Policy

In an unexpected turn of events, two unions representing coal interests have put a halt to the signing of 27 renewable energy power purchase agreements (PPAs), thus effectively stopping South Africa’s renewables industry in its tracks.

The ISA founding ceremony, held on Sunday March 11 in New Delhi, India, was a highlight in the 2018 solar calendar. French President, Emmanuel Macron announced €700 million in support through loans and donations by 2022, while several other financial deals and MoUs were also signed. Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi further outlined 10 action points to help the spread of solar energy.

With another 734 MW of wind and 3 MW of hydro, the results of the latest New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) solicitation has been described as the largest state-level award of clean energy to date.

Eon has announced plans to take over a 76.8% stake in the German utility, RWE’s renewable energy spin-off, Innogy. The acquisition is part of a far-reaching agreement between the two, which envisages redistributing operations so that RWE focuses on the renewable energy business, while energy networks and customer solutions would be the responsibility of Eon.

The Polish government may also launch a mixed wind-solar auction for projects over 1 MW that, according to local analyst Piotr Pająk, would eventually conclude with a prevailing share of wind.

Through the platform Zonnegids, the Flemish Ministry of Energy seeks to connect developers of commercial and industrial PV projects with private citizens that want to invest in solar, but have no surface available.

According to Bridge to India’s ‘India Solar Compass’ report, new capacity additions in 2017 totaled 9,255 MW, up 94% on 2016. However, Q4 2017 was slow in terms of project commissioning with just 1,503 MW of utility-scale projects commissioned. Moreover, execution costs have increased by around 18% in just six months.

Colombia’s Energy and Gas Regulatory Commission approved the 2018 Resolution CREG 030 last Friday, which regulates how solar PV system owners can sell surplus power to the National Interconnected System under net metering.

The Vietnamese authorities have submitted a complaint to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to request formal consultations with Washington over its recently announced 30% tariff on crystalline silicon PV imports.

The Chinese Ministry of Industry in Beijing has issued new guidelines for the solar PV industry. These urge Chinese manufacturers to invest at least 10 million yuan annually into research and development.