As part of a broadened effort to boost renewable electricity in Greece, two pilot photovoltaic auctions have been announced by the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change.
In June, the country plans to publish a new policy framework supporting renewable electricity, with the aim of putting it into law by July. The two pilot auctions for some 50 MW of solar PV will be launched as part of this policy.
According to pv magazine, the EU’s Environmental and Energy State Aid Guidelines are driving this policy change, stating the bloc’s renewable energy generators need to sell their electricity in the market as of 2016.
EU member states are expected to replace their feed-in tariffs (FiT) program with market premiums that offer a top-up on the wholesale electricity price. PV plants generating below 500 KW are excluded from the market premiums obligation, allowing FiTs for these systems to be set independently.
Of note for Greece, because the nation hasn’t yet aligned its renewable energy guidelines with the EU guidelines, it needs to do so as soon as possible.
In February, Greece’s energy ministry stated FiTs for systems larger than 500 KW would be decided through competitive tenders, with the first of the tenders expected to start within the first half of 2016.
“Although the specifics of the tenders have not been made public yet, based on the ministry’s preliminary plan and information available in the Greek press, it appears that the ministry will tender about 50 MW of new PV for projects over 500 KW in 2016. Some stakeholders have mentioned a first tender for projects ranging from 500 KW to 1 MW and a second tender for projects larger than 1 MW. The same stakeholders said that there will be a cap on the bidding of around €90 per MWh.”
From an economic perspective, auctions like these should be good news for the nation.
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