Spain set to go big on solar power… again

Those 320 days of sunshine that beat down on many parts of Spain deliver untold benefits to the Spanish economy. From sun-seeking tourists to silver-brushed olive groves, Spain’s sunny climate means it is a number one holiday destination, leading producer of wine, fruits, vegetables and olives, and even a sought-after backdrop for Hollywood blockbusters and TV epics…

But what the sun has not delivered – at least not in recent years – is reliable solar power. Between the years of 2008 and 2010, Spain really was a world leader in solar power, with vast swathes of the dry interior transformed into glistening solar parks that fed clean – and free – energy into the Spanish grid.

Soon, homeowners wanted in, and the Spanish government at the time supported this trend, offering very generous rates to anybody who installed solar panels on their rooftop – essentially paying people to generate this free solar energy and provide it to the grid.

But Spain’s solar boom – much like its property boom – grew too fast. The government soon realised that its initial generosity could be its downfall. As more and more people added solar panels to their rooftops, the pot of money available to support this policy dwindled, and vanished. By 2012, Spain’s new government began exploring ways to claw back some of the money it had spent on solar, introducing a controversial “Sun tax” that actively charged certain solar consumers a fee to export their power to the grid.

In one fell swoop, the future of Spain’s solar industry went from sunny to cloudy. And so it remained until this year when the government – perhaps emboldened by a second term and strengthening economy – began holding renewable energy auctions. The premise being that they would support where possible certain amounts of renewable energy projects, based on the “best price” offered by companies.

Initially, wind power was the big winner, but this week in the latest government-backed auction solar power companies have won big – securing the rights to develop 3.5 gigawatts (GW) of new solar projects. This is about two-thirds of the current capacity already installed, and will be built across the country between now and 2020.

The benefits of this include helping Spain to meet its carbon emission reduction targets, improving air pollution, and actually lowering energy bills for all consumers.