Mexican utility CFE retires protection measures against solar net metering
Without the threat of a hostile attitude from the state-owned power provider, the Mexican distributed generation (DG) market may now continue to be a strong driver of growth in the northern American country.
Italian government challenges Sicily’s moratorium on solar parks
The Italian Council of Ministers said that Sicily’s temporary suspension of all approvals for large-scale wind and solar project is unconstitutional.
Turkey authorizes foreign-currency loans for already approved unlicensed PV projects
The measure is intended to reduce domestic foreign exchange exposure for investors and developers of PV projects up to 1 MW (and solar parks consisting of several 1 MW units). Prior to these new rules, only licensed PV projects exceeding 1 MW in size were granted this kind of financing.
Belgium: Flanders to allow direct lines for solar, RE starting from 2019
A new amendment to the region’s energy law allows enterprises to sell power to one other through the so-called direct line model, starting from 2019.
Amount of silver needed in solar cells to be more than halved by 2028, Silver Institute says
The US-based industry association finds the amount of silver loading may fall from 130 mg per cell in 2016 to approximately 65 mg by 2028. Alternative and cheaper raw materials, such as copper and aluminum, are not expected to replace silver in commercial cell production, at least in the next decade.
Guyana secures financing for 100 MW solar project
The $80 million scheme is expected to be financed by the Inter-American Development Bank, with the support of the Norwegian government. The funds concerned were originally to be devoted to a hydropower project.
Engie Brasil takes full control of unit specializing in solar DG
Through the operation, the Brazilian unit of the French energy giant strengthens its position in the local distributed generation segment.
Terra Firma moves forward with sale of Italy’s RTR
While Italian utility A2A has dropped out of the race to buy RTR; Enel, Eni and BP are reportedly shortlisted bidders for the acquisition. The Italian PV asset manager owns and operates 134 solar parks with a combined capacity of 334 MW across more than 100 municipalities in Italy.
Solarpack could be listed on Spanish stock exchange
The Spanish PV project developer is currently seeking ways to finance its solar project pipeline in India, Chile and Spain. Although the rumors have not been confirmed, listing on the Madrid Stock Exchange may be a option.
Two strategic M&A transactions announced in the French PV sector
French solar project developer, Solstyce and rooftop PV specialist, Enerpur are merging into a single company; while France-based building materials provider, Terreal has become the largest shareholder of mounting system provider, GSE Integration.
