Finland’s Energy Authority is calling for tenders in the autumn to select projects for generating renewable electricity, opening the market to competition from other countries. The tenders are for 1.4 TWh of renewable energy a year from investors using wind, solar, biomass, biogas or wave power.
The Finnish government issued a decree following the introduction on 25 June of the act on production subsidy for electricity produced from renewable energy. Minister for the Environment, Energy and Housing, Kimmo Tiilikainen, said the primary purpose of the tenders was to grant production subsidies only to the most cost-effective and competitive projects. The second objective is to verify how different forms of renewable energy production are managed compared to other production types. There will first be a transition period to ensure Finland’s climate goals are reached by 2030. Minister Tiilikainen said this type of energy production will be much more affordable than the current system. Parliament must approve budget authority for government subsidy for the production of up to 1.4 TWh a year, as proposed in the first supplementary budget for 2018, which is now being discussed in parliament. The proposed subsidy would grant funds for 12 years, and it is estimated that the first instalment of the subsidy would be paid in 2020.
The act will amend the law on renewable energy and introduce a premium scheme to promote power plants that use renewable energy sources.
Producers will be granted a subsidy based on this tendering-base premium scheme and will have to produce energy in accordance with the winning tender. Penalties will be imposed by the government on those who fail to comply. The Finnish Energy Authority will publish further details on its website by July.
Zambia: Enel signs contract for photovoltaic project
Enel and Zambia’s electric power agency, Zesco, signed an agreement to start building the 34 MW Ngonye PV plant, in the Lusaka South Multifacility Economic Zone, and to sell the energy over 25 years.
Antonio Cammisecra, head of Enel Green Power, said the agreement gives Enel the chance to establish a strong presence in another African country. Enel is determined to contribute to Zambia’s sustainable power development by using its skills and experience in the clean and renewable energy sector, in cooperation with local partners as part of the Scaling Solar programme promoted by the World Bank.
