Netherlands

Solar was once again the source with the largest share in the latest round of the SDE+ program for large-scale renewable energy projects. Around 1.3 GW of pre-qualified solar projects, however, has been rejected. Among the selected projects is a 109 MW solar park planned for the province of Groningen.

The Netherlands government intends to create two more ad hoc categories for solar projects not exceeding 1 MW, and to grant them a higher level of incentive compared to those of big solar parks. The change is due the success of larger projects in previous SDE+ rounds.

The fund is expected to make equity capital investments in the range of €10 million to €25 million, mostly in the Netherlands and Northwest Europe.

The country’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate has urged regional governments and municipalities to grant licenses for solar PV parks on agricultural land only as a last resource. No restrictive measures, however, are being considered.

The alert came from the Dutch Social and Economic Council, which advised the government to invest in, among other things, training more workforce specializing in building and maintaining renewable energy power plants. On the other hand, is a fact that qualified installers are urgently needed to deploy the several GWs of of solar power allocated under the SDE+ incentive program.

The 15 MW project was developed under the Netherlands’ SDE+ program for large-scale renewables.

Netherlands-based TenneT and Enexis are implementing a series of measures to prepare their networks for more solar power in the regions of Groningen and North Drenthe.

Nuon, the Dutch subsidiary of Swedish energy giant, Vattenfall, is offering bonds to its customers, as well as to customers of other power providers, in order to raise additional funds for the financing of its solar project pipeline in the Netherlands.

The Dutch solar PV panel maker has received financial support from the government of region of North Holland, where the manufacturing facility will be located. The first module shipments are planned for the end of 2018.

The Dutch solar fair has now taken the shape of an international event, due to the increasing number of big players attracted to the Netherland’s PV market, and the high level of professionalization that has been reached by the local ecosystem of installers and distributors. Although a few uncertainties on the possible changes of the current regulatory framework are suggesting caution, solar across all of its segments is clearly set to become a mainstream source of energy nationwide.