* . *
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Thursday, June 5, 2025
Earth-News
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    ‘Sinners,’ starring Michael B. Jordan, is now streaming on Prime Video – About Amazon

    Experience the Thrills of ‘Sinners’ Starring Michael B. Jordan – Now Streaming on Prime Video!

    California Mid-State Fair announces entertainment lineups for Frontier and Mission stages – KSBY News

    Exciting Entertainment Lineup Unveiled for California Mid-State Fair’s Frontier and Mission Stages!

    Spotify & OpenAI: Will Gen AI ‘Hollow Out’ Entertainment? – Technology Magazine

    Will Generative AI Transform the Future of Entertainment

    Author Richard Russo Will Speak At Sandwich Town Hall – CapeNews.net

    Join Us for an Inspiring Evening with Author Richard Russo at Sandwich Town Hall!

    Entertainment Partners Acquires CASHét, Digital Payments Vendor for Productions – Variety

    Entertainment Partners Acquires CASHét, Digital Payments Vendor for Productions – Variety

    Salem’s Harborwalk Garden Cultivates Community with Entertainment, Food, and Events – 105.7 WROR

    Discover the Vibrant Community Spirit at Salem’s Harborwalk Garden: A Hub for Entertainment, Food, and Fun!

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Domo to Participate in the D.A. Davidson Technology Summit – Business Wire

    Domo Set to Shine at the D.A. Davidson Technology Summit!

    When fiction becomes fact: 3 pieces of modern technology inspired by Star Trek – Redshirts Always Die

    From Screen to Reality: 3 Modern Technologies Inspired by Star Trek

    The Isfahan Center for Nuclear Technology – UCF, ZPP, and IRR10 – Alma Research and Education Center

    Exploring the Isfahan Center for Nuclear Technology: Innovations and Insights from UCF, ZPP, and IRR10

    Inside the tedious effort to tally AI’s energy appetite – MIT Technology Review

    Inside the tedious effort to tally AI’s energy appetite – MIT Technology Review

    Finland Set to Lead EU Quantum Technology Defense Project – IoT World Today

    Finland Set to Lead EU Quantum Technology Defense Project – IoT World Today

    AI for lawyers: Win back your time using technology – nationaljurist.com

    Reclaim Your Time: How AI is Transforming the Legal Profession

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    ‘Sinners,’ starring Michael B. Jordan, is now streaming on Prime Video – About Amazon

    Experience the Thrills of ‘Sinners’ Starring Michael B. Jordan – Now Streaming on Prime Video!

    California Mid-State Fair announces entertainment lineups for Frontier and Mission stages – KSBY News

    Exciting Entertainment Lineup Unveiled for California Mid-State Fair’s Frontier and Mission Stages!

    Spotify & OpenAI: Will Gen AI ‘Hollow Out’ Entertainment? – Technology Magazine

    Will Generative AI Transform the Future of Entertainment

    Author Richard Russo Will Speak At Sandwich Town Hall – CapeNews.net

    Join Us for an Inspiring Evening with Author Richard Russo at Sandwich Town Hall!

    Entertainment Partners Acquires CASHét, Digital Payments Vendor for Productions – Variety

    Entertainment Partners Acquires CASHét, Digital Payments Vendor for Productions – Variety

    Salem’s Harborwalk Garden Cultivates Community with Entertainment, Food, and Events – 105.7 WROR

    Discover the Vibrant Community Spirit at Salem’s Harborwalk Garden: A Hub for Entertainment, Food, and Fun!

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Domo to Participate in the D.A. Davidson Technology Summit – Business Wire

    Domo Set to Shine at the D.A. Davidson Technology Summit!

    When fiction becomes fact: 3 pieces of modern technology inspired by Star Trek – Redshirts Always Die

    From Screen to Reality: 3 Modern Technologies Inspired by Star Trek

    The Isfahan Center for Nuclear Technology – UCF, ZPP, and IRR10 – Alma Research and Education Center

    Exploring the Isfahan Center for Nuclear Technology: Innovations and Insights from UCF, ZPP, and IRR10

    Inside the tedious effort to tally AI’s energy appetite – MIT Technology Review

    Inside the tedious effort to tally AI’s energy appetite – MIT Technology Review

    Finland Set to Lead EU Quantum Technology Defense Project – IoT World Today

    Finland Set to Lead EU Quantum Technology Defense Project – IoT World Today

    AI for lawyers: Win back your time using technology – nationaljurist.com

    Reclaim Your Time: How AI is Transforming the Legal Profession

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
Earth-News
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Weekend Read: Europe’s subsidy conundrum

December 9, 2023
in News
Weekend Read: Europe’s subsidy conundrum
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

On Nov. 6, the European Solar PV Industry Alliance (ESIA) published a recommendation paper in which it set out how its members envisage a European support scheme to foster the development of European solar. What chance does it have of actually achieving its goals? Götz Fischbeck delivers an assessment.

