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The recently ended year 2019 was a bright year for solar business as a whole and for Gantner in particular. Gantner is very excited about having commissioned monitoring and control solutions for another 1 GW solar power in 2019.

Gantner’s complete monitor solution has been supplied for example in projects in Australia, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Jordan as well as in the Netherlands and Spain. A new market Gantner entered is Ukraine which strengthens the company’s portfolio in Eastern Europe where already some of the region’s biggest solar power plants in Belarus and in Kazakhstan work with Gantner’s system.

In 2019 the total number of newly acquired measurement channels with a typical measure rate of up to 1 Hz sums up to about one million. On top of that another five million of calculated channels are imported into cloud-based Gantner’s webportal with a market-leading storage rate of one per minute. The huge amount of collected data provides the opportunity to apply new big data technologies to gain valuable information about the state of a power plant, to calculate production forecasts and to perform predictive maintenance. With Gantner’s “Mechanistic Performance Model” it is possible to compare the actual outcome of a PV plant with target values based on the structure of the plant and on weather conditions.

The goal for 2020 is to use the high momentum of the PV industry to strengthen its position as an international market leader with monitoring and control of solar power plants “Made in Germany”.

Source: Gantner

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Ingeteam is boosting its international growth with the opening of a new branch in the United Arab Emirates. With this expansion, the company has consolidated its global position with its presence in 23 countries. The branch, based in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, is initially directed at the solar PV and energy storage business, due to the good positioning of Ingeteam in the sector.

The United Arab Emirates currently boasts the world’s largest solar PV plant with a single connection point, with an installed power of 1,177.36 MW. This plant, named Noor Abu Dhabi, is located in the town of Sweihan and is equipped with Ingeteam PV inverters and Inverter Stations, supplied as a centralized turnkey solution for medium voltage power conversion.

Ingeteam has also supplied its power conversion system (PCS) to this country for a pilot project in Dubai, representing the first energy storage system in the United Arab Emirates to be coupled to a large-scale PV plant. This battery system is part of the largest solar complex in the world: the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park.

Ingeteam’s branch already has a sales department and after-sales service that covers the entire Middle East as well as North Africa. With this opening, Ingeteam is consolidating its dominant position as a supplier of power converters and provider of operation and maintenance services for renewable energy generation plants in the MENA area, where the company has already supplied more than 1,800 MW.

Source: Ingeteam

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Global solar PV installations will continue double-digit growth rates into the new decade, according to the new 2020 Global PV Demand Forecast by IHS Markit. New annual installations in 2020 will reach 142 GW, a 14% rise over the previous year.

The expected 142 GW are seven times that of the entire capacity that had been installed by the start of the prior decade (20 GW in 2010). The growth has been substantial in terms of geographic reach as well. There were 7 countries with more than 1 GW of installed capacity in 2010, most of them confined to Europe. IHS Markit expects more than 43 countries to meet that threshold by the end of 2020.

“Another year of double-digit global demand growth in 2020 is proof of the continued and exponential growth of solar PV installations in the last decade,” said Edurne Zoco, director, Clean Technology & Renewables, IHS Markit. “If the 2010s were the decade of technology innovation, steep cost reductions, large subsidies and dominance by a few markets then 2020 marks the decade of emerging unsubsidized solar, diversification and expansion of solar installation demand across the globe, new corporate entry players and increasing competitiveness versus conventional energy sources.”

Large markets such as China will continue to have an outsized share of new installations into the foreseeable future. However, the overreliance on China for global solar installation growth will continue to decrease in coming years as more capacity is added elsewhere. Installations outside of China, the world’s leading market, grew by as much as 53% in 2019 and are expected to continue growing by double digits in 2020. Overall, the top 10 solar markets are expected to see their collective share of the market fall to 73 %, down from 94% in 2010.

“China will remain in the preeminent position as the overall leader in solar installations. But this decade will see new markets emerging in South East Asia, Latin America and the Middle East,” said Zoco “Still, the major markets will continue to be critical for the development of the solar industry, especially as test beds of technological innovation, policy development and new business models.”

Regional highlights

China. Solar demand in 2020 will be lower than historic installation peaks of 50 GW in 2017. Demand in China is in a transitional phase as the market moves towards solar being unsubsidized and competing with other forms of generation and there is some lingering uncertainty while awaiting the release of the new 14th Five-Year Plan to be announced next year.

United States. Installations are expected to grow 20% in 2020, consolidating the United States’ position as the world’s second largest market. California, Texas, Florida, North Carolina and New York will be key drivers of U.S. demand growth over the next five years.

