Le Fil de la Semaine n°284

Created in 2015, the Comité de gestion des charges de service public de l'électricité (CGCSPE) aims to analyse and evaluate support mechanisms for renewable electrical energy and natural gas cogeneration in continental France. It has studied the cost of support for renewable energies since 2000.

Assuming an average market price for electricity in 2028 of €0.056 per kWh or €0.042 per kWh, the study concludes that the total commitments made by the State between 2000 and 2018 reach €138 to 149 billion.

Photovoltaic energy is lagging behind the aid prior to the moratorium. At the time, the unit cost of support was €0.505/MWh on average. These subsidies made it possible to launch PV in France, but they contribute around €40 billion to this bill. The subsidies that followed the moratorium reached €17 to 19 billion.

Photovoltaic and wind power contribute 77% of the bill. This means that onshore wind power costs between €30 to 34 billion and offshore wind power between €21 to 23 billion.

Of the €138 to 149 billion committed, €103 to 114 billion would still have to be paid. The annuity will decrease sharply after 2029, following the end of the pre-moratorium PV contracts which mobilise €2bn per year over the next ten years.

The co-president of CLER, who is also president of the CGCSPE, points out that " on the one hand, the cost of public support depends mainly on the market price of the energy sector, and on the other hand, the cost of the public support is not always the same.On the other hand, efficiency is not only measured with the sole criterion of cost, but also by looking at the impacts and benefits induced for the territories. »

The CGCSPE wants to extend its work by studying the public service charges of electricity of the new EPP for the continental metropolis.

The president points out that the EPP currently proposed by the government runs the risk of disrupting the electricity market by organising overproduction (and therefore a sharp drop in the price of electricity).The President pointed out that the EPP currently proposed by the government runs the risk of disrupting the electricity market by organising overproduction (and therefore a sharp fall in the price of electricity) if the nuclear reactors are not shut down in line with the expected and necessary fall in consumption and the growth of renewables.From then on, either we let the system fail (risk of bankruptcy of the producers, stop of investments to prepare the future...) or we let the system fail (risk of bankruptcy of the producers, stop of investments to prepare the future...).), or we increase the public support and it is the whole electricity system, and not only RE, which will cost more to the French. »

PV Magazine of July 3rd

NDLR These retrospective analyses have the merit of giving orders of magnitude to operations. It was difficult to imagine that pre-moratorium photovoltaic aid would have cost so much... Through these figures, wind energy contributed approximately the same amount as solar energy to this expenditure : 77%, from €138 to 149 billion, indicates that these two renewable energies have created a bill of €106 to 115 billion. However, onshore and offshore wind energy created a bill of €51 to 67 billion, compared to €57 to 59 billion for photovoltaic energy. To better perceive the interest of these two renewable energies, these amounts should have been compared with the volumes installed over the period.

* Testimony on the difficulties of setting up self-consumption

Self-consumption is having a hard time establishing itself in France. There are only 40,000 households that use their own production compared to 500,000 families in Germany. There is also an imbalance in production: PV provides 2% of French electricity consumption, compared with 11% in Germany. The fall in panel prices makes self-consumption quickly profitable, but it is not taking off in France.

Distributor EkWateur presents its experience of the obstacles to its spread.

- Many individuals have been fooled by so-called professionals. The installed panels have been unable to function. In 2016, 200 complaints were filed with the DGCCRF. The profession must organise itself to distinguish between good craftsmen and mediocre ones. Why not rate professionals in order to build a directory of companies that can be trusted?

