‘Solar should be at heart of EU recovery’
Solarpower Europe has called on member states to put solar and battery storage front and center when it comes to drawing up the Recovery and Resilience plans needed to secure a slice of the bloc’s proposed €672.5 billion post-Covid stimulus package.
China could add 48 GW of solar next year – AECEA
The in-country analyst has revised up its expectation for this year and says a healthy unsubsidized project pipeline will keep the numbers ticking over in 2021. The spending plans necessary to ramp up renewables targets in the next five-year plan, though, could put the nation on a collision course with the EU.
European Council reaches €1.82tn budget agreement with parliament
The parliament and EU member states will now mull the proposed budget for 2021-27 which includes a €750 billion Covid recovery package and a Strategic Investment Facility it is hoped will unlock €150 billion for renewables and energy storage to 2027.
World could add more than 900 GW of solar by 2025 if politicians grasp the nettle – IEA
With the International Energy Agency publishing its latest five-year clean energy forecast today, pv magazine takes a look at the solar content of the 162-page document.
European islands make decarbonization pledges
Often dependent on fuel imports from the mainland and frequently powered by fossil fuels, islands have taken center stage at an online forum which builds on a political process kicked-off by Croatia’s presidency of the European Council.
EU Council endorses €1.5bn public sector loan facility for energy transition
The credit, to be made available to public bodies in the bloc’s 27 member states, would be bolstered by €10 billion from the EIB and should not, said the Council of Ministers, support nuclear or fossil fuel projects.
Solar generation retreats as hydro and wind lead Euro renewables dominance
Clean energy electricity generation surpassed that from nuclear and fossil fuels for the sixth successive quarter in the July-to-September window, according to data analyst Enappsys, but Europe saw a fall in solar output and demand patterns at the end of the window may presage a second wave of Covid-19.
The state of European energy
The proportion of clean energy consumed in the EU continues to rise but the European Commission’s State of the Energy Union report is critical of failings in energy efficiency, low-carbon-R&D spending, and the removal of fossil fuel subsidies.
New Siemens units lay marks in hydrogen generation, mobility and energy-as-a-service
With a flurry of recent announcements, the newly-launched power division of the electronics giant plans to drive hydrogen mobility in Germany and enter the commercial and industrial power market in the US.
Off-grid solar funding concentrated in just three companies
With a previous 50-50 split between equity and debt investment funding for the off-grid market lurching to 84% borrowing, and commentators stating most of this year’s backing was agreed before the onset of Covid-19, fears are mounting about the prospects for the sector.
