, 25-27 March, 2019

CPV-15, held this year at Université Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah in Fes, couldn’t have a better start, when Dr. John Geisz, opened the first day plenary session announcing a new world efficiency record in photovoltaic solar energy conversion, achieved by his team at NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO). The NREL team has produced a multijunction solar cell that reached the following efficiency values

- 39,2% @ 1 sun (AM1.5G) - 45,3% @ 1115X

- 47,3% @ 144X

Thus, 47,3% becomes so far the highest conversion efficiency ever demonstrated by a photovoltaic solar cell. The device is 6 junction (6J) inverted metamorphic (IMM) stack consisting of 2.1eV AlGaInP, 1.7eV AlGaAs, 1.4 eV GaAs lattice-matched junctions combined with 1.1eV, 0.9eV, and 0.7eV metamorphic InGaAs junctions. Previous world record of 46% @ 50X was held by a German-French consortium consisting of Fraunhofer ISE, Soitec, and CEA-LETI with a 4J cell that resorted to a wafer bonding technique.

The 15th International Conference on Concentrator Photovoltaics (CPV-15) successfully took place from March 25-27 and focused on high- and low-concentration PV components, modules, and tracker-based PV systems. It has hosted academics, technologists, students, and financiers from 19 countries around the world and was sponsored by BSQ Solar that took this excellent opportunity to present its HCPV products to conference delegates and local students.

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BSQ Solar proud sponsor of CPV-15

March, 2019

BSQ Solar shall sponsor the 15th International Conference on Concentrator Photovoltaic Systems (http://www.cpv-15.org/) to be held from March 25th to 27th, 2019, in the Moroccan city of Fez.

Fez is an Imperial City that has stood in the north of Morocco for a thousand years. Within its Medina, declared a World Heritage Site, old Morocco still exists. It has the University of Al Quaraouiyine which was founded in 859 and is, according to UNESCO, the oldest continuously functioning university in the world. The city has been called the "Athens of Africa".

CPV-15 will be hosted by the Université Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah, founded in 1975 and that in 2017 ranked as Morocco’s third best university, and no. 28 in the Arab World according to the World University Rankings of Times Higher Education. Since its creation, the Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University has experienced a major expansion in terms of the structure and number of institutions as well as the number of teachers, administrators and students and has accompanied the development of the Moroccan north central region through the training of qualified and specialized managers and technicians.

The CPV-X conference has been running since 2002, when it started in New Orleans. It is owned by the CPV Consortium, which is the global industry organization supporting the development and long-term success of the CPV industry. This will be the first time that the CPV-X conference is held in Africa, thus, reflecting the

outstanding role that Morocco, one of the thriving African markets for solar electricity, is playing in the development of modern CPV technology and in its industrial take-off in high DNI regions where it can be most profitable.

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BSQ’s HCPV modules IEC certified

25 February, 2019

BSQ Solar has completed certification processes for its HCPV modules according to two IEC standards: IEC62108, IEC61730-1 and IEC61730-2.

The IEC 62108 “Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) modules and assemblies – Design qualification and type approval” is a design qualification standard applicable to HCPV modules. The main purpose of this standard is to cover reliability issues that CPV modules must fulfill in order to ensure that they will have an acceptable performance under real operation conditions. IEC 62108 is partially inspired in IEC 61215 and takes advantage of its application history over flat-plate crystalline silicon PV modules. The methodology is quite similar for both standards: PV modules follow a testing sequence in which they are initially characterized and then are subjected to different aging tests. After those stress tests the modules are characterized again to evaluate the level of degradation suffered. In spite of those similarities, some changes have been made to account for the special features of CPV receivers and modules, particularly with

regard to the separation between on-site and in-lab tests, effect of tracking alignment, high current density, and rapid temperature changes, which have resulted in the formulation of some new test procedures or new requirements.

The IEC61730-1 “Photovoltaic (PV) Module safety qualification – Part 1: Requirements for construction” specifies and describes the fundamental construction requirements and for photovoltaic (PV) modules in order to provide safe electrical and mechanical operation. IEC61730-2 “Photovoltaic (PV) Module safety qualification – Part 2: Requirements for testing” provides the testing sequence intended to verify the safety of PV modules whose construction has been assessed by IEC 61730-1. The test sequence and pass criteria are designed to detect the potential breakdown of internal and external components of PV modules that would result in fire, electric shock, and/or personal injury. The standard defines the basic safety test requirements and additional tests that are a function of the PV module end-use applications. Test categories include general inspection, electrical shock hazard, fire hazard, mechanical stress, and environmental stress.