- The cumbersome and illogical administration is holding back volunteers from self-consumption. In 2017, the public authorities have opened up the possibility for distributors other than EDF to buy back excess energy produced by private individuals. Self-consumption has not taken off because of administrative constraints: a private individual interested in signing a contract to resell his energy to supplier X, other than EDF, must first sign a purchase obligation report with EDF, then wait for the return of this contract signed by EDF. He must then ask EDF to transfer it to supplier X. From then on, the customer's energy will be for supplier X... from 1st January of the following year. Finally, unless the transfer took place after October 1st^, in which case the transfer will take place on January 1st of year n+1! However, ekWateur's experience shows that EDF takes eighteen months to sign the contract, blocking its transfer over this period. Result: if this individual made his request in August 2017, his resale contract is not effective at the supplier he has chosen until 1 January 2020. This is enough to discourage more than one customer.

- Finally, the third brake: subscribing to the transport network. If the individual does not want to follow this route of selling electricity at the subsidised rate, he can sell his surplus energy to another supplier at a price that is often lower than the subsidised price. A system slows down any attempt to do this: the price of a subscription to the Enedis distribution network (an EDF subsidiary) - initially set at 11 euros per year without resale of energy - then rises to 20 euros per year for a resale contract.

Thus, the public authorities have curbed the development of self-consumption, but the rise in the price of electricity from the network should encourage the French to equip themselves with solar panels by 2020 or 2021.

Tecsol of 4 July

Editor's note This testimony speaks for itself.

Such a situation stems from the place taken by EDF in the supply of electricity. In a monopoly situation for several decades, the national company has developed exclusionary attitudes towards any company that could nibble away at a share of energy distribution. Hence the eighteen months it takes to sign a transfer of supplier, hence the penalties imposed by its subsidiary Enedis on the ambitious who would like to free themselves from EDF's tutelage.

As indicated in the Regard sur le PV n°282, France would have a lot to gain by splitting EDF. Will we succeed?

* Reactions to the results of the CRE 4-7 call for tenders

According to CRE:

This seventh period proved to be non-competitive in that the volume filed represented only 74% of the power sought, despite a doubling of the cumulative power of the files filed compared to the sixth candidacy period. After several years of gradual decline, the prices charged by applicants were up sharply - between +19% and +27%, depending on the family - compared to the fifth period, the last period in which the volume filed exceeded the power sought. There is no justification for such an increase. In addition, the costs declared by the candidates are slightly lower than in previous periods. Consequently, "the price increase is therefore undoubtedly the consequence of the candidates' anticipation of the lack of competition in the current period of the call for tenders, in line with the results observed in the sixth period".

CRE noted that some of the projects proposed were at a higher price than those eliminated or not selected in the previous auctions (14 projects with an average increase of €13 per MWh). Other projects are repeating earlier projects that have already won, with higher tariffs than in the past (26 projects identified for an average increase of €20 per MWh). CRE believes that these applicants have decided to seize the opportunity of a probable lack of competition in order to be designated winners again at a higher tariff. In total, their cost amounts to €90 million more than the average price of the 5th^{call for} tenders.

CRE wants to find a solution to this drift by reducing the volume offered, postponing the date of the next call for tenders, and lowering the price ceilings to avoid bids at higher prices. CRE suggests eliminating the lowest 20% of projects (in cumulative power) when the volumes of compliant projects are lower or barely higher than the volumes sought.

Tecsol of¹ July

Editor's note: This is where the limits of tendering come into play. An agreement between bidders to offer higher prices than they could get in a highly competitive environment. A 19% to 27% increase in prices or an additional €90 million in a single call for tenders is not acceptable, especially in a period of falling panel prices, and when the State announces that it wants to be exemplary.

Is it necessary to use a different allocation system? Or is it sufficient to correct the defaulting parties as proposed by CRE? The senior administration believes it is capable of running the country and regimenting it. Here, as in many other areas, it shows its shortcomings, because private companies are more agile and more accustomed to business practices than it is. It does not know the concrete conditions of the economy. It leaves loopholes in which companies rush into every day.

According to Atlansun:

Atlansun's president is astonished by the results of the last tranche of the call for tenders published on 26 June. "This call for tenders was subscribed to only 50% of the volume called. However, 20% of the eligible files were not retained. This was done in total contradiction with the valid specifications for this tranche. So only 40% of the possible volume was allocated, which goes against the ambitions of the EPP, slows down the dynamism of our solar sector and slows down our Energy Transition, which we want to be efficient". He asks the minister to review the attribution of this call for tenders.

