In this issue

UK: More Good than Bad News from the British Islands

India: “Test centres will educate manufacturers on quality measures”

Poland: Plan to Extend National Residential Subsidy Scheme

Egypt: Stakeholders sign Memorandum of Understanding for Solar Initiative

USA: California Solar Initiative to Add Technologies to Eligibility List

China: Flat Plate Collector Share is Growing


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France and Italy: One Voice for Solar Thermal Heating and Cooling

Dear Solarthermalworld.org reader, 

The next victim of the difficult market situation in Central Europe: just one week before the Intersolar Europe, Austrian foam producer Greiner Group announced to close down Greiner Renewable Energy, which had acquired the three solar companies Sun Master, Xolar and Solution little more than two years ago. The booth of Sun Master in hall B1 was only filled with canvas chairs for the visitors to relax (see the photo above). The associations in France and Italy, however, are not ready to just lean back and do nothing. They formed alliances to halt their markets' slowdown. Assolterm and Assotermica signed an agreement at the beginning of June in order to create a unique and well-known association which can suitably represent the solar thermal industry in Italy. The agreement includes a three-phase process during a period of 2 to 3 years, in which the two associations will gradually intensify their cooperation until Assolterm is fully integrated into Assotermica. In France, players of solar thermal, geothermal, heat pumps and biomass founded the Renewable Heat Alliance in February 2013 to lobby for a good renewable heat provision in the planned Energy Law.

Best regards

The editorial team

Click on links below to read full stories about: 

Italy
France

Greiner



UK: More Good than Bad News from the British Islands
by Chris Laughton

In March 2013, the UK Government came under criticism for their updated heat strategy when they announced further delays to the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) being made applicable to householders. As a stop-gap, it was announced in parallel to extend the householder’s Renewable Heat Premium Payment (RHPP) scheme for another year.  Since then, better news has been offered by the UK Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) such as the doubling of the RHPP subsidy for solar thermal systems. The DECC also released their Early Tariff Review for the non-domestic RHI at the end of May that proposes an increase in the commercial tariffs via an industry consultation. 

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India: “Test centres will educate manufacturers on quality measures”
by Jaideep Malaviya
 
From railway management to solar thermal technology: Veena Sinha started as Director – Solar Thermal at the Indian Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in December 2012.

Solarthermalworld.org spoke with her about the market’s development and the quality assurance measures of the MNRE. There are two other news from India related to the reduction of the grants and the drop in vacuum tube collector subsidies
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Poland: Plan to Extend National Residential Subsidy Scheme
by Marcin Czekanski
The Polish National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management is planning to introduce a new grant scheme called Prosument, which will include solar thermal subsidies. This was confirmed by Aneta Wilmański, Deputy Minister of Environment, in an online article on Polish web page reo.pl on 20 June. The entire programme budget for 2014-16 amounts to Polish Zloty (PLN) 600 million. There has not yet been any official statement about which share of the budget will be spent on solar thermal applications.
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Egypt: Stakeholders sign Memorandum of Understanding for Solar Initiative
by Eva Augsten
 
At a press conference on 2 June 2013, Khaled Gasser, Chairman of the Solar Energy Development Association (SEDA), Sherif Elwi, Deputy Chairman of the National Bank of Egypt, Hisham Zaazou, Egypt’s Minister of Tourism, and Hussein Ghaleb, Vice Chairman of the Egyptian Hotel Association (EHA) (from left to right), signed a Memorandum of Understanding which is thought to increase the share of solar energy and improve energy efficiency in Egypt’s tourism sector. One aim is to equip 100,000 hotel rooms with clean energy technologies during the next five years – with technologies such as solar thermal, photovoltaics and smart lighting systems for increased efficiency. The political process was accompanied by the German consultant Werner Koldehoff (right) on 20 June. 
Read more»
USA: California Solar Initiative to Add Technologies to Eligibility List
by Bärbel Epp
The California Solar Initiative (CSI) is further extending the number of system types eligible for its CSI – Solar Thermal programme. Already in December 2012, California’s Governor, Edmund Brown, signed a law stipulating that solar heating of commercial pools is to be incorporated into the subsidy scheme. In March 2013, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) published the Final Decision, specifying that solar cooling, space heating and process heat systems should be eligible technologies, too. The CPUC, however, still has to work out the specific rule set, something which might delay implementation. By the end of May 2013, the programme’s administrators had received 1,400 grant applications with more than half from multi-family or commercial buildings.
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China: Flat Plate Collector Share is Growing
by Bärbel Epp
 
Prof Guangming Xie is a well-known expert on the solar thermal industry in China and Executive President of the China Solar Thermal Industry Federation (CSTIF). He had been a researcher with the Beijing Solar Energy Research Institute (BSERI) before he came to work in leading positions in the industry. Xie presented the latest publication from CSTIF at the Intersolar in Munich in the middle of June: the English-Chinese “Research Report on the Development of the Solar Thermal Industry and its Achievements over 20 years in China (2011-2012)” with the latest market figures.
Read more»
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