WEEKLY REVIEW

PV Market News This Week:

1. European Commission launches €3.4 billion clean energy manufacturing and battery funds

The European Commission (EC) has launched a €3.4 billion (US$3.6 billion) call to support the development of "innovative decarbonisation technologies in Europe", including net zero technology manufacturing and the production of batteries for use in electric vehicles (EVs).

The project consists of two funds, the larger being the €2.4 billion 'Net-Zero Technologies Call' which will back renewable energy component manufacturing projects, energy storage, heat pumps and hydrogen production. Proposals will be assessed on their potential impacts on greenhouse gas emissions, degree of innovation, project maturity, replicability and cost efficiency, and applicants will have until 24 April 2025 to submit their proposals, with successful applicants expected to sign grant agreements by the first quarter of 2026.

?

2.Ember calls solar PV 'the most feasible' in Indonesia's energy transition

Solar PV will form the cornerstone of Indonesia's renewable power sector, as the government looks to phase coal-fired electricity out of the energy mix by 2040.

This is according to a report from Ember Climate, which found that solar would be "the most feasible" technology for rapidly altering the country's energy mix. As of last year, coal-fired power accounted for 61.8% of the Indonesian energy mix, ahead of gas, which accounted for 17.9%, and all forms of renewable power, which collectively accounted for around 18%.

?

3. US adds 8.6GW of operating solar capacity in Q3 2024, produces cells for the first time in five years

The US added 8.6GW of new operating solar capacity in the third quarter of this year, a record for this quarter, and began solar cell manufacturing for the first time since 2019, as the country looks to expand and reinforce its solar sector.

These are the key takeaways from the latest 'U.S. Solar Market Insight report', published today by trade body the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and analyst Wood Mackenzie. The report notes that solar accounted for 64% of new electricity-generating capacity added to the US grid through the third quarter of this year.

?

4. pv.index: 'slight uptick' in European module prices expected for December, says sun.store

Prices for all solar panels – monofacial, bifacial and full black – have dipped below €0.1/Wp in Europe. Chart: sun.store.

As the price of solar panels continue its downward trend in November, module prices are expected to see a "slight uptick" in December, according to the latest pv.index report.

Released by solar wholesaler sun.store, the pv.index report for November reported prices that have remained relatively consistent since May, with the prices for all modules below €0.1/Wp (US$0.105).

5. Italy awards 1.5GW in oversubscribed agriPV tender

Italy's energy management agency Gestore dei Servizi Energetici (GSE) has awarded 1.5GW of agrivoltaics (agriPV) in the country's first such tender.

In total, 540 projects were awarded capacity in a tender that ended up oversubscribed with more than 1.7GW capacity tendered and 643 bids.

?

6. US Commerce sets initial antidumping duties for Southeast Asian solar cells

The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has imposed preliminary antidumping (AD) rates on solar manufacturers in Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia and Vietnam as part of its ongoing antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) investigation.

The rates vary for each country and company investigated.

?

7. Serbia launches tender for 124.8MW of new solar capacity

Serbia has launched its second renewable energy auction, seeking 124.8MW of solar capacity alongside 300MW of wind capacity.

The auction is backed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and successful bidders will be awarded a contract for difference (CfD) scheme to last 15 years. Solar projects will be able to make bids for as high as €72/MWh (US$76.2/MWh), slightly lower than the €79/MWh (US$83.6/MWh) offered for wind, and applicants will have until 5 February 2025 to make proposals.

?

8. India imposes antidumping duties on solar glass from China, Vietnam

India has imposed antidumping duties on textured toughened (tempered) glass in solar panels and solar thermal products from China and Vietnam for a period of six months, starting Dec. 4, 2024.

The duties apply to "textured toughened (tempered) glass with a minimum of 90.5% transmission of thickness not exceeding 4.2 mm (including tolerance of 0.2 mm) and where at least one dimension exceeds 1500 mm, whether coated or uncoated."

?

9. US starts solar cell manufacturing to close supply chain gap

The pursuit of onshoring the US solar manufacturing supply chain has come with the challenge of imbalanced capacities of domestically made modules, cells, wafers and ingots. But the tide may be turning, according to the "US Solar Market Insight Q4 2024" report by SEIA and Wood Mackenzie.?

Domestic module manufacturing capacity increased by more than 9 GW in the third quarter to nearly 40 GW, with five new or expanded factories in Alabama, Florida, Ohio and Texas. The capacity has nearly quintupled since the end of the second quarter of 2022, when it stood at 7 GW just before passage of domestic manufacturing and procurement tax credits in the US Inflation Reduction Act.

At full capacity, the United States can now produce enough solar modules to meet nearly all domestic demand, said SEIA and Wood Mackenzie. Demand is expected to be 40.5 GW (DC) in 2024, followed by average annual volumes of at least 43 GW from 2025-29, according to the report.

?

?