Tecsol of July 2

* The current provisions of the Energy-Climate Bill

The energy-climate bill, which is being examined by the National Assembly, currently includes the following measures:

- Article 6 of the draft law stipulates that new warehouses and supermarkets and car park shades will henceforth have to integrate, at the time of their construction, 30% of their roof surface with solar panels, or be subject to greening ;

- Article 4 ter of the draft law creates the possibility of installing photovoltaic panels by derogation in areas of technological risk prevention: these areas not used for housing can more easily become areas for the production of renewable energy ;

- Article 4 also makes it possible to legally secure the environmental authorisation procedures for renewable energy projects (photovoltaic installation, geothermal or low-power hydroelectricity projects) by clarifying the legal regime for environmental assessment.

PV Magazine of 29 June

* Self-consumption has found its champion

Réservoir Sun, a company co-founded by Engie and Casino, provides self-consumption solutions to businesses and communities. In eight months (almost since its creation), the company announces that it has secured 70 MW to be built and will reach 100 MW by the end of the year. Réservoir Sun has won just over 60% of the latest calls for tenders on self-consumption and has "150 to 200 MW of projects at the negotiation stage". The projects cover the whole of France

The company is convinced that "the motor is no longer the sunshine, but the price paid by the customer on the network". "The price of storage is falling as fast as the price of photovoltaics in the past," adds its manager. The offer would arrive in France in about three years' time.

PV Magazine of 5 July

Editor's note A company that only seeks to increase self-consumption and is turning away from large power plants, this is original. This example is, for us, symptomatic of the future of photovoltaics, which is going to be implanted as close as possible to the users to avoid transporting energy, and to avoid the use of land that is destined for other uses. PV will conquer other spaces (roofs) that are currently unoccupied. However, nature abhors a vacuum. We had presented this development in the "Regard sur le PV" (last week's issue of PV View), No. 283, indicating a change in the location of photovoltaic installations.

In addition to opening up an original and apparently promising avenue if we are to believe its contract announcements, this company is going to organise the industrialisation of installations, making it possible to lower prices and thus make rooftop installations cheaper and more attractive for holders of virgin surfaces.

The company wants to make itself known. At the same time, it is going to attract other companies who will smell the vein. We shouldn't complain because not only is there a niche to be filled, but there is a definite future. The more candidates there are, the greater the cost reduction will be.

* Recom-Sillia works well

Recom announces the construction of a 300 MW panel factory in Belarus (in Minsk). It should be operational in October 2019. Its production equipment should come mainly from Asia. Production will be sold mainly in Europe, but also in the United States and Asia.

In 2019, Recom transferred its headquarters from Düsseldorf (Germany) to Lannion (France) where the plant produces 300 MW of panels per year. It is currently being modernised. Recom produces cells in Padua (Italy), a factory that also needs to be modernised.

PV Magazine of 3 July

Editor's note Although there is no published account of the company, it seems that it is doing well: production capacities are being increased at the Lannion plant as was the case in 2018. New capacity is only envisaged, as in Belarus, when there is no longer sufficient production at the main plant. With Minsk, Recom is looking for a location to reduce costs and avoid customs duties, particularly American ones.

The only limit to this strategy is that production capacity is insufficient to benefit from significant economies of scale.

* Financial aid to install charging stations

To speed up the development of electric vehicle charging stations, the French government presented two new financial aid packages on 4 July. The investment represents €16 million.

L'Usine Nouvelle of 5 July

* A new rise in electricity this summer?

Following the 6.8% increase introduced on 1 June, the^CRE, applying the energy code, is proposing to the ministers an average increase in regulated electricity sales tariffs (TRVE) of 1.23% (incl. VAT) at the height of the holiday season. This would be explained by the change in the tariff for the use of public electricity networks (TURPE) on 1 August.

