According to a report from the Centre on Regulation in Europe (CERRE), lower capital costs for large-scale wind and solar projects, and much higher fossil fuel and carbon prices could lead to renewables becoming self financing by 2025. If these conditions do not materialize, more auctions and tenders may still be needed.

A total of 1.58 GW of new PV systems have been registered with Turkey’s grid administrator in 2018. Of this new capacity, 1.51 GW is in the unlicensed project segment, for arrays up to 1 MW in capacity, while the remaining 63 MW is for larger projects that had been successful in bidding for PEKA auctions.

Although renewable energy targets have been revised down, the archipelago’s government said that wind and solar will still see their share increase considerably over the next decade.

A reduction of the feed-in tariff to ¥21/kWh (around US$0.19) for projects over 2 MW in size and approved between 2012 and 2014 will be applied starting from September 2019 and not from March, as originally planned. For approved projects with a capacity of less than 2 MW, however, no postponement has been granted.

The large-scale power plant is being built by JCM Matswani Solar Corp Limited. A 20-year PPA has been signed with the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi Limited (ESCOM).

The scheme will provide incentives for solar-plus-storage projects for self-consumption, as well as for projects for virtual power storage.

Solar is expected to play a leading role in the Portuguese Government’s new energy plan, which includes the goals of covering 80% of the country’s total power demand with clean energy by 2030, and electrifying 65% of its economy by 2050.

This time, the countries revealing their first floating PV plans are Albania and the Ivory Cost. In the first, a 12.9 MW plant is being proposed by local hydropower producer KESH, while in the second, the local government has secured funds for what it claims will be Africa’s first floating PV array.

The Mexican National Center for Energy Control (CENACE) has announced that the fourth long-term auction has been temporarily suspended, due to changes in the management of CENACE and in the Federal Electricity Commission.

The funds, provided by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, will help utility NEPCO repay short-term debt, as well as financing expansion of the grid’s capability to increase the share of solar and other renewable energy.