Policy

Government-run Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) is tendering for the provision of technical and advisory support services for its grant programs aimed at organizations in Ireland planning to decarbonize. The tender follows a report by the SEAI that showed Ireland has a limited market for industrial heat pumps and called for greater outreach and support for businesses to install the technology.

Austria has opened applications for its €60 million ($68.3 million) rooftop PV rebate program for 2025, with a second-round “Made in Europe” bonus offering 20% more funding for projects using European-made components, says OeMAG.

The Japanese government says it has opened applications for a subsidy initiative aimed at cutting costs for renewable heat and industrial waste heat systems. The program supports equipment upgrades that lower emissions and improve energy efficiency.

Wood Mackenzie warns that policy uncertainty could significantly alter its projections for US solar industry growth. The research firm says the US solar industry will add 502 GW (DC) of capacity over the next decade, with annual installations surpassing 40 GWdc through 2035.

The Trump administration’s China tariffs have piled atop existing and developing trade barriers on battery energy storage systems, components, and materials – destabilizing the US energy storage industry. While existing inventories will allow project development to move forward in the short term, uncertainty extends across the supply chain, including to prospective manufacturers.

A team of researchers based in Japan and Sweden have found a correlation between higher feed-in tariffs and increased capital expenditures of solar projects in Japan. They suggest this may have led to a lack of incentive for developers to innovate or reduce costs, in turn inflating expenditure and hindering long-term market competitiveness.

Germany’s latest auction for utility-scale solar concluded with prices ranging from €0.0399 ($0.0455)/kWh to €0.0488/kWh. The procurement exercise was significantly oversubscribed.

Moldova has upheld the disqualification of four bids in its first renewables auction, citing inexperience, non-compliant bank guarantees, and missing prior approvals. The tender committee says it plans to assess the remaining bids by the end of the month.

Bulgaria’s standalone energy storage tender, which aimed to procure at least 3 GWh of cumulative usable capacity, ultimately awarded more than three times that amount.

Engie and SA Power Networks have doubled participation in a rooftop solar curtailment trial to 100 households after hitting the initial cap of 50, offering financial rewards to help manage periodic oversupply.