feed in tariffs (FIT)

solar energy inspiration?

The German program was an inspiration to the crafters of Vermont’s May, 2009 feed-in tariff law, the energy-generation lynchpin of the state’s plan to use 90% renewables by 2050.[read more]

German energy transition

Ever since the Fukushima catastrophe two years ago, Germans have redoubled their efforts to phase out of nuclear energy and fossil fuels in favor of renewable energy — called the “Energiewende” (energy transition) that began in 2000.[read more]

According to Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics until 2016 (EPIA, 2011), about 36 percent of the total worldwide photovoltaic capacity is installed in Germany. Apart from Italy at 18 percent, the rest of the world is far behind. The United States is sitting at a mediocre 5th place with 6 percent of the total capacity. Why is it...[read more]

The solar power sector is a topsy-turvy one, with companies, subsidies and technologies rising and falling. But there’s no question about what region has been driving a market that, overall, continues to grow: It’s Europe.As of the end of 2011, the Europe Union accounted for 70 percent of the cumulative solar photovoltaic capacity...[read more]

Solar Power Plant via Shutterstock

As governments across Europe slash subsidies for small-medium scale renewable energy generators, the industry needs to rethink its approach to communications strategy if solar PV is to continue to shine.When the UK Government introduced its Feed-In-Tariffs (FiTs) in April 2010, solar photovoltaic (PV) quickly became an attractive...[read more]

The post Infographic – Impacts of solar FIT’s appeared first on Solar Business Services.[read more]

Power Lines via Shutterstock

Back when the light bulb was the killer app of 1879 and the nascent electrical grid was shaped by a series of technological innovations, reliability was the most important metric to structure grid performance expectations.   People had much less reliance on the grid then.  The economy could get along with the technologies...[read more]

There was a clever headline in the satirical newspaper The Onionearlier this week that wouldn’t be so humorous if it wasn’t true.“300 Million Without Electricity In India After Restoration Of Power Grid,” the headline read.The article was referring to the massive power outage across India Tuesday that cut electricity to 670 million...[read more]

Ko.Yo/Shutterstock

A quick update on the status of Japan's FIT talks and its possible implications for the expansion of renewables.[read more]

esbobeldijk/Shutterstock

Short-term thinking is the bane of the energy world. It has been so since the early days of the oil business, and it remains so with today’s market for solar photovoltaic power generation. In the former case, oil producers were guilty of the flawed thinking. In the latter, it is the producers of public energy policy.An oil reservoir is...[read more]

Like many other countries upping their renewable energy game, Japan is pulling out all the stops to encourage new growth from solar and wind power. After the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan has to find other alternative energy solutions to nuclear, and is proposing a new feed-in tariff (FIT) scheme to encourage solar and wind...[read more]

As a result of Germany's decision to phase-out its nuclear plants by 2022 and meet its self-imposed CO2 emissions targets, Germany will need to build out its renewables capacity to increase its renewable energy production. Almost all of that increased energy will be covered, i.e., subsidized, under existing renewable energy laws. ...[read more]

Either you have Feed-In Tarrifs or you have direct investment in power plant or production (R&D) of power plants. The fact is there is no other way to get to the size of R&D and production where RES are competitive to fossil fuels.[read more]

Wait, what? Didn’t Germany just decide to go nuclear-free by 2020 and missing production will be filled in with “clean” energy sources? Yes! Correct, and now Ms Merkel is thinking of additionally (already did cut) cutting feed-in tariffs for solar, and importing solar electricity from Mediterranean. According to Reuters But I am not sure...[read more]

Several trends appear to be converging to make 2011 a watershed year for solar power, though not quite along the lines that solar advocates have been telling us to expect. The long-awaited arrival of "grid parity", when the unsubsidized cost of power from solar panels finally becomes competitive with that of power from the grid, is still...[read more]