LAGIE, the Greek operator of the electricity market, published Greece's latest photovoltaic statistics yesterday. The operator found that the country installed an impressive 300 MW of photovoltaics in the first month of 2013.
Specifically, 282 MW of ground mounted photovoltaic projects and 18 MW of rooftop installations were added. In 2012, Greece added 890 MW of new photovoltaic capacity.
January's photovoltaic installations have by far surpassed LAGIE's past projections. Indeed, according to a report published by the operator last month, just 121 MW of new ground mounted photovoltaic installations were expected.
The rush has come on the back of the announcement of new, lower photovoltaic tariffs, which will be introduced on March 11. Indeed, projects completed later than this date will receive the new FITs introduced last August, even if they were licensed under the old FIT regime.
The high installation rates are forecast to continue at least until the March deadline.
Future projections upgraded
Yesterday's report provides new projections for both future photovoltaic installations and the deficit of LAGIE's Renewable Energy Sources (RES) Fund, which is used to pay renewable energy producers in Greece.
Cumulative photovoltaic capacity in the main electricity system, LAGIE's report says, will reach 2.58 GW and 2.82 GW at the end of 2013 and 2014, respectively. Current cumulative photovoltaic capacity is 1.72 GW.
The RES Fund deficit, meanwhile, is expected to balloon from 313.6 million at the end of January, to 670 million by the end of this year, and 1.32 billion by the end of 2014. The deficit at the end of 2014 is now almost 400 million higher than LAGIE projected a month ago.
It seems likely that new data published yesterday are expected to add to the arguments in favor of more retroactive photovoltaic cuts.
Edited by Becky Beetz.
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