Bolsonaro scraps solar tax planned by Brazilian regulator
The Brazilian president said the potential introduction of a grid fee for net metered solar systems will be eliminated thanks to an urgent ad-hoc decree expected to be approved soon by parliament. The proposed ‘solar tax’ would have affected all new PV installations with a generation capacity of no larger than 5 MW under Brazil’s net metering regime.
Net-metered rooftop PV on the rise in Malaysia
Sustainable Energy Development Authority figures show the country saw around 94 MW of new rooftop generation capacity added in the first 11 months of last year. That compares to less than 14 MW in the previous three years.
Grid-connected solar outpacing remote installations in Bangladesh
Industry figures indicate the expansion of the Bangladeshi grid is hitting demand for the solar home systems which have traditionally generated power for homes formerly out of reach of the electricity network.
Vietnam to hold auctions for 400 MW of floating solar
Following its decision to switch from fixed feed-in tariffs to reverse auction bidding for the setting of solar incentives, the Vietnamese government has decided to devote the first two pilot auctions to floating PV. A first procurement exercise, for a project which could reach 100 MW of generation capacity, will be held this year.
AECEA says China will add up to 31 GW of solar this year
The analyst expects the final figure for new PV generation capacity in 2019 to top out at 20-24 GW thanks to the delayed introduction of a new solar policy, land scarcity, financing problems and grid connection issues. There are clouds on the horizon too, with China set to remain wedded to coal for the foreseeable future.
Newly re-listed JA Solar unveils production expansion plans
The Chinese manufacturer debuted on the Shenzhen exchange in mid December, after de-listing from New York’s NASDAQ in 2018. The company plans to roll out 10 GW of new module capacity and 5 GW of cell lines over four years.
Chinese investor buys 14% stake in Comtec Solar
Sun Da has moved to become the lithium energy storage and electric vehicle battery company’s second largest investor, raising HK$10.3 million for the business in the process.
Bangladesh tenders 50 MW solar plant
A pre-bid meeting has been arranged on January 20 for the project, which is being financed with a $74 million World Bank loan.
Solar-plus-storage will start to make big inroads in the year ahead
By this time next year we may be able to wave goodbye to that old chestnut about renewables endangering security of supply. Elsewhere, the price of lithium – and the products it goes into – could go either way after tanking this year.
Iberdrola finishes building 500 MW solar park in Spain
The Spanish utility said it is now ready to connect the Nunez de Balboa project to the grid. The facility is expected to start generating electricity at some point in the first quarter of 2020.
