net metering

The nation elected a new government yesterday, awarding a clear majority to the pro-EU New Democracy party. What could that mean for Greece’s solar sector?

The extraordinary statement, made on Sunday by the emirate’s electricity and water authority, compares current per capita figures to a ‘business as usual’ scenario.

Minister unveils plan to install small-scale systems on all educational buildings as part of aim to generate 10% of power from renewables by next year. The program will be privately funded, according to industry insiders.

The deal introduced a 15-year grace period for household PV system owners, during which they could choose whether to take net metering payments based on assumed energy use or a potential new system based on actual use and measured by smart meters.

After earmarking €3 million last year and €4 million in 2017, the Italian region of Lombardy has decided to further support residential and commercial storage projects linked to renewables.

The new net metering tariff will be equal to market prices and will go into force as soon as the Albanian government approves it. According to a local interest group led by Albanian company EuroElektra, that could happen within the next two weeks. Overall, the scheme could facilitate the installation of around 200 MW of solar power.

The program will be open to solar power systems with a generation capacity larger than 10 kW. Initially, some 100 MW of solar power will be allocated through the mechanism. Net metering tariffs, however, will be little more than half the current electricity price.

Two reports have concluded rooftop solar may replace PV parks as the main growth driver in the two big Asian markets over the next decade. Support programs for utility scale PV in both countries no longer seem attractive enough.

The government has finally issued a net metering scheme for solar systems not exceeding 10 kW of generation capacity – the country’s first attempt to support small scale PV. New rules for larger, unlicensed projects have also been introduced, with the size limit for eligible systems raised to 5 MW.

New PV installations under the nation’s net metering scheme grew 137% year-on-year from January to March, according to consultancy Greener, and module imports registered even greater growth, signalling activity in the distributed generation segment is increasing at a faster pace. With the regulator mooting changes to the net metering regime, however, it may reflect customers rushing to secure current tariffs.