Italy set to cut solar incentives

Italy Solar Incentives approved by regional governors set staged cuts to photovoltaic feed-in tariffs, cap subsidized capacity at 3,000 MW, and add support for concentrated PV, guiding investors in Europe's third-largest solar market.

Italy's new, long-awaited solar incentive plan includes gradual cuts in feed-in tariffs of up to 30 percent next year and 6 percent in both 2012 and 2013, two industry sources told Reuters.

Italy's regional governors approved the government's three-year solar incentives plan on July 8. The Industry Ministry is due to release the details, after extending incentives into August earlier this year.

Solar energy has boomed in Italy, Europe's third-biggest solar market, since the launch in 2007 of the current support scheme, with plans to double solar capacity in 2010 under it, which expires this year. Incentives, among the most generous in Europe, have lured investors and the world's biggest producers of solar power systems.

Incentives for big photovoltaic PV installations — which turn sunlight into power — with a capacity of more than 5 megawatts MW will be slashed every four months by a total of up to 30 percent next year, said Gianni Chianetta, chairman of the Assosolare industry body.

He and another industry source, who asked to remain unnamed, cited the final version of the government's new incentives plan presented for approval to a key state body on relations between regions and central government.

They were not aware if changes were introduced during the discussion.

"We are fairly satisfied... It is important to have the national incentives plan to be able to make investment plans for next year. The situation was critical before," Chianetta said.

Incentives for smaller PV installations will be gradually cut by up to 20 percent next year. One-off 6 percent annual cuts are set for 2012 and 2013 under the new plan, the industry source said.

A capacity cap of 3,000 MW will be put on the new capacity to be covered by incentives over the next three years, Chianetta and the unnamed source said. On top of that, concentrated PV and other innovative PV technology, previously not covered by incentives, are set to get support, the source said.

With a total installed photovoltaic capacity of about 1,400 megawatts, Italy is Europe's No. 3 solar power producer after Germany and Spain, as it pursues a tough but reachable solar goal for the coming years.

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