Israel unveils plans for 1st solar tenders, 1.6-GW goal - report

The government of Israel has approved a new plan for the addition of 1,600 MW of solar power capacity in three years, mostly on rooftops, Globes reports.

The policy, unveiled by energy and infrastructure minister Yuval Steinitz, aims to lift Israel’s power generation in line with the country’s renewable energy goals. The quota for solar rooftop solar will be divided in two categories -- small residential photovoltaic (PV) facilities and large rooftop business projects. Capacity under the large rooftop scheme will be tendered by the Public Utilities Authority in what will be the first auctions of this kind in Israel.

Projects for small rooftop photovoltaic (PV) installations will not be competing in tenders. They will instead get fixed rates for power sent to the grid.

Contracts for small and large rooftop plants, as well as ground-mounted facilities, will be fixed for a 20- to 25-year period and will be higher for smaller installations, the Public Utilities Authority has said.

Israel has set a target to produce 10% of its total power from renewables by 2020 but currently the share of renewables generation is only 3%. At present, it has 700 MW of projects under construction.

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