US: Red tape holds back solar installer market
New data has revealed that solar installers in the U.S. are being slowed down by red tape, which is pushing up the installed price. The survey data was collected by solar financers Clean Power Finance, which gathered responses from installers across 12 states.
2012 utility-scale PV installations top 8.5 GW
According to the latest figures from Wiki-Solar, utility-scale photovoltaic installations have reached 8.5 GW this year, thus more than doubling the 2.3 GW recorded in 2011.
Community solar model rolled out in Australia
A second commercial scale community solar project has been launched in Australia. The 400 kW rooftop installation will be installed in Sydney and is being organized by Embark.
Spanish Senate raises energy tax
Along with all producers of electricity in Spain, owners of solar power plants will have to pay an energy tax of 7% on top of their feed-in tariffs. The Spanish industry expects an increase of bankruptcies on the back of the news.
Renewable energy investment to fall in 2012; emerging markets rule the roost
Indications are that renewable energy investments will fall in 2012 for the first time in 8 years. However, the news is not all bad, says Ernst & Young, with continuing capacity additions and “booming” emerging market activity. In particular, the South African and MENA regions are displaying strong growth.
EU solar industry calls for action against retroactive subsidy changes
Over 70 solar companies and associations have written an open letter to European Energy Commissioner, Günther Oettinger, calling for action to be taken against those member states which introduce retroactive changes to renewable energy support schemes.
Top PV module suppliers developing own utility projects
Research from Wiki-Solar has found that the most successful module providers to utility-scale photovoltaic plants are developing their own projects to accommodate their products.
IHS releases 2013 PV predictions
Falling prices and consolidation will remain in 2013, predicts IHS. Despite this, photovoltaic installations are expected to grow, the demand-supply balance is likely to be restored and China is set to become the biggest global solar market. Overall, the research company has laid out 10 predictions for the coming year.
Smart grid and CSP schemes among EU's 1.2 billion handout recipients
The EU has announced more than 1.2 billion (US$1.6 billion) of funding for renewable generation projects, including more than 200 million for concentrated solar power (CSP) projects in Greece and Cyprus, and 8.2 million for a smart grid scheme in Belgium.
UK: DECC's RO solar decision meets with mixed response
U.K. lobby group the Solar Trade Association (STA) has partly welcomed a decision by the government’s Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to row back on a proposal to tie the support given to utility-scale photovoltaic plants to the domestic FIT regime.
