Neuste Beiträge aus: PV-Markt: Tschechien

Czech Solar Capacity Reached 1,732 Megawatts in 2010, MFD Says
By Peter Laca - Jan 5, 2011 8:21 AM GMT+0100



The Czech Republic’s installed photovoltaic capacity reached 1,732 megawatts at the end of last year, Mlada Fronta Dnes reported, citing estimates by CEZ AS, the country’s largest power producer.

The state energy market regulator estimated the installed solar capacity at about 1,650 megawatts at the end of 2010, the newspaper said.

November 28, 2010

The amended law taxing energy from photovoltaic power plants could come into force as of January even without the Senate's explicit approval, Senate new chairman Milan Stech said in discussion programme Questions on Czech TV today.

The Senate would not have to deal with the amendment at all but at the same time would not return it to the Chamber of Deputies with a negative stance, Stech explained.

Stech repeated he had no clear stance to the legislation. On the one hand, he wanted to prevent higher electricity prices for households, but on the other hand he was concerned about potential arbitrations over billions of crown.

"I as a lawmaker am obliged to protect money at all levels, and so are my colleagues," Stech added.

The Senate's legislative section has pointed at the danger of arbitrations, he noted but at the same time conceded that if he had to vote now, he would vote for a law preventing higher electricity prices.

The Senate can express its will not to deal with a bill and then the bill is handed over to the President for signing. The Senators would thus express their doubts but at the same time would not prevent the bill from being passed. This practically almost means approval.

The Chamber of Deputies okayed the amended law on a 26 percent tax on energy from photovoltaic power plants in a state of legislative emergency. The deputies wanted to prevent a sharp growth in electricity prices owing to the support to renewable energy sources as of next year. With the new law, the prices should grow by only 5.5 percent.

President Vaclav Klaus last week sent a letter to Chamber of Deputies chairwoman Miroslava Nemcova saying that he would enable passing of the amended law restricting support to energy from solar power plants.

The letter reads that Klaus would leave the amended law unsigned but would not return it to the Chamber of Deputies for new discussion. He would thus allow the amendment to come into force.

Schon hats den ersten erwischt: SAG kriegt den tschechischen Park offensichtlich nicht vertrieben.


08.11.2010 14:32
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Corporate News


S.A.G. Solarstrom AG vergrößert Photovoltaik-Kraftwerksbestand auf 18,6 MWp

- 6,8 MWp des hochattraktiven Projektes Stribro werden in den Eigenbestand
übernommen
- Gezielte Stärkung des margenstarken Geschäftsfeldes Stromproduktion

Freiburg, 08. November 2010. Die S.A.G. Solarstrom AG (WKN: 702 100, ISIN:
DE0007021008) hat beschlossen, 6,8 MWp des 13,6 MWp-Projektes im
tschechischen Stribro in den eigenen Kraftwerksbestand aufzunehmen und
damit das Geschäftsfeld Stromproduktion weiter zu stärken. Der
Kraftwerksbestand wächst damit auf 74 Anlagen mit insgesamt 18,6 MWp an.
Das Projekt in Stribro weist eine exzellente Performance-Ratio von 84,9 %
auf, die durch technische Optimierungen in der Planungs- und Bauphase
erreicht wurde, so dass die durchfinanzierte Anlage attraktive Erträge
erwirtschaftet.

'Wir wollen unseren Kraftwerkspark weiter stärken. Zum einen eröffnet ein
attraktives Portfolio für Ökostromerzeugung langfristig strategische
Möglichkeiten für potenzielle Investoren, die es uns ermöglichen, schneller
zu wachsen, zum anderen gibt uns das die Möglichkeit, weiter Daten über
Langzeitperformance unterschiedlichster Anlagen zu sammeln', so Dr. Karl
Kuhlmann, CEO der S.A.G. Solarstrom AG.