Europe. After nearly doubling installations in 2019, Europe is expected yet to continue growing in 2020, adding more than 24 GW—a 5% increase over 2019. Spain, Germany, Netherlands, France, Italy and Ukraine will be leading sources of demand, accounting for 63% of total EU installations.

India. Following a flat year in 2019, due to policy uncertainties and the impact of import duties on solar cells and modules, installations are expected to grow again and surpass 14 GW in 2020. Lower module prices and a large pipeline of projects are expected to spur the return to growth.

Source: IHS Markit

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During the UN Climate Change conference in Madrid, COP 25, the European Investment Bank (EIB) has announced that it has invested EUR 76.5 million in one of the largest solar projects in Spain, demonstrating its strong commitment in regards to the promotion of clean energy production in the country. The project is sponsored by Encavis AG, a leading independent producer of renewable energy, and Solarcentury, a global integrated solar power company, and comprises the construction and operation of a 300 MWp photovoltaic solar plant in the cohesion region of Extremadura, more specifically in the municipality of Talayuela. The transaction is supported by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the main pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe, also known as the Juncker Plan.

At 300MWp, the Talayuela Solar plant will be one of the most powerful solar projects in Europe, capable of producing enough energy to power around 150,000 households per year at a very competitive price. Moreover, the project will contribute to reducing CO2 emission by more than 171 kt CO2-e/year and approximately 400 people will be employed during the construction phase.

The EUR 228m project has secured a project financing from the EIB and Deutsche Bank for an aggregate amount of c. EUR 165m, which reached financial close at the end of November. The Talayuela Solar Plant is one of the first greenfield renewable energy projects to be financed in Spain without any form of government/public support. The Project entered into a 10-year financial Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) in September 2019, which hedges the off-take price for approximately 75% of the volume of the production. Following these developments, Encavis AG has provided Solarcentury with a notice to begin construction of the plant, which is expected to be operational in the second half of 2020.

The Talayuela plant is going to have a significant impact on the Spanish renewable energy market, helping the Iberian country to meet its renewable target of 20% of primary energy consumption to be generated by renewable sources by 2020. Moreover, the project contributes to the achievement of the Bank’s Climate Action objectives as well as to meeting the European Commission’s binding renewable energy target of at least 32% of final energy consumption by 2030.

Source: EIB

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2019 was the strongest growth year for solar in Europe since 2010, with more new solar capacity added this year than any other power generation technology. Increasing by more than 100% over the past year, solar growth in the European Union has outpaced many of the leading solar regions worldwide.

SolarPower Europe’s first EU Market Outlook for Solar Power shows that 2019 was one of the best solar years on record for the European Union, with 16.7 GW of installations added in the region, representing a 104% increase over the 8.2 GW added in 2018. This makes 2019 the strongest growth year for solar in the EU-28 since 2010.

There are several reasons to explain the growth of solar in Europe. Primarily, this increased demand can be attributed to solar’s cost-competitiveness – it is often the cheapest power generation source – as well as the approaching deadline for member states to meet their binding national 2020 renewable energy targets. EU countries have also begun to prepare for their road to compliance with the Commission’s Clean Energy Package, which sets a 32% renewables target by 2030, where many national governments are increasingly looking to low-cost solar to meet their targets.

In 2019, Spain was Europe’s largest solar market, adding 4.7 GW; Spain has not held this achievement since 2008. Rounding out the top solar markets for 2019 were Germany (4 GW), the Netherlands (2.5 GW), France (1.1 GW), and Poland, which nearly quadrupled its installed capacities to 784 MW. This trend of increased solar installations was noted across the entire EU, with 26 of the 28 member states installing more solar in 2019 than the year before. By the end of 2019, the EU will enjoy a total of 131.9 GW, which represents a 14% increase over the 115.2 GW operating the year before.

With solar being the most popular energy source among EU citizens, as well as the most versatile, and with price reductions continuing, we are only at the beginning of a long upward trend for solar in Europe. In terms of medium-term projections, we expect continued growth for the EU-bloc with a 26% increase in 2020 bringing demand to 21 GW, and installations on track to reach 21.9 GW in 2021. The record-breaking year is expected to be 2022, with an anticipated all-time high of 24.3 GW of installations, and again in 2023 with 26.8 GW of newly-installed solar capacity.

Source: SolarPower

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Endesa, through its renewable energy division, Enel Green Power España (EGPE) has been awarded 72.4 MW of photovoltaic solar capacity in the Balearic Islands, within the framework of the concession auction for investment aid that was carried out by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the IDAE, in collaboration with the Government of the Balearic Islands, financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). At this auction, aid was awarded for a total of 326.333 MW of new capacity in photovoltaic solar installations.

