Emiliano Bellini
Mexico eliminates 15% customs duties on solar module imports
Mexico’s Federal Court of Fiscal and Administrative Justice has accepted an appeal lodged by the Mexican solar association, Asolmex, to remove the 15% customs duties applied to imports of solar PV modules.
Four key solar takeaways from Spain’s Genera 2018
Genera 2018, held this June 13 to 15 in Madrid, Spain, set the scene for a market that is once again on track to become Europe’s solar leader. This year, reflecting this positive progress, the Spanish renewable energy fair saw the share of solar exhibitors increase over previous years. While this transition year is not expected to record strong solar growth, 2019 could realistically see the installation of 3 GW. Read on to discover the four key takeaways from this year’s event.
Russia’s RE auction concludes with surprisingly low bids
Hevel Solar and Fortum won the 148.5 MW worth of solar PV projects awarded in the auction. The Finnish utility, however, proposed a project CAPEX, which was almost half that of the Russian company’s.
Spain’s ‘sun tax’ set to be scrapped
With her first official announcement, Spain’s incoming Minister of Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera has made it clear that the previous government’s reviled tax on distributed generation array, the so-called ‘sun tax’ will be eliminated. At the same time, she has confirmed her support for more ambitious EU renewable energy targets.
Polish utility PGE takes another step into solar
The utility’s renewable energy unit PGE EO has announced the construction of a PV laboratory and a solar module field test in Siedlce. The move is part of its plan to invest in solar parks up to 1 MW under Poland’s auction mechanism.
Italy and Spain join group of countries supporting 2030 binding renewable energy target of 35%
According to the EU Commissioner for Energy and Climate Action, Arias Cañete, negotiations among all EU members on final target are still ongoing, and face several issues.
SOLAR-ERA.NET launches €22 million call to co-fund development of innovative solar technologies
Through the joint call, the European organization is seeking to provide financial backing for, among other PV and CSP technologies, high-performance crystalline silicon and thin film technologies which can increase module efficiency and decrease turn-key system costs.
Algerian government approves 200 MW of PV tenders
The new tenders, which will be open to both domestic and international players, will select grid-connected IPP projects totaling 150 MW and off-grid hybrid gas/diesel and solar projects with a combined capacity of 50 MW.
Afghanistan issues tender for hybrid solar
After awarding two hybrid solar projects to China’s Shuangdeng Group and India’s Waare in late May, the Afghan government has now launched a new bid for a 5 MW hybrid solar plant in Ghor province.
Scatec to build two solar plants under FIT in Ukraine
Two PV plants totaling 83 MW will be constructed by the Norwegian developer in the Cherkassy region.
