Monday, 14 September 2026

The UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) published draft social and environmental guidance to the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority on delivering growth through electricity networks on 14 September 2026.

The guidance is directed at the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority (GEMA), the governing body for Ofgem, according to DESNZ. It applies to England, Scotland and Wales.

DESNZ said the draft will come into effect on 17 November 2026 after a 40 day consideration period.

Engie and Return have widened their flexibility agreement covering battery storage assets in Germany to 400 MW, up from 100 MW, according to ESS News.

The deal takes the form of a Virtual Flexibility Purchase Agreement (vFPA), a structure that bundles multiple battery storage facilities into a Virtual Flexibility Portfolio rather than tying the contract to a single plant, ESS News reported.

The two companies signed their first vFPA of this kind in February at 100 MW of battery storage capacity, followed by a separate 55 MW contract for installations in Spain, per ESS News.

Egyptian battery manufacturer BME and CATL have signed an agreement to build a battery production facility in Egypt, according to electrive. Electrive describes CATL as the world's largest battery producer.

The first phase is expected to reach an annual production capacity of 1 GWh, focused primarily on battery systems for heavy-duty commercial vehicles, electrive reported. Initial investments are stated to exceed two billion Egyptian pounds, equivalent to approximately 39 million US dollars.

A second phase is planned to lift capacity to 5 GWh per year, with output shifting to batteries for passenger cars and stationary energy storage systems, per electrive. The plant targets a local value-added share of 40 per cent.

The Egyptian government has not yet disclosed a timeline for the start of production or the expansion, electrive reported.

BME was founded by Egyptian commercial vehicle manufacturer MCV and Auto D, an automotive spare parts company.

India added 8.2 GWh of battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity in the first half of 2026, according to PV Magazine. The same publication put installations in the year-earlier period at 98.4 MWh.

The quarterly trajectory turned lower inside the half. PV Magazine reported second-quarter installations of 3.6 GWh, down 22% quarter-over-quarter from a record Q1.

Rajasthan led cumulative installed battery storage capacity with a 36% share, followed by Gujarat at 20% and Maharashtra at 5%, according to PV Magazine.

Procurement outpaced awards. Storage tenders totaled 28 GW during the first half of 2026, while only about 9 GW was auctioned, down 18% year-on-year, PV Magazine reported.

Mercom Capital Group CEO Raj Prabhu attributed the H1 2026 spike to large-scale standalone battery storage projects moving from tenders and policy announcements to installations on the ground.

Trina Storage will supply about 1 GWh of grid-connected battery storage equipment to Japanese clean-energy developer AMP-lify under a newly signed memorandum of understanding, ESS News reported.

The Trinasolar unit will deliver its Elementa 3 BESS product line for AMP-lify's Japanese projects, with commissioning and after-sales support included in the terms, according to ESS News.

AMP-lify's website lists 234 MW of BESS as under development in Japan, ESS News reported.

The MoU builds on a 160 MWh contract Trina Storage signed in June 2026 for a Kyushu project using its earlier Elementa 2 system, per ESS News.

East Point Energy has completed its Citrus Flatts energy center and storage project in Harlingen, Texas, according to Solar Builder.

The site sits just less than 30 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border, Solar Builder reported.

Solar Builder described East Point Energy as a Charlottesville, Virginia-based renewable energy project developer. The developer recently donated $175,000 for improvements to the Harlingen Soccer Complex, per the same report.

Sungrow will lift list prices on solar inverters and energy storage products by between 5% and 15% from Sept. 20, blaming higher costs for raw materials and components, pv magazine reported. It is the second time the company has repriced its lineup this year.

The steepest increases hit medium-voltage grid-connected inverters, which go up 10% to 15%, while string, modular and matrix inverters move up in a 5% to 10% band, according to pv magazine.

A manager in Sungrow's storage business separately told Chinese media that copper and aluminum inputs were behind the decision, pv magazine reported. Figures from the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, cited by pv magazine, put the average domestic copper price 31.4% higher and aluminum 18.8% higher across the first half of 2026.

The cost pressure comes alongside a new tax line for battery makers. A 2% consumption tax on lithium-ion batteries took effect in China on Sept. 1, 2026, and is set to double to 4% on Sept. 1, 2027, pv magazine reported.

Other suppliers have taken the same route. The China Energy Storage Alliance counted more than 10 storage-related vendors that had lifted prices since July, with the increases spread across a 2% to 30% range, according to pv magazine.

The Gambia has banned protests without permits after days of unrest triggered by persistent electricity blackouts, according to Semafor Net Zero.

Semafor reported that the country's power problems intensified in recent weeks as imports from two neighbors dried up. Supply from Senegal fell, reportedly over unpaid electricity bills, while Guinea cut deliveries as a drought squeezed output from its hydropower stations.

The strain has been compounded by the expiry last year of a contract with Turkish floating power plant operator Karpowership, which at one point provided 40% of Gambia's electricity, according to Semafor.