December 9, 2023 pv magazine

From pv magazine 12/23-01/24

A recent ESIA recommendation paper illustrates the ways in which European policymakers could support a domestic PV production industry. The industry alliance paper sets out two key principles: support for local PV component content, and the creation of a protected segment of the market that would only be accessible to European manufacturers.

At the same time, the authors of the paper stress that they are not asking for import duties or minimum import prices. They explicitly write that, outside of the protected-market volumes they want to have introduced for European manufacturers, free-market prices should reign to “leave the other segments free of NPCs (non-price criteria) in order not to impact the accelerating pace of cost-effective solar PV development.”

This assurance refers back to a recent history of misplaced protection attempts. In 2013, when the European Union tried and failed to support manufacturers with the introduction of import duties and minimum prices, these measures hampered the industry for three years while virtually none of the domestic manufacturers targeted survived in the solar industry.

Bonus payments

Other than the desire for a designated chunk of the marketplace for European manufacturers, there is nothing especially revolutionary about the content of this recommendation paper. The basic principle is that PV modules with more local content should be eligible for higher bonus payments.

ESIA lays out how its members would like to see the creation of an environment in which there is a realistic chance to re-establish a European PV industry that could grow to a level where it could supply 40% of estimated European solar demand of 100 GW annually by 2030. In order to achieve this goal, ESIA proposes that rising yearly solar generation capacity volumes should be included in “resilience auctions” and “resilience procurement” exercises that would only be accessible to European manufacturers.

For the private sector, ESIA suggests compensating customers directly for any price differential they incur by purchasing components with a higher European content than the benchmark set.

Likely costs

ESIA also describes mechanisms as to how such cost differentials could be established and suggests they should be reviewed on a regular basis. Again, those proposals contain nothing extraordinary and have clearly been devised with the objective of avoiding any semblance of disadvantage for other market participants. The chances that such proposals could actually achieve Europe’s solar manufacturing goal can only be assessed by examining the implications for European PV manufacturers.

A closer look at the likely costs of the support measure outlined, (see table below), indicates that these could be much lower than industry insiders might expect – certainly when compared to the amounts the European Union spends on other industries on a regular basis.

ESIA assumptions on future EU subsidy spending, resilience auctions, and protected PV installations

Annual “resilience” auction corridor as stated in the ESIA paper (GW)Implied annual “resilience”auction corridor (GW)Annual protected European PV installations (GW)Amounts in
€ billion of annual subsidies required at €0.10 cost differential
Cumulative sum of spent subsidies (€ billion)Amounts in
€ billion of annual subsidies required at €0.15 cost differential
Cummulative sum of subsidies spent (€ billion)202420255560.60.60.90.92026790.91.51.42.320271010131.32.824.2202815191.94.72.97.1202922272.77.44.111.120303030373.711.15.616.7203140415.1622.72032454.519.66.829.4203350524.67.536.92034555.530.18.345.2203560636.1954.22036656.542.69.863.9203770749.610.574.42038757.557.111.385.7203980865.11297.7204080873.112109.7

Raising the annual volume of “resilience auction” generation capacity in order to establish predictable, growing demand for European components would give investment assurance for private investors. Here, the ESIA paper states three concrete figures: 5 GW for 2025, 10 GW for 2027, and 30 GW for 2030. As the auctions would only cover part of the market in which European manufacturers would be protected, column four of the table shows the overall protected market volumes, as estimated in accordance with the general aim of reestablishing a 40 GW solar industry in the European Union by 2030.

Considering that solar market prices in November 2023 were at €0.14 ($0.15)/Wp to €0.16/Wp of panel generation capacity produced, a price differential of €0.10/Wp would suffice to bridge the cost gap to establish a state-of-the-art, 100% European manufacturing facility on a multi-gigawatt scale. Taking a further bonus of €0.05/Wp into account for the use of a European-manufactured inverter would see an upper level of €0.15/Wp in support of a 100% European product. Given the fact that the majority of the products would most likely have lower domestic content, the overall costs could be lower than outlined in the table above.

Even if we assume that the European Union were to double its 2030 target of 40 GW of annual European production volume,to 80 GW by 2040, and we imagine a worst-case scenario in which European manufacturers make no progress in closing the cost gap, despite having reached multi-gigawatt production volumes – we still come to the conclusion that annual subsidies would be in the range of €8 billion to €12 billion.

EU subsidies

That figure should be compared to the €450 billion that the European Union annually spends on agricultural subsidies, or the billions of euros Germany is willing to grant to highly profitable semiconductor companies in order to convince them to establish manufacturing sites in Germany. The cumulative sum of subsidies spent over 15 years to 2040, to re-establish a solar industry with at least 80 GW of annual production capacity, would amount to less than a quarter of the annual agricultural subsidies granted in the European Union today.

Of course, it could be problematic to establish new EU industry segments that are dependent on support schemes, since they could have a hard time competing on the global market.

That said, there is still significant value in having a domestic industry capable of supplying at least 40% of the projected demand required for the energy transition. ESIA says that its proposal is “intended as opex [operating expenditure] support for the European PV manufacturing industry.” Will ESIA be able to convince EU governments to make this concession – something that Brussels and European governments have always tried to avoid?