CERE, a Spanish independent certification entity, accredited by ENAC in Spain and in more than 40 countries worldwide conducted the certification process. The CERE team has first-hand experience having participated in the testing and certification of more than 1500MW

of PV installations, 400MW of wind installations, 200MW of testing, certification projects for PV inverters, and 200MW of wind turbine projects over the last ten years.

Testing of the HCPV modules for these certifications were all carried out at DEKRA laboratories in Málaga. Since it was founded in 1925, the DEKRA promise has been to ensure the safety of human interaction with technology and the environment. Since then, the Deutscher Kraftfahrzeug-Überwachungs-Verein e.V. has become one of the world's leading expert organizations. DEKRA generated estimated revenues totaling more than €3.3 billion in 2018. The company currently employs more than 46,000 people in around 60 countries on all six continents.

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First PowerTreeTM Proof of Concept

La Villa de Don Fadrique, 14 February, 2019

Within project PowerTree, BSQ has completed the development, construction and installation of a first Proof of Concept (PoC) of a PowerTreeTM system.

The prototype has a total power of 2,5kW rendered by 9 units of BSQ D280 HCPV modules, mounted on a custom designed long pole sun tracker. Long pedestal Az.-El. tracker is the chosen sun tracking architecture that with a low installation footprint that avoids interference of the moving frame with people underneath. Especial attention has been given during the design phase to the slenderness of the tracking structure as well as to the compactness and cost-effectiveness of the tracking drive

It has been installed in the garden of a single-family detached home at the La Mancha town of La Villa de Don Fadrique, province of Toledo. This house was already furnished with a

conventional rooftop PV installation, thus becoming a valuable testbed in order to monitor and compare the respective performances of both types of solar PV installations and technologies.

Currently, BSQ in collaboration with the rest of PowerTree consortium members, continues to work in the upgrading of this PoC to turn it into a design oriented to urban markets and applications both functionally – encompassing different usages – and also aesthetically.

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Project CPV4H2 Kicks-Off

Puertollano, 15 November, 2018

The hydrogen economy is the use of hydrogen as a fuel, particularly for heating and transportation and using hydrogen for long term energy storage. In order for human society to move away from the hydrocarbon economy, hydrogen is considered, as its combustion only releases clean water, and no CO2 to the atmosphere. Hydrogen gas itself can therefore be considered a clean fuel. Hydrogen gas,

however, does not occur naturally in convenient reservoirs; it must be produced from other sources. Natural gas – mainly steam methane – reforming is the dominant method of doing so. Around 96% of the hydrogen produced annually today is produced by this process. Reforming natural gas produces hydrogen, but also generates carbon dioxide so that its potential environmental benefit is hampered.

Green hydrogen can be produced with zero emissions by means of water electrolysis powered by renewable energies, remarkably, solar among these, to produce so-called “solar hydrogen”.

According to a 2015 paper in Energy & Environmental Science by Dumortier et. al. from the Laboratory of Renewable Energy Science and Engineering at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (LRSE-EPFL), High Concentration Photovoltaics (HCPV), due to its high conversion efficiencies, is one of the most promising options for the production of solar hydrogen in a cost competitive way.

Key for cost effective performance of solar hydrogen production systems is the Sun to Hydrogen (STH) efficiency and in this regard several STH efficiency records have recently been published that resort to very high efficiency multijunction cells that have to be integrated in high concentration systems to be economically feasible.

However, many of these record results have been obtained in laboratory conditions, with very low power systems (<10W) or non-practical setups unsuitable for real world applications.

CPV4H2 project attempts to move one step further in the development of solar hydrogen production and develop a combined HCPV-electrolyzer system with a practical value of unit power in the kW range and based on

commercial technology with market track record.

The project is to be developed by a consortium of companies and research centers consisting in BSQ Solar as manufacturer of HCPV systems, H2B2 as manufacturer of electrolyzer systems, and ISFOC the Institute for CPV Systems, that will develop the HCPV-EL power conditioning coupling system as well as provide the monitoring system to validate the outcoming prototypes of the project that will be installed in its premises in Puertollano. Also participating in the project the said Swiss LRESE-EPFL and the Spanish National Center for Hydrogen.

The project is being partly funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness, through an INNTERCONECTA grant. Kick-Off meeting took place at ISFOC’s facilities in Puertollano on November 15th.

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University of Jaén acknowledges long standing collaboration with BSQ

Jaén, 30 October, 2018

During 2018 the University of Jaén (UJA) has been celebrating, through multiple events, its 25th anniversary. On October 30th, it held an academic ceremony to acknowledge all those companies and external institutions that have proven an outstanding commitment and performance, in collaborating with the University and helping the development and excellence of its teaching and research mission.

