Dutch solar sales increase by 70%

Share

Importers as well as installers have reported an increase of at least 70% in sales from 2014 according to Dutch media BNR – the reason being the clarity in taxes and subsidies that has come about in the Netherlands. The Netherlands was in the bottom five according to eurostat based on proportion of electrcitiy generated from renewable sources in 2013. However efforts started picking up after a Dutch court in June this year ordered the government to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 25% by 2020.

Citizens win

The case was brought to court by almost 900 Dutch citizens represented by Urgenda, a sustainability foundation. Urgenda stated that "the Netherlands had a duty of care to its citizens and to improve the environment". This landmark case led to the Dutch government agreeing to close coal plants and increase wind and solar energy as well as reduce gas extraction activity in the north.

The Dutch boom

According to Peter Desmet, CEO of wholesale company Solarclarity, sales increases of 70 to 100% over 2014 are being seen in the Netherlands, and this is a result of the simplification of regulation with regards to subsidies and import tariffs. Desmet adds that prices are not expected to decrease though. In his interview with BNR he states that as the EU has set a minimum import price on Chinese panels, which account for 8 out of 10 panels sold, a price decrease is unlikely in the near future.

Nevertheless, this year Desmet expects some 2 million solar panels to be sold. Uncertainty about the future of subsidies and policy kept consumers away last year. A large number of buyers are expected to be smaller home-owners who will benefit from switching to solar power.

This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.

Popular content

Phnix presents new residential air-to-water heat pumps

08 November 2024 The Chinese manufacturer said its new Heco series uses propane (R290) as a refrigerant and includes five models with a nominal capacity ranging from 6...

Share

Leave a Reply

Please be mindful of our community standards.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

By submitting this form you agree to pv magazine using your data for the purposes of publishing your comment.

Your personal data will only be disclosed or otherwise transmitted to third parties for the purposes of spam filtering or if this is necessary for technical maintenance of the website. Any other transfer to third parties will not take place unless this is justified on the basis of applicable data protection regulations or if pv magazine is legally obliged to do so.

You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Otherwise, your data will be deleted if pv magazine has processed your request or the purpose of data storage is fulfilled.

Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy.