/daily ·08 JUL 2026 ·WEDNESDAY ·2 MIN READ ·6 STORIES

LDES lands, sodium-ion signs 60 GWh, and US solar manufacturing hits 3 GW

Long-duration storage moves from projected to operational, sodium-ion scales to a commercial supply agreement, and the US gets its largest domestic solar cell factory expansion.

01 / The Day

WEDNESDAY 08 JUL 2026, ranked

Elestor hydrogen-iron flow battery partners with Europe's largest wind farm

Dutch firm Elestor signed a phased deployment agreement with Windpark Zeewolde for a 20 MW, 10-to-40 hour duration system using hydrogen-iron flow battery chemistry — 200 to 800 MWh total capacity. A pre-commercial unit targets 2025 validation; the full system targets 2031.

Why it mattersCo-locating 10-to-40-hour LDES with a gigawatt-class wind farm is the operating model long-duration storage has been projecting for years; Elestor is actually building it.

01 energy-storage.news↗

HyperStrong deploys sodium-ion BESS in 2026 with 60 GWh CATL supply deal

Chinese BESS integrator HyperStrong will deploy a sodium-ion battery energy storage system in China in 2026 for technical verification, with international rollout targeting 2027, backed by a 60 GWh cell supply agreement with CATL. The chemistry eliminates active cooling requirements in harsh climates.

Why it mattersThe 60 GWh CATL supply agreement reveals CATL's sodium-ion commercialisation route — feeding integrators at volume rather than direct project sales — and marks sodium-ion's transition from lab chemistry to fielded product.

02 energy-storage.news↗

Hithium wins EU81M grant for Spanish battery gigafactory

Chinese BESS manufacturer Hithium received an EUR81 million grant from Spain's RENOVAL 2 scheme for a battery and BESS manufacturing plant in Navarre, with total investment of approximately EUR405 million targeting commercial production in 2027.

Why it mattersA Chinese battery OEM extracting EU state aid for a Spanish gigafactory stress-tests the EU battery sovereignty strategy: cells produced in Navarre qualify under EU local content rules — the lever European automakers need for domestic content credits on EU-sold vehicles.

03 energy-storage.news↗

ES Foundry reaches 3 GW solar cell capacity at South Carolina plant

ES Foundry completed a factory expansion at its South Carolina facility, reaching 3 GW annual capacity for PERC bifacial solar cells — one of the largest US-based solar cell manufacturing footprints by nameplate. Modules built from these cells qualify for the full 10-point IRA domestic content bonus on the Investment Tax Credit.

Why it mattersUS domestic solar cell manufacturing has lagged downstream module demand; this expansion closes a supply gap that directly affects project-level economics for utility-scale solar developers seeking the maximum IRA incentive.

04 pv-magazine.com↗

Argentina closes 700 MW BESS procurement in single tender

Argentina's AlmaSADI tender awarded contracts totalling 700.5 MW of battery energy storage, part of a programme adding dispatchable capacity to a grid strained by demand growth.

Why it mattersA 700 MW single-tender award puts Argentina in the same procurement weight class as mid-sized European markets — a signal that Latin America's grid storage build-out is arriving, not still being projected.

05 renewablesnow.com↗

Water-jet process recovers 97%-pure silver from solar modules

Researchers developed a high-pressure water-jet delamination process for photovoltaic module recycling that physically separates cell layers without acid or thermal treatment, recovering silver contacts at 97% purity — directly smelter-ready — while also yielding intact silicon cells and glass as separate streams.

Why it mattersAs 2010s utility-scale solar installations approach replacement cycles, end-of-life economics matter; 97% purity from a physical process changes the recycling margin calculation compared to existing chemical routes.

06 pv-magazine.com↗

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Past days

The Daily Archive

/SAT 01 AUGThe Heat Is the Story /FRI 31 JULCalifornia hits 51% monthly solar; China sets record targets /THU 30 JULThe Billion-Dollar Build Edition /WED 29 JULWednesday, 29 July — Sodium-ion arrives; Australia breaks records /TUE 28 JULMalaysia orders the grid; Australia scales the cell /MON 27 JULA Solar Farm Becomes a Data Centre, Wisconsin Campaigns Against Solar, and LONGi Breaks the Tandem Efficiency Record /SUN 26 JULThe Build-Out Accelerates /SAT 25 JULUS battery storage breaks Q1 record; China tightens polysilicon /FRI 24 JULShock and Shine /WED 22 JUL194 gigawatts and a record solar cell /TUE 21 JULStorage everywhere, blockages everywhere /SUN 19 JULTwo US LFP milestones, one weekend /SAT 18 JULOvercapacity meets the taxman /FRI 17 JULFriday in Energy: Sodium Scales, Silicon Shines /WED 15 JULRecords fall, costs diverge /MON 13 JULSolid-state gets a quality stamp /SAT 11 JULThe grid just got bigger /FRI 10 JULSodium, Zinc, and CO2: Storage Diversifies Its Chemistry /THU 09 JULThe grid bottleneck, the cell plant, and the inverter ban /WED 08 JULLDES lands, sodium-ion signs 60 GWh, and US solar manufacturing hits 3 GW /TUE 07 JULSodium Goes Commercial