Portugal

RWE has revealed that it has received alkaline electrolyzers from Sunfire for a pilot project in Germany, while the European authorities have reached a deal on the continent’s renewable energy directive.

A European Union-funded project is bringing building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) solutions to eight historical cities in Europe. pv magazine recently spoke with Júlia Pereira, project coordinator for EDP New, about the innovative solutions being blended into the landscape in Évora, Portugal.

The isolation of Portugal’s electrical grid is hindering the growth of renewables, according to GlobalData’s latest report. Storage will play a pivotal role if the country hopes to achieve its solar and renewable installation goals, it says.

The European Commission has decided to refer three member states to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for failing to turn the EU Renewable Energy Directive into national legislation. The commission is now requesting financial sanctions.

Portugal’s cumulative PV capacity hit 2.59 GW at the end of 2022, outpacing the growth of other renewable energy sources. The country failed to meet its own installation predictions, likely because some large-scale projects awarded in the 2019 and 2020 auctions ended up missing their commissioning deadlines.

ZeroAvia tested its new 19-seat hydrogen-powered aircraft, Chinese scientists unveiled new tech to promote bubble removal in electrolyzers, and Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology researchers claimed that the most efficient hydrogen production systems are based on waste heat.

The Portuguese authorities plan to award 10-year contracts to developers for 3,000 tons of green hydrogen and 10,000 tons of renewable methane.

The leaders of Spain, Portugal and France have unveiled the H2Med energy interconnection project, which will supply Europe with hydrogen. H2Med, formerly known as BarMar, will be the first green corridor to connect the Iberian Peninsula with the rest of Europe. It will be operational in 2030.

Portugal’s new environmental rules will apply to PV projects built on sites spanning less than 100 hectares, but they will not apply to installations in protected areas.

Germany has announced plans to sign long-term green ammonia purchase agreements, in addition to strengthening its ties with Australia. Repsol and Fusion Fuel, meanwhile, are advancing their hydrogen projects on the Iberian Peninsula.