BSQ Solar, as well as its forerunning venture in the CPV field, Inspira, have been collaborating since 2005 with the solar energy research teams of the University of Jaén, currently integrated in its Centre for Advanced Studies in Energy and Environment, and frequently contracting them research and consultancy services required in its projects.

BSQ Solar was honored to be invited to this acknowledgment event represented by its CEO, Dr. Ignacio Luque Heredia, that received a commemorative plaque from the University’s rector, Professor Juan Gómez Ortega. It is our sincere hope that this longstanding collaboration continues to support and enrich our future projects as it has been up to know.

The University of Jaén is a public university based in Jaén, Spain. It was established by Law 5 / 1993 of the Andalusian Regional Parliament of July 1, 1993. In addition to the principal campus, Campus Lagunillas, located in Jaén, the university has two satellite campuses in Linares and Úbeda and also currently under construction is the Scientific-Technological Campus in Linares.

Since it was founded, the institution has committed itself to providing quality teaching, as well as the increase of scientific production and development of infrastructures. The University of Jaén offers of over 50 degrees, technical equipment of advanced technology, laboratories, a library with more than 480,000 digital publications, exchange programs and mobility for students within more than 60 countries, work experience with more than 550 companies, a careers service with two programs of professional training and modern sports facilities as well as a wide range of activities for students.

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Project PowerTree Kicks-Off

Madrid, 9 October, 2018

Cities need to accelerate the uptake of renewables and sustainable transport to meet their rising energy needs, maintain a healthy living and avoid climate change. The combination of PV and e-vehicles (EV) are proving to be the most effective tools for this transition.

However, cities are densely populated and available solar energy collecting surface per capita is small. The November Issue of the reference magazine of the PV Industry, Photon International, presents an analysis of a wide set of world cities in all continents, confirming that

in all cases, useful rooftop surface for PV installations cannot cover their present electricity demand, which on the other hand is set to increase in the coming years, with the foreseen transition to electric mobility and heating.

Solar is a ubiquitous but a relatively low-density source of energy, therefore tapping it in per capita surface-scarce locations such as cities, requires the highest possible photovoltaic conversion efficiency. High Concentration Photovoltaics (HCPV) is presently the source of solar electricity with the highest conversion efficiency, that already doubles that of conventional silicon-based photovoltaics and increases its efficiency by 1% annually. However, HCPV developments have usually been targeting the market of large-scale solar plants, and only seldom that of urban PV applications.

The purpose of project PowerTree is the development of a system for the distributed urban markets, suitable for commercial, industrial or residential applications as well as new urban developments, that being based on HCPV will provide the highest energy density of all presently available solutions and becomes especially competitive in the solar rich regions of the world. This system will encompass (i) a high concentration photovoltaics (HCPV) power source, (ii) electricity storage, (iii) charging equipment for electric vehicles (EVs) and (iv) all the balance of system (BOS) required for this integration, including the electronic unit to centralize the management of its different elements, the Electronic Management Unit (EMU).

Regarding the HCPV power source, an alternative and complementary proposal to rooftop PV will be developed. Rooftop PV installations are frequently inefficient or unfeasible. Not all homeowners live in single-family detached homes with access to flat or tilted roofs or these roofs may not be optimally oriented, or they may be strongly shaded, or if flat, (the most common case in high DNI regions) the owner may not want to lose this useful space and have it crammed with PV panels.

Within project PowerTree a ground based high efficiency HCPV generator will be developed to provide the following competitive advantages with respect to conventional rooftop installations:

i. Up to 70% more energy production (kWh/kWp) in highly irradiated locations

ii. Up to 4X more energy produced per unit of sun collecting surface (kWh/m2)

iii. Least installation footprint when based on high pedestal trackers that avoid interference with people or traffic underneath and presenting the same volume occupation as a regular tree.

iv. Same installed price

v. Better matching of a household's load thus allowing less electricity storage requirements

vi. Less costly cleaning and maintenance than rooftop installation

Especial attention will be devoted to the architectural quality of the outcome seeking for an urban friendly design both aesthetically and functionally.

The project is partly funded by the RETOS grant program for R&D projects by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities.

It will be carried out by a consortium led by BSQ Solar and having as partners the School of Architecture of Polytechnic University of Madrid (ETSAM-UPM), the Institute for CPV Systems in Puertollano (ISFOC) and the electronics manufacturer Fagor Eléctrónica.