d.light solar Video Screen Capture
Source: treehugger.com, Jan. 30, 2013

Solar powered devices can be extremely beneficial to rural, poor communities in areas of Africa, Asia, and throughout the developing world. These areas are quickly emerging as a market for clean energy technologies. This is one way to improve the kind of development that has been present in poor, rural communities for many years. Instead of simply throwing money at them, some charities are now funding small, local businesses that sell solar solutions to rural communities at affordable rates. For-profit enterprises, such as d.light, are taking advantage of this market and designing products specifically for use by consumers in these communities. d.light solar’s mission is to manufacture and distribute solar lights and power products to those in the developing world without access to reliable power sources. d.light is already serving over 40 countries and aims to change the lives of 100 million people by 2020. This company’s newest innovations, including improved solar panels and longer lasting batteries, may be the beginning of an entirely new industry in the developing world.

Source: treehugger.com, How the Rural Poor are Becoming a Market for Solar Power

A well-known company, DNV, is working to develop a large-scale solar field concept to be placed offshore, called SUNdy. SUNdy is a hexagon-shaped solar array that floats on the surface of the water. You can combine multiple arrays to form a “solar island” which can be around the size of a football stadium and capable of generating 2 MW of solar power. From there, you can keep combining islands to produce 50 MW or more of solar power which is a great model for dealing with population growth and an increasing demand for energy. SUNdy is comprised of thin-film solar panels allowing them to be flexible and light.

Source: offshoreWIND.biz DNV Unveils Floating Solar Concept in Singapore