Good news for the renewable energy sector! As of 9 December 2022, the European Commission has officially decided to launch the European Solar Photovoltaic Industry Alliance in Brussels.

The goal of the European Union with the support of the Alliance is to reach 320 GW of production capacity by 2025. This will also create new job opportunities and generate new GDP, while improving the resilience of the EU energy system. But what, in concrete terms, is the alliance and how will it move in the coming years to give the photovoltaic industry a major boost? In the next few lines, let us discover the features of one of the European Commission’s most important interventions in the renewable energy sector.

Where did it start?

Before understanding what the objectives of the Alliance are and who is interested in participating in this all-European initiative, it is important to understand how the idea of giving the entire photovoltaic industry a substantial boost was developed.

First of all, it is important to remember that measures such as the Green Deal and the Fit for 55 package set rather ambitious targets for the European Union in terms of renewable energy use in the near future. However, following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, the European Commission decided to approve the REPowerEU plan with which it expressed its intention to end dependence on Russian fossil fuels. This will be achieved by reaching 45% of energy production from renewable sources by 2030.

Therefore, the EU strategy is to deploy over 320 GW of solar PV by 2025. This is expected to almost double by the time 2030 is reached.

The European strategy, therefore, envisages a series of initiatives to be implemented as soon as possible. In particular, the expansion of the industrial solar value chain across Europe through the creation of the European Solar Photovoltaic Industry Alliance is suggested.

The implication is to promote the rapid deployment of sustainable energy systems through, for example, initiatives to install photovoltaic panels. Finally, measures will also be introduced to simplify and speed up the necessary authorisations.

What is the European Photovoltaic Industry Alliance?

 The Alliance, therefore, aims to bring together all the important players in the sector such as research institutes, consumer associations and other stakeholders so that important investment opportunities can be coordinated and seized, ambitious projects can be launched, ground rent for photovoltaics can be made easier, etc.

Specifically, the Alliance was formed to develop a solar photovoltaic industrial ecosystem in the EU and to secure and diversify the supply of solar photovoltaics. The aim is to ensure that there is more production of competitive photovoltaic products in Europe such as solar panels. In addition to this, it will also be necessary to diversify the components of the photovoltaic value chain worldwide by supplying suitable raw materials.

Therefore, the Alliance will have to draw up a strategic plan based on a few key points. For example:

• Identifying bottlenecks in the production process and value chain
• Enabling easier access to finance by allowing easier and faster production of photovoltaic panels
• Ensuring a framework for cooperation in the development and adoption
• Supporting research in the photovoltaic industry

All this is happening in a context in which the war in Ukraine has exploded and it has been realised that for Europe to become energy self-sufficient, it is necessary to overcome a bloc that is entirely dependent on China for the production of the systems that serve this purpose. Indeed, it would appear that Beijing controls 80 per cent of global photovoltaic solar panel production. Thus, about 1 in 7 panels are produced unsustainably in China.

This gap, which needs to be bridged as soon as possible, represents a real opportunity that the Alliance will have to enter in order to enable Europe to break away from the Chinese clutches and finally become independent in terms of production.

 How to join the European Photovoltaic Industry Alliance?

 As mentioned, the players that can join such a system involve a range of stakeholders such as research institutes, consumer associations and other private entities such as companies.

In fact, the Alliance’s task is to bring all these stakeholders together so that it is possible to increase the production capacity of panels and components of a photovoltaic system while simultaneously trying to diversify the sources of supply in terms of components and raw materials.

As the Alliance is open to all public and private actors in the photovoltaic industry, we as Viridis Energia, wanted to make our contribution by offering the know-how gained from years of experience in the field of renewable energy and photovoltaic systems.

Conclusions

 In short, we believe that the European Photovoltaic Industry Alliance is a very good idea to enable the photovoltaic industry to take off and receive the attention it deserves because of the times we are going through. Therefore, the world and the major players must turn their attention to a more sustainable future in which we rely on alternative and cleaner energy sources.

In light of recent events, it is no longer possible to continue choosing fossil fuels as an energy source. An epochal change is needed, hic et nunc, so that the future of the next generations is not marked.

Embracing solar and photovoltaic initiatives is definitely a good approach. We are confident that Europe as a whole will be able to deliver on its promises and reach the target of 320 GW by 2025 with the help of all relevant stakeholders.