Die 13,6 MWp-Anlage wurde 2009 auf einem ehemaligen Militärgelände in
Stribro errichtet und ging Ende 2009 ans Netz. Das mit einem tschechischen
Joint-Venture-Partner realisierte Projekt ist langfristig finanziert. Durch
eine Vorsortierung der eingesetzten Module konnten Mismatchverluste
minimiert und Leitungs- und Transformatorverluste begrenzt werden, so dass
die Performance-Ratio der Anlage bei exzellenten 84,9 % liegt. Die gesamte
Anlage erzeugt jährlich rund 14.000 MWh Strom, damit können gut 3.000
Vier-Personen-Haushalte versorgt werden.

'Selbst unter Berücksichtigung der aktuell von der tschechischen Regierung
diskutierten, aber noch nicht beschlossenen Solarsteuer bleibt die Anlage
langfristig ein hochinteressantes Asset', so Dr. Karl Kuhlmann
abschließend.

Über die S.A.G. Solarstrom AG

Die S.A.G. Solarstrom AG (WKN: 702 100, ISIN: DE0007021008), Freiburg i.
Br., ist herstellerunabhängiger Anbieter von individuell für den Kunden
konfigurierten, qualitativ hochwertigen Photovoltaik-Anlagen. Die
Unternehmensgruppe errichtet national und international effiziente Anlagen
in allen Größenordnungen. Mit eigenen Anlagen produziert das Unternehmen
nachhaltig Solarstrom.

Zum Leistungsportfolio der S.A.G. Solarstrom AG gehören außerdem
Dienstleistungen rund um den gesamten Lebenszyklus von
Photovoltaik-Anlagen, darunter Prognose- und Energieservices,
Ertragsgutachten, Fernwartung und Instandhaltung sowie Versicherung und
Finanzierung. Der Konzern bietet damit eine umfassende
Photovoltaik-Wertschöpfungskette vom Ertragsgutachten über Planung, Bau,
Betrieb, Überwachung bis hin zu Optimierung, Repowering oder Rückbau.

Das Unternehmen wurde 1998 gegründet und zählt zu den Pionieren der
Solarbranche. Rund 175 Spezialisten arbeiten an den vier Standorten in
Deutschland sowie bei den ausländischen Tochtergesellschaften.

Die S.A.G. Solarstrom AG ist im General Standard der Frankfurter
Wertpapierbörse sowie nach dem Regelwerk M:access der Börse München
notiert.

Egal, wie das rechtlich ausgeht, der Markt ist tot - übrigens zurecht.

Brennelementesteuer auf tschechisch:


Guest Blog (IV): Solar bonanza turns into a nightmare for investors in the Czech Republic
30 October 2010 | By Mark Osborne | Editor's Blog

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Jaroslav Dorda of SolarniNovinky.cz.A rapidly changing environment for solar installations in the Czech Republic is detailed in this guest blog (the fourth in a series), written by Jaroslav Dorda, SolarniNovinky.cz.

At the end of October, the Czech government approved special measures against the ongoing solar boom in the country. Many of these measures are being abruptly negotiated and passed by the Czech Parliament so that they can take effect starting in January 2010. One of these measures will be a brand-new retroactive ‘solar tax’ imposed on producers of solar energy.

Legislative storm

The political battle over consequences of the solar boom in the Czech Republic has resulted in a ‘legislative storm’ that will significantly harm the local photovoltaic industry. Politicians are keen on punishing so-called ‘solar barons,’ which has become a popular nickname for operators of PV systems over 30kWp coined by the country’s main media. These solar barons are being blamed for a possible increase in electricity prices from 2011, caused by the amount of PV being installed in the country.

First package of legal measures

At the end of October, the Czech parliament took the first set of measures against locally installed PV:


• End of a tax holiday for all operators of PV plants to be applied retroactively.
• Change of write-off scheme (its deterioration) applied retroactively to all PV plants.
• New FIT will be applied only on rooftop PV installations with maximum capacity of 30kWp from March 2011.
• Abolition of the FiT for off-grid PV systems and for ground-mounted PV plants from January 2011.
• A 500% increase in fees paid to the authorities for using land in order to discourage investors from building ground-mounted PV plants.