The 72.4 MW obtained by Endesa are added to the 879 MW of renewable power that were awarded in the auctions launched by the Ministry for Ecological Transition in 2017.

The company will invest approximately €60 million in the construction of the solar power awarded at this auction, an amount that adds up to a total investment of more than 800 million which represents the 879 MW obtained from the previous auctions.

Endesa estimates that the projects needed to develop this 72.4 MW amount will be operational before the end of 2022, generating approximately 114 GWh a year and avoiding the annual emission of around a few tons of CO2 into the atmosphere.

Endesa currently manages more than 6,983.8 MW of renewable capacity in Spain through its Enel Green Power España division. Of this figure, 4,710 MW are of conventional hydraulic generation and the rest, more than 2,273.8 MW, come from wind (1,843.8 MW), solar (337 MW), mini-hydro (79 MW) and other renewable energy sources (14 MW).

Source: Endesa

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i-DE, Iberdrola’s electricity distribution arm, has inaugurated the first electrical energy storage system with lithium-ion batteries for distribution networks in Spain. The project, which is the first in the country, is located in the Murcian municipal district of Caravaca de la Cruz and will improve the quality of the energy supply in the surrounding area, as well as the use of solar energy generated in the area.

The storage system, with a capacity of 3 MWh, can operate in isolation and, in the event of an interruption in supply, will be able provide up to five hours of electricity to the main districts in the surrounding area: Cañada de la Cruz, Inazares, Moralejo, Barranda, El Moral and Los Royos.

Adverse climate and rural environment

The special circumstances in the rural environment around Caravaca de la Cruz have determined the choice of this enclave for this innovative solution.

In recent years, the area has been recording very adverse weather conditions that cause incidents in the distribution network. Also, it is an area consisting of various small and scattered centres of consumption, so a fault can leave several villages without service. To this is added the long distances that have to be covered to reach the source of the problem, which further complicates the resolution of incidents.

The traditional solution would have been to construct 22 km of overhead power lines, crossing environmental protection areas. This is the reason why an innovative solution was chosen, based on energy storage installed at a point where overhead cables intersect, allowing several areas to be served with a single battery.

The project has shown that batteries can improve the continuity of supply in contingency situations, as well as the use of photovoltaic plants connected to the impacted grid, including in isolation using only renewable energy. The batteries, in short, constitute a complement to the conventional local operation.

Smart storage system

There are several large photovoltaic plants in Caravaca de la Cruz that upload electricity to the grid during the hours with the most intense sunlight. A battery with these characteristics is able to adjust the voltage to the appropriate values and be ready to intervene as a second source of power supply in the event of a power failure.

To achieve this, it has a smart storage system that is able to assess the situation and decide what part of the network will remain in operation from the battery, taking into account actual consumption at that time, the generation capacity of photovoltaic plants nearby and the state of charge of the battery, among other aspects.

The system estimates both the consumption and the potential renewable generation power of the solar plants in the area at that time and for the following hours. It can, thus, take advantage of local power generation and, in addition, absorb excess energy, in case of excess production.

The combination of this battery and the electricity produced by the photovoltaic plants in the area will significantly reduce the interruption times in the power supply during an emergency.
Storage and grids, the keys to the energy model of the future

Storage systems are key to addressing the challenges of the energy transition and are destined to become an essential element in the electrical system of the future. This is because they allow the quality of the electricity supply to be improved, ensuring the stability and reliability of the network and integrating and harnessing the energy generated by renewable sources.

Iberdrola is a leader in energy storage, with an installed pumping technology capacity of 4,400 MW, which is currently the most efficient method. It is also undertaking numerous initiatives that combine the use of batteries with renewable energy – wind and photovoltaic – projects, as well as those oriented towards improving the quality of the supply by its grids, as is the case with the installation in Caravaca de La Cruz.

Electricity distribution networks are the circulatory system in the new energy model and an essential platform in the transition toward a decarbonised economy based on competitive, renewable energy. Transforming the grids into smart infrastructure responds to the challenges of an electrified economy, with greater integration of renewables, sustainable mobility, smart cities and consumption models and distributed generation.

In this context, i-DE has allocated 2 billion euros to digitising its electricity networks, with the installation of almost 11 million digital meters, together with the infrastructure that supports them, and the adaptation of around 90,000 transformer centres in Spain, to which it has incorporated remote management, supervision and automation capabilities. It is also currently working on the digitalisation of the low voltage network and is investing in control and operation systems.

