The European Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson, spoke at the SolarPower 2024 Summit on Tuesday 5 March about the need to strike a balance between the deployment of affordable solar energy and support for manufacturers of photovoltaic solar panels in the EU.
She explained to the manufacturers that the Commission had agreed with the European energy ministers the previous day at the Energy Council (see EUROPE 13363/2) that it was necessary to adopt a targeted response that would help EU manufacturers without affecting the rest of the market, thus ruling out measures deemed too protectionist.
On her arrival at the EU Council on Monday 4 March, Ms Simson told journalists that the EU could not close its borders “because we need solar panels”, referring to solar panels from China (see EUROPE 13346/10).
At the SolarPower 2024 Summit, she stated that “the European sector still has the capacity to produce one out of every eight (photovoltaic) modules installed in the EU”.
She explained that over the past year, the EU has taken a number of measures to consolidate this base and support the sector. This is particularly the case with the ‘Net-Zero Industry Act’, which includes a production capacity criterion to cover 40% of demand by 2030, including in the photovoltaic solar energy sector.
She also indicated that the aim was to increase the use of criteria other than price in renewable energy auctions, such as cybersecurity and data security.
In a letter sent the previous day to the 27 European energy ministers and co-signed by Ms Simson and Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton, a number of possible solutions were put forward, including incentive programmes, an increase in State aid and a commitment by solar panel installers to include products manufactured in the EU in their product range. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)