Unique 26% solar tax

Simultaneously, the Czech government also approved the introduction of a brand-new (unique within EU) solar tax. This 26% tax will be imposed on income generated from ground-mounted solar installations which have installed capacities over 30kW, in order to recycle the proceeds to curb retail power price inflation of 5.5% projected by the government.

This solar tax will be retroactively applied to all ground-mounted PV built in 2009-2010 in the Czech Republic. Basically, it means a decrease of the purchase prices of solar energy under the FiT that were supposed to be guaranteed to investors for 20 years by the government.

Investors going bust

According to some bankers I've spoken with, there will be many defaults as many solar investors cannot survive an imposition of the solar tax. The Czech PV trade association (CZEPHO) shares the same opinion.

“We are persuaded that over 50% of all large-scale installation will go bankrupt as a result of the new solar tax,” noted Jan Hlavac, speaker of CZEPHO. “The taxation will cause that a payback of the solar projects will exceed 20 years."

This unexpected and indeed controversial measure by the Czech government has already resulted in a cancellation of many large-scale solar installations in the country. All investors are very anxious at the moment.

Imminent arbitrages

According to Jakub Hajek, a legal advisor of the leading Czech law firm Glatzova and Co., an implementation of the new solar tax represents a substantial change in the conditions related to doing business in the Czech Republic. “In this respect, we expect a new boom of legal disputes and arbitrages between foreign investors and the Czech state,” he said.

Experts estimate the value of imminent arbitrages could be well over €10 billion. Since the new solar tax proposal is retrospective, it has certain legal drawbacks. The current legal view is that the odds are high that the investors will succeed in the arbitrages against the Czech Republic.

Damaged reputation

Because of the solar tax, the Czech Republic may lose its credibility among investors, because of the country's perceived unstable legal environment. The government officials and politicians cannot take new legal measures abruptly based only on figures presented solely by distribution energy companies, since there are many examples showing that these companies' data are inherently overestimated.

Failure of authorities

The solar boom in the Czech Republic has been brought about mainly by a failure to regulate the industry in a thorough and timely fashion by the respective authorities. It is by no means the fault of investors. Now it seems that the investors will be punished for the mistakes of regulators.

Czech politicians and authorities are eager to penalize (by taxes) the solar barons. Although it may be a popular step for the local politicians, it is very short-sighted approach. The final outcome may be billions of Euro in lost arbitrages and the damage to the reputation of the country and its credit rating.

The Czech Parliament will make its final decision on the solar tax in mid-November. Since there is a general consent among Czech politicians on this issue, the odds are extremely high that the legislation will be approved.

Author background

Jaroslav Dorda works as an independent solar analyst and consultant. Since 2008 the author has been engaged in photovoltaics—he is an owner of a small rooftop PV plant. In February 2010 he founded a specialized website, www.SolarniNovinky.cz, which is dedicated to a development of photovoltaics both in the Czech and Slovak republics.

UPDATE 1-Czech OKs tax, CO2 credit sales to fund solar costs
Wed Oct 13, 2010 2:02pm GMT



* Solar capacity could hit 1,600 MW at end of 2010

* Govt still needs to work out details of solar plan

* To keep 2011 price power price hikes below 10 pct

By Robert Mueller and Roman Gazdik

PRAGUE, Oct 13 (Reuters) - The Czech government on Wednesday approved a plan to tax solar plants and to use proceeds from future carbon credit sales to keep power price hikes below 10 percent for homes and businesses in 2011.

The proposal is the country's latest effort to rein in a booming solar sector, which has raised fears that generous subsidies to solar plants will result in grid overload and sky-high electricity prices.

"The government has agreed that the financing will come from various sources," Prime Minister Petr Necas told reporters.

"It will consist of ... introducing a (tax) on subsidies that have been provided for solar energy; increasing the fees for taking agricultural land out of production; and the use of the carbon emission credits."

