Countries have implemented different systems to encourage investments in renewables – one of these is determining quotas for companies to meet.
Entries tagged with "Feed-in tariff"
Sun-drenched and zephyr-kissed, Spain occupies a corner of Europe that is ideal for solar and wind power. After an initial surge of investment in renewables, the flaws of the government’s energy policy became evident, and the authorities slammed the brakes on investment. There are signs that they may now be relenting.
A feed-in tariff is a policy that supports the growth of renewable energy. It determines the prices per kilowatt hour of a system over its lifetime, plus a return on investment.
When heat is generated from renewable energy – such as biomass and solar thermal – one speaks of “renewable heat,” but the term can also encompass the recovery of waste heat for heating applications.
An Europe-wide emissions trading system (EU-ETS) puts a limit on emissions for the long term. It aims to lower greenhouse gas emissions in industry, the power sector, and most recently the aviation sector.
This law is the basis for Germany’s Energiewende and specifies 1. priority dispatch for renewable power and 2. floor price for that electricity. The resulting high level of investment security and the lack of red tape are the main reasons why the EEG has brought down the cost of renewables.
Germany has implemented a number of laws and programs for its energy transition, and there are also some at the level of the EU. The most important ones are listed below.