When consumers are fed up with the increases, they will turn to self-consumption.

Tecsol of July 2nd

Editor's note Rather than presenting the results of the calculations, it would be more useful to know the factors taken into consideration in order to better engage the readers. An increase of 8% (6.8% + 1.2%) is a lot in a period of low inflation, especially in the midst of foggy calculation conditions.

Afterwards, we are surprised by the discontent of the French people.

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THE SUBSIDIARY

* New world record for low prices: below 0.02 $ / kWh

The Brazilian auction A-4 awards 211 MW of solar power at a price of $0.0175/kWh, which is a new world record. These 211 MW are divided into five projects with a unit production capacity of 30 MW and a 61 MW power plant, with the smaller projects ending at a price of $0.016888/kWh. The average price returned to $0.01752 per kWh.

Last week, 200 MW in Los Angeles were contracted on the basis of $0.01997/kWh, which is the lowest bid in the US.

The threshold of $0.03/kWh was crossed in 2017 in the Middle East and North Africa.

When companies bid for projects in the coming years, they try to anticipate price trends. The new batch of record-breaking solar energy projects indicates that system costs may fall even faster than the rate of decline usually expected. A recent study by Taiwanese market research firm Energytrend predicted that panel prices, particularly in the high energy segment, would fall in China, with the rest of the world set to see a ripple effect this week.

PV Magazine of¹ July

Editor's note A new record low in the price of kilowatt-hours can only be welcomed. It is curious that it is taking place in Brazil.

The remark of a new and significant drop in the price of panels, which is reportedly in preparation, is explained on the one hand by the slowdown in PV installations in China: they will be comparable in 2019 to that of 2018, while production capacities have been increased. On the other hand, it would also be explained by the ambition of certain manufacturers to increase (almost inconsiderately) the volume of their production tool, who want to improve their cost price through economies of scale and stifle competition that cannot (or will not) follow this race to gigantism. Indeed, within twenty months, LONGi, Zhonghuan, Tongwei, ... will have tripled or quadrupled their production capacities, and perhaps also JinkoSolar (other manufacturers may be following this movement without publishing their ambitions). These producers will have a volume of production which will force them to sell, by breaking the prices. They will crush the competitors under the mass of products and prices. In two years' time, there will be only a small number of players left.

* MaxSolar's experience with purchase contracts

The managing director of the German company MaxSolar is studying the implementation of two purchase contracts: one of 0.5 MW with the client Pantograph. The other comprises two solar parks with a total capacity of 10 MW with Offtaker. In spite of the surcharge, the company believes that it will be able to obtain higher revenues with a purchase contract than with a tender.

In both of the current projects, MaxSolar has concluded agreements with companies via the grid. Banks appreciate the free market more than individual customers. Going through the network is a guarantee of reliability and the possibility of replacement in the event of customer failure.

Of course, there is a great deal of uncertainty about the future development of electricity prices. This applies to both signatories. Therefore MaxSolar does not enter into contracts with a term of more than 5 years, a term which is appreciated by the banks.

Purchase contracts will develop because many companies have not yet realised that energy will cost them a lot of money if they are not careful about their CO2 emissions. It's not just a question of generating and buying energy, but also of storing and capping the peak load. The long-term stabilisation of energy costs is becoming increasingly important. MaxSolar sees great potential in the 1 to 3 MW range, as it knows how to do this, and there is a lot of potential for installations in this power range, for example on rooftops.

SolarServer from 24 June

Editor's note If you look at the time of the conclusion of the contract, the five-year term is a good one, because you can count on a rise in the price of electricity from the network. The subsequent price will depend on the development of the kilowatt-hour price on the free market. This provides greater scope for adjusting prices at the end of the term.

