spain

Having retroactively damaged its solar sector once before, Spain's latest renewable energy tender does little to repair the damage. While Saudi Arabia embraces a cost-based solar auction, Spain is tipping the scales in favour of the status quo.

Spain has made the second of four steps necessary to carry out its 2-3GW renewable energy tender by passing a ministerial order, but the country’s main solar association has taken issue with with what it believes is a blatant favouring of wind energy in what should be a technology neutral auction.

International PV developer and investor Sonnedix has acquired a 136MW solar portfolio from Centerbridge Partners, in what is claimed to be one of the largest PV transactions in Europe.

Spain has approved the first of four norms necessary to carry out a major renewable energy tender, but the size of capacity available remains in doubt.

In this week's Movers & Shakers, PV Tech investigates Bill Gates' US$1 billion clean energy fund Breakthrough Energy Ventures, by speaking to new Science lead Eric Toone. We also report on Glasspoint Solar and Lark Energy's US expansions, new executive appointments in Asian firms Kyocera and 3TIER India, and thousands of energy jobs in the pipeline in the wake of Spain's renewable energy tenders.

Spain deployed 55MW of solar PV capacity in 2016, up marginally from 49MW the prior year, according to the Spanish solar association (UNEF).

Spain’s National Association of Photovoltaic Energy Producers (ANPIER) has opened a permanent office in Brussels to help direct European Union policy on renewables by publicising the historic financial suffering of thousands of Spanish solar consumers at the hands of retroactive legislative changes.

Spain will hold a renewable energy auction for its islands in the first quarter of 2017, according to the Ministry of Energy and Tourism.

Independent solar power producer Sonnedix announced Friday that it has signed off on a deal to acquire the 136MW Vela PV portfolio from Centerbridge Partners — with the pipeline comprised of 43 operating and financed solar projects in Spain.

Mexico's SENER forecasts massive solar growth, with a 20-fold increase totalling 5.4GW by the end of 2019. In Spain, the long-anticipated renewable energy auction is given a confirmation for the first quarter of this year. Over in Chile, solar energy is being used to power the Santiago metro, through SunPower's El Pelícano project.