Policy

On September 21, the Communist Party of China’s anti-graft body said in a statement that it is investigating the head of the country’s energy agency for “serious” disciplinary violations. While some believe the investigation will not change the country’s PV industry, others fear it could hamper crucial programs.

DNV GL has issued its annual Energy Transition Outlook. It reports that global electricity demand is set to grow by a factor of 2.5. Over half of this demand is expected to be met with renewable energy by 2050, while storage will play a key role. It adds that grid infrastructure expenditures are less related to variable renewable energy assets than to increasing energy demand. In the current scenario, meanwhile, global warming is likely to reach 2.6°C.

Labour this morning unveiled plans for an energy system free of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, but it is unclear what proportion of the party’s “clean energy” mix would be met by nuclear.

The state government is proposing a range of incentives and mandates to drive PV and solar thermal installations to almost 9 GW within four years. Under the proposed policy, 10% of the public fleet would be replaced by electric vehicles.

The 71% of capacity which was not taken up in a previous tendering exercise in Maharashtra has simply been rolled over into the new one by the state’s electric distribution company.

Energy Minister Angus Taylor has announced there will be no replacement for the nation’s renewables target, casting a long shadow over investment predictability in the Australian renewable energy sector.

The European Solar Manufacturing Council has been launched at EU PVSEC in Brussels. Participating research institutes, mechanical engineers, material and PV manufacturers stress the importance of having big solar manufacturers in Europe.

Tanzanian power utility Tanesco wants to build solar plants across six regions. Successful projects will range from 20 MW to 50 MW in size and the tender has been launched as the nation tries to ramp up solar’s share of its energy mix.

The EU PVSEC conference and exhibition in Brussels began this morning with presentations from key figures in PV development, who celebrated the technology’s achievements so far and predicted even bigger things in the coming years. pv magazine‘s Mark Hutchins was on hand to hear all about it.

New measures under preparation by the Spanish government include the setting of a calendar for new auctions, elimination of the solar tax and support for community solar and PV irrigation projects. Spanish developer X-Elio has secured a PPA for two 50 MW solar projects in the southern region of Murcia.