For us, the major difficulty with these five-year contracts is the price competition for newly built power plants. These will have a lower cost price than older plants. The customer will have the choice between a new power station with a very low price and an old power station with a higher cost price that cannot be lowered because depreciation must be included in the prices. What will the owners of power plants built in the past do then?
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THE WORLD

* Why the abolition of customs duties on two-sided panels?

The US decision to remove tariffs on double-sided panels is creating a wave of optimism among panel manufacturers. On the one hand, double-sided panels are becoming cheaper on the American market, and on the other hand they are becoming a technological reference for the future. Their generalisation will lead to their domination of the market. The Chinese manufacturers, who suffer from numerous trade barriers on the American market, will transfer this manufacture to South-East Asia.

Despite these advantages, two-sided panels, which are more expensive than single-sided panels, suffer the handicap of not having a power capacity because this depends on the reflection of the ground (called albedo) which varies according to its composition. This makes them more difficult to sell to the institutions that finance the installations.

This reduction in customs duties by the United States comes at a time when developers are led to place orders for panels to freeze the tax credit, which is due to decrease from 2020. Large volumes of double-sided panels are expected to be delivered to the US before the end of the year for this purpose.

GreenTech Media of¹ July

Editor's note It is difficult to detect in this decision whether it is a dumpling or the effect of a high strategy: a dumpling because the United States wants to exert commercial pressure on China. A few quarters after introducing Section 201 tariffs to encourage production on American soil, the removal of tariffs for one category of panels runs counter to this policy and is hardly understandable. It paves the way for significant imports, the opposite of what was behind the tariff decision.

A high strategy effect? For the moment, there are few manufacturers of double-sided panels in the world. Their production volume is estimated at 1% of world capacity. Abolishing customs duties will give a boost to sales of this type of product and oblige manufacturers to rapidly adapt their capacities. Is this a way of forcing them to quickly change their production tool instead of a more gradual change? In other words, is it a way of disrupting their industrial life like the customs duties introduced in 2012/2014 that forced them to relocate their production? Is it because this type of panel has a higher conversion rate and is therefore more attractive?

It is difficult to see the reason for such a decision.

* Germany wants to set up a battery industry

The German Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) is considering applying to the European Commission for authorisation to provide state aid for the industrial manufacture of mobile and stationary batteries. It is a question of organising a sector starting from the extraction of raw materials, to elaborate electrode materials, then to integrate them into the battery cells.

Europe lacks lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite, which are used in the composition of lithium-ion battery cells.

In Germany, consortia of investment and research projects are subject to an examination procedure under national financing legislation. At the same time, the projects must be notified to the European Commission in accordance with state aid legislation. The aim is to complete the national approval procedure and the European notification if possible by the end of the year.

SolarServer of 5 July

NDLR Having noted that the speeches between Franco-German ministers were not advancing the project of a European battery industry, the pragmatic Germans wanted to launch such an activity on their own. They were to be congratulated on this and acknowledged that they were right. It was time to set up such an activity. The industry is not the domain of speeches. Relying on their own forces, the Germans will succeed.

* 4.4 GW installed in three months in Vietnam!

The end of the favourable feed-in tariff in Vietnam on 30 June led to a very high level of solar installation activity. Operating capacity rose from 10 MW at the end of June 2018 to 4.45 GW one year later, of which 4.3 GW was commissioned in the second quarter of 2019, and 60% inaugurated in June alone! 82 power plants were connected over the period.

The Norwegian consulting firm Rystad Energy, which revealed this phenomenon, indicates that Vietnam has progressed faster than Australia, where installations have increased from 0.6 GW to 2.7 GW in one year (at the end of June 2019).

With the tax benefits being removed, the facilities will be much smaller in the second half of the year with only 0.63 GW, while Australia will commission an additional 0.8 GW-ac for a total of 3.5 GW planned for 2019.