Necas said power price hikes for next year would be less than 10 percent but that he could not be more specific until it becomes clear whether installed solar capacity at the end of 2010 reaches government projections of 1,600 MW.

The Prime Minister also said the government's plan was only a framework agreement and that ministers would still need to work out specifics, including the amount of carbon credit sale proceeds it would use.

"At this moment it is totally premature to say what the volume will be," Necas said.

The proposals could require utilities such as CEZ (CEZPsp.PR: Quote) to buy a certain amount of credits rather than receive them for free. They must also still go to parliament, where the centre-right government has a strong majority.

The Czech Republic, a country of 10.5 million people, was the third-biggest solar nation in Europe last year in terms of new installed capacity because of an investment boom sparked by generous feed-in tariffs.

Many investors who received guaranteed high rates for decades now look to see a return on their investments in as little as three years instead of 10 to 15 years as originally planned.

The country's grid operator warned that the rapid rise in solar capacity could threaten the Czech transmission system, while businesses argued that higher power prices would hurt manufacturing productivity. (Reporting by Robert Mueller and Roman Gazdik, Writing by Michael Kahn, Editing by Jane Baird)

No. of solar power plants in ČR exceeds 10,000 in Aug
ČTK |
14 September 2010

Prague, Sept 13 (CTK) - The number of solar power plants in the Czech Republic grew by 545 to over 10,000 in August, their total output reaching nearly 694 MW as of Sept 1, the Energy Regulatory Office (ERU) has said on its website.

The number of power plants reached 10,145 at the beginning of September. Most of them were small solar power plants on the roofs of buildings. There are only several hundreds large solar parks but they contribute to the total installed output in a significant way.

The installed output of Czech solar plants grew by one half to 693.64 MW since the beginning of the year, compared with 65.74 MW a year ago.

The steep rise of solar plants in the Czech Republic is connected with high state support which has attracted a lot of new investors to the sector. A new law that is to take effect next year is to lower purchasing prices of electricity from solar sources of energy by more than 5 percent year-on-year, which should stabilise the sector.

Owing to the boom of solar power plants, some experts believe electricity prices will increase by as much as tens of percent next year. The state is now searching for a way to prevent such a situation. Industry and Trade Minister Martin Kocourek is going to submit a draft amendment to the law on support of electricity from renewable source proposing to abolish support for photovoltaic plants built on farming land. At the same time, tax holidays for these plants may be abolished.

According to Kocourek, the development of electricity prices should be monitored by a newly established coordination committee.

The daily Lidove noviny wrote Monday the boom of solar plants will probably also be restricted by a new law under which the Industry and Trade Ministry will have to right to decide on the establishment of every new power plant in the country.

Operators of distribution networks estimate that photovoltaic plants will generate about 1,900 MW of installed output this year.

Czech government approves renewables energy framework plan
26 August 2010 | By Emma Hughes | News > Tariff Watch


Czech Republic FiTThe Czech government has given its approval for a renewables energy framework plan which aims to reduce generous subsidies driving the country towards a solar boom. The plan calls for a cap on feed-in tariffs for solar energy, up to approximately 50% of the current level, as well as making the recycling of old solar panels mandatory, reports Reuters.

"This is one of the measures that the government...is taking in reaction to the current rapid development of some renewable resources and connected economic risks," government spokesman Tomas Bartovsky said in a statement.

"It defines limits for various sources. When these are exceeded, the government will interrupt or cancel subsidies."

"This will for example allow us to halt the rocket-like growth of photovoltaic power plants," Bartovsky concluded.

This move follows the tariff reductions in several other countries, who are working to hold back a solar boom caused by the falling price of solar products combined with carbon emissions targets.

Mid Europa acquires stake in Czech solar developer Energy 21
13 May 2010. Source: AltAssets
Central and Eastern Europe-focused private equity firm Mid Europa Partners has agreed to acquire a "strategic" stake in Czech solar developer Energy 21, committing to inject new equity into the company to support its Central and Eastern Europe growth strategy.

