In the context of critical EU solar deployment and energy security targets, yesterday 12 CEOs from leading PV manufacturers, and the CEO of SolarPower Europe, wrote to the European Commission to call for urgent action to support the redevelopment European solar manufacturing..
The letter welcomes the recent REPowerEU and EU Solar Strategy, while pointing to international measures that are accelerating the global competition for solar PV value chains outside of Europe. The US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) benefits for Operating Expenditure (OpEx) and Capital Expenditures is resonating with investors, while in India, innovative auction design is providing similar clarity to the industry. Signatories highlight the recent IEA Special Report on supply chains, raising concern about the dominant concentration of supply chains in a single geography.
To ensure Europe’s competitive participation within a globally diversified solar supply chain, and echoing President von der Leyen’s State of the Union speech last month, signatories call on the Commission to replicate the EU Chips Act’s success for critical solar PV technology, and promote solar PV production in the National Resilience and Recovery Plans. This translates to accelerated financial support for large-scale manufacturing projects, and competitive OpEx support, particularly for energy-intensive polysilicon and ingot/wafer production.