PV Magazine of 5 July
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PRODUCTS

* Virtual centre with 10,000 participants

The Japanese company Eneres wants to launch a virtual centre with 10,000 participants. He will use the software of the Californian Autogrid. The first phase of the project will bring together only on-demand resources. The second phase from 2021 will create the virtual power plant by adding storage, photovoltaic production, electric vehicle batteries and combined heat and power assets.

In Australia Western Europe, the American Sempra Energy has launched a decentralised energy management platform (PXiSE) and will manage a virtual power station with up to 50,000 participants.

AutoGrid has subcontracted 5 GW of distributed energy resources "and works with more than 50 major energy companies worldwide".

PV Magazine of^1st July

* 20.8% CIGS solar cell

The German Empa Institute has developed an efficient and flexible CIGS solar cell which achieves a new record efficiency of 20.8%. They have improved their previous record by 0.4%.

Future developments will focus on transferring this process from the laboratory to industrial scale in order to increase the energy production and profitability of photovoltaic power plants.

https://www.solarserver.de/solar-magazin/nachrichten/aktuelles/2019/kw27/flexible-duennschicht-pv-mit-mehr-als-20-wirkungsgrad.html

SolarServer of the 5th of July

Editor's note The real difficulty begins, that of moving from the laboratory to industry. Here it's still easy because it's all about technique. Then there will be the marketing phase and the organisation phase of a company. This explains why it is so difficult to go from a laboratory success to a commercial success.

* An electrolyte battery made of liquefied gas

Scientists at the University of California at San Diego have developed an electrolyte that is compatible with lithium metal anodes, allowing an energy density far greater than that of current Li-ion batteries. The key innovation is a liquefied gas electrolyte (LGE). Researchers were able to create a lithium battery cell that retained an efficiency of 99.6% after 500 cycles at room temperature (20 degrees Celsius) and 98.4% at -60°C.

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2019/07/04/unlocking-lithium-metals-stored-potential/

PV Magazine of 4 July
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THE COMPANIES

* CATL increases its investment in batteries in Europe sevenfold

The Chinese manufacturer of CATL batteries is raising its plans to build a battery factory in Germany. Previously, €240m was to be invested there.

The amount now rises to €1.8bn. The world's leading battery manufacturer has bought the Arnstadt factory which used to belong to Solarworld. The previously announced production workforce of 600 people will increase to 2,000 when it starts up in 2022.

PV Magazine of 2 July

Editor's note CATL is simply learning from the inertia of the few battery manufacturers in Europe to embark on mass production. Even if the ministers are keen to do so, the industrialists do not have the guarantees they want. They want to be sure that the Brussels authorities will not let them down by favouring Chinese imports, as was the case for panels. Moreover, we are in the midst of a major renewal of the Union's staff. We don't know what policy will be followed. European industrialists are waiting. Foreign competitors are taking advantage of this to gain a foothold on the market.

* An Italian opens a panel production factory in China

Italy's FuturaSun inaugurates a 500 MW panel production plant in China (in the province of Jiangsu). Two of the four lines are already operational. The last two will be operational "soon". The Italian company already has a 150 MW factory in Maanshan (China) and a partnership in a factory in Vietnam.

PV Magazine of July^1st

Editor's note It is very rare to hear of a European who has all his panel production in China. If he increases his production capacity considerably, it is because business is going well for him. His experience would be interesting to know.
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MISCELLANEOUS

* New mega-project in Abu Dhabi

After the 1.17 GW Noor Abu Dhabi solar park has been commissioned (The1.78 GW Noor Abu Dhabi solar park has beencommissioned), the Emirati electricitycompany EWEC is launching a tender for a 2 GW Al Dhafra project. The project is due to be completed in the first^{quarter of} 2022.

PV Magazine of 5 July

* An exhibition of electric and hybrid ships

The electric and hybrid boat show was held a week ago in Amsterdam. The world's leading battery manufacturers exhibited their latest charging technologies, meeting the growing demand for clean and efficient marine electric and hybrid systems.

PV Magazine of 3 July

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Le Fil de la Semaine n°284

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