BNEF

Japan’s first solar PV auction has reaped disappointing results, with just 41 MW set to be developed. Under the revised FIT, meanwhile, 27.7 GW were cancelled. Despite this, JPEA is aiming for 200 GW of solar PV installs by 2050. Overall, cumulative installed capacity has reached over 40 GW. There are still many plans afoot for large-scale projects, although it is the rooftop sector, which holds the most promise.

BNEF has released its top 10 clean energy predictions for 2018, including at least 107 GW of solar PV installs. China will lead, but Latin America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East will notably up the ante. India will install less RE than in 2017, but will see fossils outpace RE for the last time; and China will see distributed grid connected solar leading the market. Li-ion prices are also declining, while EV sales grow.

Despite approximate 25% fall in solar costs per MWh against 2015, last year saw more than $333 billion invested in clean energy, with global solar deployment figures topping 53 GW, finds new Bloomberg New Energy Finance report.

China’s cumulative solar installations reached approximately 125.8 GW by the end of November, suggesting that PV developers completed nearly 50 GW of capacity in the first 11 months of 2017, according to new government statistics.

According to reports, India is planning to impose a 7.5% tax on imported solar PV modules.

PowerChina Guizhou Engineering Corp., a subsidiary of Beijing-based construction group PowerChina, has signed an agreement to provide EPC services for a 100 MW solar project in southwestern Pakistan.

Trade cases, insolvencies, record-breaking low auction prices, China’s eye watering installation rates – all this and more characterized the 2017 solar PV industry. pv magazine reflects on the biggest stories, trends and developments of the past year; and summarizes what the industry can expect in 2018.

The Chinese government has revealed its new feed-in tariffs (FIT) for different types of PV projects, with rates set to fall by as much as 15% from the start of January.

Zorlu Enerji is working on a 100 MW solar PV plant in Pakistan. It is slated to come online in the first half of 2018. Overall, Pakistan is on track to install more than 1 GW this year.

China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) has revealed plans to monitor and evaluate PV projects to help channel investment into parts of the country where solar curtailment is less of a problem.