Mid Europa said it is also in advanced discussions with a group of banks to secure a project finance facility to aid its regional expansion.

Energy 21 is the largest Czech-based independent developer and operator of solar power parks in Central and Eastern Europe, with an installed generation capacity of 26MW and a further 75MW in development.

The company is in the process of growing its local market asset base and evaluating opportunities to expand into other Central and Eastern European renewable energy markets.

Thierry Baudon, managing partner of Mid Europa, said, "Following our decision to add renewable energy to the core sectors in which we focus our deal origination efforts, we are very pleased to have now realised our first investment in a very promising platform with significant growth prospects.

"We intend to increase our exposure to the renewable space in Central and Eastern Europe, and hope that Energy 21 will serve as base for a series of attractive transactions to come in the near future," he added.

Mid Europa’s director Stefan Tzvetkov said the firm is looking to combine its pan-regional investment expertise with Energy 21’s renewable industry know-how and entrepreneurial management in an effort to build a platform for future growth in Central and Eastern European photovoltaics.

Daniel Kunz, CEO of Energy 21, said, "This anchor investment by Mid Europa, the largest private equity investor with a focus on our markets, is an important milestone for Energy 21 as it validates the direction of our development strategy to date and provides a strong foundation for the company’s next phase of growth."

Having invested in the CEE region since 1999, Mid Europa Partners operates from London, Budapest and Warsaw and manages funds with an asset value of approximately €3.2bn.

Norway's Scatec buys remaining stake in Czech solar developer
19 Apr 2010 / Solar / Mergers & acquisitions / Norway
Scatec Solar, a Norwegian PV company, has acquired the 33.3% it did not already own in Czech project developer Signo Solar to take advantage of that country’s thriving market.

Sieht so aus, als würde Tschechien ein reiner Klein-Dachanlagen-Markt werden:

http://www.pv-tech.org/editors_blog/_a/guest_blog_czech_gove…

Czech Parliament Approves Bill To Scale Back Solar Subsidies


PRAGUE -(Dow Jones)- The Czech lower house of parliament Wednesday approved a bill to allow the local energy regulator to sharply reduce the high fixed sale price for electricity produced at new photovoltaic solar generators.

The bill, which still needs Senate approval and the President's signature to become law, would allow the Energy Regulatory Office, or ERU, to lower the feed- in-tariff, which is the fixed rate at which electricity distributors are obliged by law to purchase solar power from independent producers.

Via lower feed-in-tariffs, solar-power investors' return on investment would move back to 11 years, where it was when the original law was drafted, from the current four years.

Current law stipulates that ERU can reduce the feed-in-tariff on new solar arrays by a maximum of 5% annually, a rate which hardly changes impacts the return on investment.

The original level at which ERU could reduce the tariff was based on pre-2009 costs to purchase solar panels and other necessary equipment and doesn't reflect the roughly 40% fall in investment costs that took place in 2009. Investment costs are expected to fall another 10% this year.

Investors have flooded the local market with applications for new solar arrays and it's creating a surge in power generation capacity and threatens to overload the electricity grid while simultaneously leading to a potential increase in end-user power prices by tens of percent annually, ERU said recently.

Parliament Web site: www.psp.cz

-By Sean Carney, Dow Jones Newswires; +420 222 315 290, sean.carney@ dowjones.com

Go to http://blogs.wsj.com/new-europe for the new Dow Jones blog on Central and Eastern Europe, covering business, politics, society and more, written by our correspondents across the region.

Czech Republic to receive FiT reduction
08 March 2010 | By Emma Hughes | News > Tariff Watch

*The Czech Republic's Prime Minister, Jan Fischer, has called for a cut in the amount of incentives available for renewable energy in the country. These possible cuts follow similar news from France, Germany and Italy this year reports E15.

The Minister says that a cut to feed-in tariff prices is a 'priority' in the country, as without it the current boom of solar projects could lead to a 'significant' increase in electricity prices for consumers.