I-DE, smart electricity grids

The activities of i-DE the new name for Iberdrola’s electricity distribution arm – include the planning, construction and maintenance of power lines, substations, transformer centres and other infrastructure, as well as operating the system in a way that efficiently distributes energy among the various agents that produce and consume it.

Iberdrola operates a distribution system consisting of 270,000 km of power lines in Spain and is present in 10 Autonomous Regions serving a population of 17 million. In 2018, Iberdrola’s distribution business invested almost €500 m in Spain in projects designed to improve its procedures and customer service channels; complete the roll-out of nearly 11 million smart meters and the supervision and automation of the grid.

Iberdrola’s network business is a significant driver of the Spanish economy, generating more than 10,000 jobs in total (both direct and through its suppliers). In 2018, the company made purchases to the value of €500 m from 2,000 local companies.

Source: Iberdrola

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BayWa r.e., together with its Dutch partner GroenLeven, has successfully built its third floating solar plant in a record time of only six weeks. The Sekdoorn project in the Netherlands near the city of Zwolle has a total capacity of 14.5 MWp. This will enable almost 4,000 households to be supplied with solar power.

Due to the cutting-edge, self-designed system, the installation of almost 40.000 PV modules was done in the short time span. After the completion of the 2 MWp Weperpolder project and the larger Tynaarlo plant with a capacity of 8.4 MWp, Sekdoorn is already the third floating solar plant BayWa r.e. and its partner GroenLeven have realized in the Netherlands. BayWa r.e. is planning the construction of further floating PV projects in the country with a total output of around 100 MWp.

Floating solar plants provide a wide range of options for using economically exploited bodies of water – such as reservoirs, fish farming waters or lakes on former open-cast lignite mines – in two different ways.

In a current study, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Research has quantified the potential for floating PV installations on decommissioned coal mining lakes at 15 GW in Germany alone. A study of the World Bank Group identified a potential for Europe of 20 GW if only 1% of the surface of man-made freshwater reservoirs will be used.

There are already support schemes in place for such installations in the Netherlands as well as in France. In Germany to date this has only been discussed on the sidelines, involving their possible integration within the announced innovation tenders for renewables and storage.

The basis for these floating installations is the mounting system developed by BayWa r.e. in partnership with Zimmermann PV-Stahlbau GmbH, which meets the highest quality requirements.

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Foto cortesía de/Photo courtesy of: Toyota

At Digital Solar & Storage 2019, SolarPower Europe launched a new report on solar mobility, thought to be the first of its kind, which explores the potential of clean mobility solutions and solar power. The report documents various solar mobility business models, illustrating the experience of European and global pioneers with detailed case studies. Three solar mobility models are highlighted: (1) solar-powered mobility, (2) solar smart charging, and (3) vehicle-integrated PV, all of which can lead to vast carbon reductions in the transport sector.

Decarbonising the transport sector, responsible for one quarter of European CO2 emissions, is a crucial step in achieving the European Union’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. Electrification, direct and indirect, appears clearly as the fastest and most cost-efficient technological solution to decarbonise transport. EV battery costs have achieved important cost reduction in the past years, with prices decreasing by 85% between 2010 and 2018, allowing the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of small and medium electric vehicles to be the same as conventional vehicles by 2024. Technology improvements and investments in fuel cells and electrolysis technologies have enabled a reduction in vehicle and fuel costs that could support the future cost-competitiveness of indirect electrification for certain segments of transport.

The electrification of transport makes even more sense when done in parallel with the deployment of renewables in the EU electricity mix. Without significant additons of renewable capacities in Europe, the full potential of electrification to reduce CO2 emissions in transport cannot be harvested. A study from the Paul Scherrer Institute shows that electric vehicles charging on fossil fuel-based electricity (e.g gas or coal) do not lead to an optimum reduction in CO2 emissions compared with conventional gasoline and diesel cars, while the CO2 emissions decrease by 50% with electric vehicles driving on CO2 -free electricity. The electrification of transport must therefore be thought of in synergy with the deployment of renewables in the power mix.

Solar energy is the ideal candidate to fuel green, electric mobility. As an illustration, in light road transport only, a typical rooftop, 5-kW PV module can easily produce the daily amount of electricity needed for the average commute of an electric vehicle, even though the adequacy of the PV system will depend on its geographical location and on time variations, including seasonal.

Solar energy is also a cost-competitive fuel for transport. It has achieved important cost reductions in the past years. The LCOE has reached €0.04/kWh worldwide and keeps decreasing, as a result of decreasing manufacturing costs and increasing cell performance. The deployment of solar can therefore support a cost-efficient energy transition with limited public support. Furthermore, in many countries, direct sourcing of solar energy is already cheaper than grid electricity.

