One of the fastest growing solar markets in 2023 is Italy: 5.3 gigawatts have been installed in our country, almost double the 2.5 installed in 2022, for a total cumulative power of photovoltaic systems equal to 30.3 gigawatts at the end of 2023. Almost 80% of the new installations were created by the residential segment under the pressure of the tax relief provided by the so-called Superbonus. At a European level, Spain ranked just after Germany in the installation of new solar systems in the last year with 6.4 GW5. Ground-mounted PV parks remain crucial to the Spanish PV sector, highlighting the country’s position as a leader in solar. In fact, more than 70% of new installations involved utility-scale systems.
The EU package
In 2021 the European Commission published the package
of Fit for 55 policies and proposed increasing the share of energy
renewable energy produced by the EU from 32% to at least 40% of consumption
final by 2030, to bring the European Union to reach the
climate neutrality by 2050, as defined by the European Green Deal and the Climate Law of June 2021. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, energy security was an additional reason to accelerate the transition and, at European level, the REPowerEU plan was published by the Commission in May 2022, which aimed to end dependence on Russian fossil fuels by 2027.
The plan for renewables
The plan also aimed to increase the share of renewables in consumption
final energy consumption to 45% by 2030, therefore revising the figure upwards
40% previously negotiated. Ahead of COP28 in Dubai, the IEA urged governments to support five pillars of action by 2030, including tripling renewable energy capacity. Although the IEA’s priorities were reflected in the COP28 declaration, the expected growth in global renewable capacity until 2028 may not reach the desired target. The goal will require policies adapted to the specificities of developing nations.
The objectives of the transition
Following the community approach to the energy transition objectives by 2030, the draft revision of the Italian National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC) highlights the need to intensify efforts at a national level. In general, the challenges still open concern regulatory uncertainty, inefficiencies in auctions and slowness in authorization processes. It should be underlined that the economic and employment opportunities and the environmental benefits if the set objectives are achieved would be significant: a turnover in investments for new installations is estimated at between 43 and 68 billion euros with employment implications in the order of 350,000 units. This is without taking into account a reduction in annual CO2 emissions from energy production of between 39 and 52 MtCO2 starting from 2036.
The push of EF Solare
In this context, EF Solare Italia stands out, continuing to be a protagonist in the transition towards green energy with its 318 plants which, thanks to a total capacity of 1,055 MW, have avoided the emission of 640,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide. In 2023 EF Solare Italia continued to work on improving the performance of the assets in its portfolio and optimizing their management by investing over 130 million euros to finance revamping and repowering programs, as well as the development and construction of new plants in Italy and Spain. EF Solare has carried out almost 100 MW of module revamping and 6 MW of energized repowering. The ambitious plan for the development of greenfield plants continued during 2023, with the start of work for the construction of the Bolarque plant in Spain, which once completed will be the largest in the Group, with 126 MW of installed power .
The agrivoltaic model
EF Solare Italia began its experience in agrivoltaics over 10 years ago with the construction of photovoltaic greenhouses on the Tyrrhenian and Ionian coasts of the province of Cosenza, in Calabria. Currently, EF Solare’s photovoltaic greenhouses have reached 32 Megawatts and produce on average over 42 million kWh of electricity every year, equal to the average annual consumption of approximately 16 thousand Italian families. In the over 40 hectares dedicated to EF Solare’s photovoltaic greenhouses, around 15 thousand plants are grown, including lemons, cedars and oranges, with a type of agriculture that combines specific local crops with innovative solutions.