According to Fischer, the whole system of support for solar energy has been wrongly priced from the beginning. "It's a huge lesson," said Fischer. "Therefore, in a number of laws which should be approved, (this should be) number one."

Due to the guaranteed prices set by the Energy Regulatory Authority for suppliers in the country, solar power has become one of the most profitable investments in the Czech Republic.

The proposal to cut the rates is currently before parliament, and has not been officially passed.

Antwort auf Beitrag Nr.: 38.924.915 von R-BgO am 11.02.10 12:33:24CEZ halts approvals for solar, wind power plants
Tue Feb 16, 2010 10:06am GMT

PRAGUE, Feb 16 (Reuters) - The distribution arm of the main Czech power firm CEZ (CEZPsp.PR) halted issuing approvals for connection of new solar and wind power plants to the grid on Tuesday because a boom in the sector threatened grid stability.

The CEZ decision heeded a call from the country's high-voltage network operator CEPS, which had warned it would have to start turning some plants off to keep the grid stable.

"The size of the demanded capacity threatens the safety and reliability of the electricity network, therefore the company management...decided to immediately meet the request of CEPS," CEZ said in a statement.

Solar and wind power is unstable due to fast uncontrollable changes in output, and its growing proportion in the power mix brings a threat of sudden power surges or drops.

The Czech Republic exports power and the grid has large exchanges with German, Polish, Austrian and Slovak networks.

The interruption of approving new plants follows a surge in solar projects caused by legislation that guarantees high feed-in tariffs that distributors must pay to producers.

A drop in prices of solar panels and their growing efficiency has cut the return on investment into new plants to just a few years, making it a safe and high-yield bet.

CEPS said last week that about 3,500 megawatts worth of new solar and wind capacity had been approved, much more than the network can handle. The country now has 600 megawatts in solar and wind power production capacity.

The parliament has been discussing legislation that would allow a cut in the feed-in tariffs for new plants as of next year, but its approval prior to parliamentary election in May is uncertain.

Prague city distributor Prazska Energetika said it had also halted issuing new approvals for wind and solar plants. A spokesman for E.ON EONG.DE, the country's third distributor, was not immediately available for comment. (Reporting by Jan Lopatka; editing by James Jukwey)

Czech grid warns will block solar, wind plants
Wed Feb 10, 2010 5:13pm GMT

PRAGUE, Feb 10 (Reuters) - The Czech power grid operator warned on Wednesday that a boom in solar and wind power plants could threaten stability of supplies, forcing it to take such plants offline, a warning to investors in new capacity.

Generous feed-in tariffs have led to an explosion in new power projects, especially solar plants, which guarantee high returns thanks to a drop in prices of photovoltaic panels.

"When we add together already completed projects and approvals issued for grid connections, the number is higher than an acceptable level for safe and reliable operation of the Czech Republic's electricity system," the operator CEPS said in a statement.

"Unless there is a quick change in the rules for connection of these sources, CEPS will be forced to take them out of operation, mainly when preventing or resolving emergency situations. That could mean a threat for investments... into solar and wind power plants."

Ouptut of wind and solar plants is volatile due to changing weather, and sudden output surges or drops put pressure on grid operators who need to keep the power systems stable.

The feed-in tariffs are guaranteed by law, and can only be changed by 5 percent per year. Analysts have said that return on investments into solar power plants has soared and investors can recover their input in significantly less than 10 years.

CEPS said that the Czech power system already included 600 MW in solar and wind plants, and a further 3,500 MW capacity has been approved.

The company said it had asked the country's power distribution companies, CEZ (CEZPsp.PR), E.ON EONG.DE and Prazska Energetika PREG.PR to halt issuing approvals for grid connections.

It said it would seek to define new rules for project approvals with the distribution companies.

The parliament has been discussing a law that would allow faster cuts in the feed-in tariffs for new plants built as of next year, prompting a rush in investment activity this year. (Reporting by Jan Lopatka; Editing by Keiron Henderson)