Policy

The Italian government has published a plan for climate and energy envisaging a central role for solar in the nation’s energy mix, with PV expected to represent more than the half the power generation capacity from renewables by the end of the next decade.

The thin-film manufacturer, developer and maker of the Humbrella, HanTile and HanWall made 78th position in a ranking of China’s Top 500 companies, an improvement on last year’s 91st place, to lead the six solar-linked businesses on the list.

The Renewable Energy Project Development Office of Saudi Arabia is planning to tender 11 PV power projects with a combined capacity of 2,225 MW this year. The country’s solar target for 2023 has been revised up from 5.9 GW to 20 GW, and that for 2030 set at 40 GW.

Beijing has outlined a series of policies mandating local and provincial authorities, state-owned banks and grid operators to pull out the stops to drive the rapid escalation of subsidy-free PV projects. The announcement has seen Chinese solar stocks on the rise.

At the end of December, the Algerian government issued a tender for off-grid gas/diesel and solar projects in non-interconnected areas in the south of the country.

According to figures from solar association ABSolar, most of the installed capacity – 371.9 MW – was installed in 2018. Commercial PV dominates with 43.2% as cheaper modules and higher electricity tariffs, combined with an extensive net metering regime, continue to fuel installation rates.

Mercom Capital’s latest report on financial activity in the solar sector illustrates an increasing flow of capital towards downstream companies and PV projects – as well as a split between China and the rest of the world.

A competition backed by public funding from the governments of the two nations is seeking proposals for projects that will help electricity grids transition to clean and flexible energy.

BloombergNEF figures show financial vehicles linked to environmental and/or social benefits amounted to $247bn worldwide in 2018. The US led the way, almost entirely because state-backed mortgage provider Fannie Mae issued $19.8bn worth of green home loans.

The Dutch PV sector is expected to have grown by 1.3-1.5 GW in 2018. The growth, which marks the Netherlands’ entry into Europe’s gigawatt club, was mainly due to the connection of large-scale projects under the SDE+ program. The nation’s cumulative installed PV capacity should have surpassed 4 GW as the Dutch government prepares to reduce the SDE+ budget.