For almost all publicly funded support schemes, the basic rule has been that granting investment subsidies is OK but granting opex support is somehow abhorrent. The reason for that clear distinction is twofold. Firstly, an opex subsidy rises as the companies benefiting from its support scheme grow and expand production. Investment support is a one-time fixed sum. Secondly, there is no real incentive for manufacturers to improve the cost-efficiency of their production processes as long as they benefit from opex support.

This immediately leads to the second drawback of opex subsidies. They isolate the companies selling into this walled-off market segment from market price signals and market price pressure.

Cost pressure is always a driver of innovation. Without declining bonus payments, protected European players could fall behind in their drive for innovation and the cost-gap could widen instead of becoming more narrow. But how can this be avoided?

The described support for the PV industry would need to come with a clear signal that, in the long run, manufacturers would have to be cost-competitive and economically sustainable without external support. Without a time limitation for support, such companies would always be confined to solely supplying the domestic market as they would not be able to compete on price and performance metrics outside the walled-off sandbox in which they would operate.

This dynamic illustrates the necessity of a pre-defined phase-out path for opex subsidies. Without a gradual decline in bonus payments, there is no path to establishing an industry that would actually be self-sustaining and able to compete on the global market.

The big question is whether such an incentive, embedded into the European regulatory framework, would be enough to incentivize private investors to put their own money into PV manufacturing in Europe.

Thus far, the willingness of private investors to make such a commitment has been less than lukewarm. The motivation to invest private capital in PV manufacturing could further deteriorate if the current pricing developments observed in the global solar market continue. Even so, the solar industry may yet benefit from a historical precedent of creating consortia in Europe to counter a lack of private money in production invesment, as the Airbus group did back in the 1970s to establish a civilian aircraft industry.

This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: [email protected].

>>> Read full article>>>
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source : PV-Magazine – https://www.pv-magazine.com/2023/12/09/weekend-read-europes-subsidy-conundrum/

Tags: Europe'snewsWeekend
Previous Post

The Hydrogen Stream: Masdar signs more hydrogen deals at COP28

Next Post

Ofgem Responds to UK Federation of Small Business: Expect Fair Prices

Axxam and Molecular Health link on therapeutic target identification – Pharmaceutical Technology

Unlocking New Possibilities: Axxam and Molecular Health Collaborate on Innovative Therapeutic Target Identification

June 5, 2025
Opinion | The Right Is Getting Even More Regressive on Gender – The New York Times

Opinion | The Right Is Getting Even More Regressive on Gender – The New York Times

June 5, 2025
Capsol Technologies ASA: Two US engineering studies awarded – mature pipeline projects advancing – Cision News

Capsol Technologies ASA Secures Two Major US Engineering Studies, Advancing Promising Pipeline Projects!

June 5, 2025
Pittsburgh Steelers’ training camp opens July 23 – altoonamirror.com

Get Ready for Action: Pittsburgh Steelers’ Training Camp Kicks Off on July 23!

June 5, 2025
The Ecology of Visitation – National Park Service (.gov)

Exploring the Impact of Visitor Interactions on Natural Ecosystems

June 5, 2025
Students play with science at Camp Invention at School of Innovation – News-Herald

Unleashing Creativity: Students Dive into Science at Camp Invention!

June 5, 2025
Are cold plunges good for you? Here’s what the science says. – The Washington Post

Unlocking the Benefits of Cold Plunges: What Science Reveals!

June 5, 2025
Casino magnate Alvin Chau’s wife Heidi Chan embraces Buddhist lifestyle after husband’s incarceration – VnExpress International

Casino magnate Alvin Chau’s wife Heidi Chan embraces Buddhist lifestyle after husband’s incarceration – VnExpress International

June 5, 2025
How each of the 32 teams qualified for the 2025 Club World Cup – The New York Times

Unveiling the Path: How All 32 Teams Earned Their Spot in the 2025 Club World Cup

June 5, 2025
Service side of the U.S. economy contracts for first time in almost a year due to trade fights – MarketWatch

U.S. Service Sector Shrinks for the First Time in Nearly a Year Amid Trade Tensions

June 5, 2025

Categories

Archives

June 2025
MTWTFSS
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
30 
« May    
Earth-News.info

The Earth News is an independent English-language daily published Website from all around the World News

Browse by Category

  • Business (20,132)
  • Ecology (667)
  • Economy (681)
  • Entertainment (21,587)
  • General (15,262)
  • Health (9,724)
  • Lifestyle (684)
  • News (22,149)
  • People (682)
  • Politics (691)
  • Science (15,901)
  • Sports (21,186)
  • Technology (15,667)
  • World (668)

Recent News

Axxam and Molecular Health link on therapeutic target identification – Pharmaceutical Technology

Unlocking New Possibilities: Axxam and Molecular Health Collaborate on Innovative Therapeutic Target Identification

June 5, 2025
Opinion | The Right Is Getting Even More Regressive on Gender – The New York Times

Opinion | The Right Is Getting Even More Regressive on Gender – The New York Times

June 5, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

Go to mobile version