Solar power in Austria
As of the end of 2013, Solar power in Austria consisted of 690 MW of cumulated photovoltaic capacity, of which almost 40 percent were installed within the last twelve months. As with most other European countries, 99 percent of all solar power systems are connected to the electrical grid.[1] Austria has also a large capacity of solar heating at its disposal. With more than 3,500 MWthermal the country ranks second in the EU, only behind much larger Germany.[2]
In 2009, the site of Zwentendorf power station became Austria's largest solar power station with an investment of 1.2 million Euro, with the addition of 1000 photovoltaic panels.[3] Zwentendorf was intended to be Austria's first nuclear power plant, but after a vote in 1978 prohibiting nuclear power in Austria, was never completed.[4]
In September, 2011, Austria's largest solar power station, 2 MW, was under construction in the Niedere Tauern mountain range.[5]
Photovoltaic deployment in Austria had been rather modest for many years, while in other European countries, such as Germany, Italy or Spain installations were booming with new records year after year until 2011. The tide has turned in 2012, as annual PV deployment jumped to more than 200 megawatt in an overall declining European solar market. The European Photovoltaic Industry Association forecasts, that Austria, together with other midsized countries, will contribute significantly to European PV deployment in the coming years.[6]
Photovoltaic installations
From the IEA-PVPS report TRENDS 2014 in Photovoltaic Applications, p.23[7] —
- Austria’s support for PV relies on a mix of capped FiT and investment grants. Due to a cap on the tariffs, the development of
PV in Austria remained quite low, with a market below 100 MW until 2011. With 176 MW in 2012 and 263 MW in 2013, the market progressed faster. Off-grid development amounted to 0,5 MW installed in 2013. Systems below 5 kW are incentivized through a financial incentive that can be increased for BIPV installations. Above 5 kW, the Green Electricity Act provides a FiT that was reduced in 2013. The FiT is guaranteed during 13 years and financed by a contribution of electricity consumers. Some financial grants can be added for specific buildings. In addition to federal incentives, most provinces are providing additional incentives through investment subsidies. Self-consumption is allowed for all systems. Self-consumption fees have to be paid if the self consumption is higher than 25 000 kWh/y. Rural electrification in remote areas not connected to the grid is incentivized through an investment subsidy up to 35% of the cost.
Statistics
| Austria 2013 - key figures | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Final Electricity Consumption | 56 TWh | ||
| Inhabitants | 8 million | ||
| Irradiation | 1,027 kWh/kW | ||
| PV Installations in 2013 | 263 MW | ||
| PV Cumulative Capacity in 2013 | 626 MW | ||
| PV Penetration | 1.1% | ||
| Source: IEA-PVPS, Trends2014[7] | |||
| Year | Added (MWp) |
Cumulative (MWp) |
Refs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 0.8 | 3.7 | Trends2013 |
| 2000 | 1.2 | 4.9 | Trends2013 |
| 2001 | 1.6 | 6.5 | Trends2013 |
| 2002 | 3.8 | 10.3 | Trends2013 |
| 2003 | 6.5 | 16.8 | Trends2013 |
| 2004 | 4.3 | 21.1 | Trends2013 |
| 2005 | 2.9 | 24.0 | Trends2013 |
| 2006 | 1.6 | 25.6 | Trends2013 |
| 2007 | 3.1 | 28.7 | Trends2013 |
| 2008 | 3.7 | 32.4 | Trends2013 |
| 2009 | 20.2 | 52.6 | Trends2013 |
| 2010 | 42.9 | 95.5 | Trends2013 |
| 2011 | 91.7 | 187.2 | Trends2013 |
| 2012 | 176 | 362.9 | Trends2013 |
| 2013 | 263 | 626 | Trends2014 |
| 2014 | 140 | 766 | Snapshot2014 |
| Source: IEA-PVPS, Trends2013,[8] Trends2014,[7] Snapshot2014[9] | |||
See also
- List of renewable energy topics by country
- Solar power in the European Union
References
- ↑ EUROBSER'VER. "Photovoltaic Barometer - installations 2012 and 2013". http://www.energies-renouvelables.org''. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 September 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
- ↑ EurObserv'ER: Solar thermal and concentrated solar power barometer - May 2014
- ↑ History
- ↑ Austrian Nuclear Plant Becomes Solar Power Station
- ↑ Albasolar provides 2MW for the largest solar Park in Austria
- ↑ "Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics 2014-2018". www.epia.org. EPIA - European Photovoltaic Industry Association. pp. 21, 24, 27, 31. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 June 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "IEA PVPS TRENDS 2014 in Photovoltaic Applications" (PDF). http://www.iea-pvps.org/index.php?id=trends''. 12 October 2014. p. 23. Archived from the original on 2 December 2014.
- ↑ "IEA PVPS TRENDS 2013 in Photovoltaic Applications" (PDF). http://www.iea-pvps.org/index.php?id=92''. 29 November 2013. p. 39. Archived from the original on 17 March 2015.
- ↑ "Snapshot of Global PV 1992-2014" (PDF). http://www.iea-pvps.org/index.php?id=32''. International Energy Agency — Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme. 30 March 2015. Archived from the original on 30 March 2015.
External links
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||