Policy

Europe’s residential solar market is shifting from rapid rooftop PV growth to a more selective phase, with declining new installations but rising demand for upgrades like storage, smart energy management, EV integration, and balcony systems. Rather than retreating, households are reinvesting in complementary technologies that enhance flexibility, reliability, and self-consumption, redefining residential demand around integrated, intelligent energy solutions.

In its first monthly column for pv magazine, the Becquerel Institute explains how solar PV continues its global expansion despite political uncertainty and market turbulence. In Europe, 2025 was a record year — but the underlying dynamics are becoming increasingly complex.

Cambodia has set a 30 MW allocation window for rooftop solar this year, with large-scale electricity consumers required to seek approval for installations from the country’s electricity authority. 

RenewaFLEXNL, a three-year Dutch initiative led by TNO, aims to accelerate long‑duration energy storage (8–100 h) to reduce grid congestion and better integrate renewable energy. pv magazine spoke with the project coordinator, Iraxte Gonzalez Aparicio, about diverse storage technologies, real-world applications, regulatory guidance, and energy management system tools to support large-scale solar‑plus‑storage deployment in the Netherlands and beyond.

Jupiter International Ltd has commissioned a 1 GW mono passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) solar cell manufacturing facility in India, increasing its total installed capacity to nearly 2 GW from 959 MW.

Hungary has opened applications for a program offering up to HUF 2.5 million ($7,820) per household to support residential battery storage, prioritizing grid-exporting solar users and small rural settlements.

Brazil’s electricity regulator has approved March reserve capacity auctions for thermal and hydro plants with more than 125 GW registered, while guidelines for a separate battery storage auction remain pending even as over 20 GW of projects are under development.

German researchers found that agrivoltaics costs far exceed agricultural benefits, raising doubts about subsidies and highlighting the need for more cost-competitive system designs.

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) has withdrawn from defending the executive order that paused certain tariffs on imported solar components, leaving private industry groups and companies to continue the appeal. The withdrawal increases legal uncertainty over potential retroactive duties tied to imports from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Carbon dioxide removal is most likely needed for rebalancing the climate to comply with the 1.5 C target set in the Paris Agreement, as data suggest this level has already been breached on an annual basis. Beneath natural climate solutions and land use change, technological and bio-technical solutions are most promising. Solar PV may play a key role in minimizing area demand and supporting cost optimization even in unexpected places such as Iceland.