Solar installations are modular and can adapt perfectly to the energy needs of the end-consumer or various means of transportation. Small solar installations can therefore fit well in urban landscapes, on rooftops, parking lots, rail infrastructure, etc. and can be installed as close as possible to the consumption point, be it a charging point or a refuelling station, thereby reducing reliance on the power grid.

Looking at the physics, solar is complementary to electric mobility, particularly in certain use cases like day charging at work places or combined with battery capacity at home. Solar has a predictable generation curve and produces electricity during the day. This PV generation curve matches well with the time at which the majority of electric vehicles are parked and can be charged, for instance at workplaces or public parking – a match that can be optimised with smart charging devices. Solar generation also matches perfectly the load curve of trains, trams or metros that run and consume energy during the day, making them good candidates for solar consumption.

Finally, recent surveys show that solar is the most popular source of energy and can support the public acceptance for sustainable transport policies. In Europe, solar has the highest level of support among citizens. Solar empowers consumers to invest into their own energy transition and gives them a sense of independence. As a result, one can easily observe the mutually reinforced dynamic between solar energy and electromobility: a recent survey by EuPD Research on electric-mobility has shown that for 77% of the respondents, the main reason to purchase an electric car was to charge it using their own solar energy, making it the most important motivator for purchase.

The synergies between solar and clean mobility can unlock significant benefits to accelerate the European energy and transport transition. The solar industry must therefore be imaginative and forward-looking to exploit these synergies and offer solutions to consumers that wish to drive on solar energy.

The benefits of solar mobility are vast, and include significant improvements in air quality for European citizens, as well as the reduction of noise pollution. Smart mobility strategies that rely on the increasing deployment of solar energy can lead to a more affordable and reliable solar electricity supply. This has the effect of optimising grid integration of future vehicles, unlocking new flexibility sources, and ultimately creating new business models for solar prosumers, EV owners, and charging station operators. Further, solar mobility and all of its related technologies can help Europe lead the global energy transition.

This aim of the report – the first of its kind developed by SolarPower Europe’s Solar Mobility Taskforce – is to look at existing and promising business cases of solar mobility and draw a first benchmark of renewable mobility models. It features existing case studies and pioneering projects.

Source: SolarPower Europe

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Europe has set a target that 32% of its energy should come from renewables by 2030, up from 17.5% today. Corporates are and can play an even bigger role in meeting this target. Thousands of key corporate buyers – including from the steel, aluminium, ICT, and chemicals industries – and clean energy suppliers, are meeting in Amsterdam at the RE-Source 2019 event – for a two-day conference to discuss how to accelerate efforts to source more renewable energy.

The last weeks have seen an abundance of significant solar and wind sourcing agreements from major corporates around the world. Google announced its largest corporate renewable purchase in history, including nearly 800 MW of new renewable energy in Europe. Amazon recently unveiled plans to reach 100% renewable energy by 2030.

The Airports Council International (ACI Europe) also announced at the event a new partnership with the RE-Source Platform to accelerate the clean energy transition of the airport industry and help it achieve its 2050 net zero commitment. In addition, the RE-Source Platform received a €500,000 grant from Google.org to fund further the development of new renewable energy purchasing models, provide training and resources for consumers, and enable more widespread access to clean power.

Corporate sourcing of renewables has risen rapidly in Europe, with 7.5 GW of Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) deals signed over the past five years, and 1.6 GW worth of deals in 2019 alone. More European countries are engaging in PPA deals: 13 countries have inked PPAs in 2019 so far. Commercial and industrial on-site corporate sourcing accounted for 3.4 GW in 2018 and is expected to grow considerably in the next decade.

Industrial and commercial consumers account for more than half of Europe’s energy consumption today. Powering these corporate consumers with renewable energy could deliver both significant reductions in CO2 emissions and make European industries more competitive due to the rapidly falling cost of renewables.

According to a recent study from the European Commission, if EU-based corporate buyers committed to sourcing renewable electricity to meet 30% of their total electricity demand by 2030, the EU renewable energy sector would generate more than €750bn in gross added value and over 220,000 new jobs.

Governments can play their part in facilitating more companies to source renewables, by removing administrative hurdles for corporate renewable PPAs, and on-site and direct investments in renewable energy generation that exist throughout Europe. Under the new Renewable Energy Directive, European governments now have the duty to remove these barriers. Currently, only two of the draft National Energy and Climate Plans for 2030 even mention PPAs and none comply with the agreed legislation.

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