National Incentive Programs for CSP – Lessons Learned

Abstract

Acknowledging that Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) stands out among other renewable technologies for technical features such as dispatchability - through storage and hybridization - and its potential for higher macroeconomic impact on the local economy, national and regional governments have set up incentive programs to promote the development of large scale solar thermal plants in recent years. These support mechanisms have largely contributed to the rapid growth of the global market since 2007. While Spain and USA remain leaders, representing most of the current ∼2.5 GW in operation, other countries have emerged within a short time as very ambitious players.In our research, we reviewed some of the most relevant national incentive programs introduced worldwide: Spain, India, South Africa, Morocco and Australia. The paper will give an overview of the mechanics of the different markets, covering key aspects such as: capacity allocation, phases and timelines, qualification criteria, technical and financial requirements, local content requirements, etc, and how these elements affected competition, tariffs and the global outcome of the programs.The lessons learned from the analysis constitute a useful set of guidelines for policy makers and developers, and could contribute to the design of future effective support mechanisms that will pave the way for the further uptake of CSP technologies.The research presented in the paper has been undertaken in the framework of a technical assistance to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy of India on the preparation of the Utility Scale Concentrated Solar Power Program.