Solar Archives

The Group of Seven rich nations on Sunday (16 April) set big new collective targets for solar power and offshore wind capacity, agreeing to speed up renewable energy development and move toward a quicker phase-out of fossil fuels.

Sunny weather has forced the Czech state-owned company ČEPS to disconnect hundreds of solar power plants from the grid for the first time in history as their high production levels created a surplus that threatened the national power grid.

EU policymakers have reached a provisional agreement on the revision of the Renewable Energy Directive, showing a high level of ambition. But the real challenge lies in the national implementation, write Pia Kerres, Malte Gephart and Corinna Klessmann. Pia Kerres, Malte …

The European Commission is drafting a new target to have at least 40% of clean technologies manufactured in the EU by 2030 as part of a drive to meet climate goals and strengthen energy independence. Eligible technologies include renewables, nuclear power and carbon capture and storage, among others.

As the EU nurtures its clean energy manufacturing ambitions, the reliance on imports of critical materials remains a cause for concern in many Member States, write Fatih Birol and Pascal Canfin.

Government infighting and bureaucracy continue to block the approval of new renewable energy projects in Germany, despite the emergency caused by falling gas supplies from Russia.

Italy's energy utility Enel inaugurated its expanded 3Sun solar panel manufacturing facility in Sicily, making it the biggest factory in Europe, officials said.

The Netherlands had the highest share of solar power in its electricity mix of any EU country last year, according to the European Electricity Review report by energy think-tank Ember.

With new laws in place, land allocated and more generous subsidy schemes green-lit, 2023 will be decisive in determining whether Germany is on track towards meeting its ambitious 80% renewable electricity target in 2030.

Nuclear energy must not be neglected in the push for renewables as it will continue to be an important part of the future energy mix, Mathieu Cambet, founder and director-general of solar company Reservoir Sun, told EURACTIV France in an interview.

The European Commission on Friday (9 December) officially launched the EU’s solar photovoltaic industry alliance, with the aim of regaining production lost to China and establish a “Made in Europe” industry.

New emergency permitting rules tabled by the European Commission just over a week ago would concern only “new” renewable energy projects and fail to address the hundreds of gigawatts currently stuck in the administrative pipeline, industry sources say.

Germany, a world leader in renewable energy, is heavily divided between the North, where most wind power is installed, and the South, which leads in solar photovoltaic (PV) installations.

Spain's government adopted a series of measures Tuesday (18 October) aimed at encouraging the public to install solar panels to generate their own electricity as the energy crisis sparked by Russia's Ukraine war grinds on.

The number of workers in the renewable energy sector across the world has grown from 12 million in 2020 to 12.7 million in 2021, according to a report published today (22 September) by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

This week, EURACTIV's agrifood team takes a look at the ways in which the agrifood sector is starting to feel the brunt of the energy crisis, we speak with Andreas Schweiger, professor for plant ecology at the University of Hohenheim, …

Two German renewable companies hope to build one of the country's biggest solar parks among rolling hills in the eastern district of Barnim to improve energy security in the face of an unprecedented supply crisis. But the project faces dozens of …

The production of solar panels is virtually monopolised by China, which makes no secret of its disdain for democratic values. In the absence of a solar industrial strategy, Europe’s dependence on Chinese crystalline silicon solar supply chains will only deepen, warns Mark Widmar.

Boom in solar panel demand is clouded by supply chain disruption, a fragmented industry as well as ethical issues, reports EURACTIV's media partner, The Guardian.

The European Commission aims to scale up renewables in heating and cooling as a way to phase out Russian gas, although industry sources say there is still much to do to ensure a level playing field with dominant fossil-fuel heating technologies.

One of the lawmakers steering the revision of the EU’s renewable energy directive in the European Parliament has called on the European Union to "at least triple" or even quadruple the production of clean energy from solar thermal by the end of the decade.

Citizens' demand for rooftop solar photovoltaics is rapidly increasing, and governments should intervene through incentives and better permitting procedures, writes Seda Orhan.

As Europe struggles to decarbonise its economy and wean itself off Russian oil and gas, one of the world's sunniest and most arid nations is pitching itself to the continent as an answer to its problems.