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1. European Electricity Market Update – April 2025

As we move deeper into 2025, the European electricity market continues to show signs of stabilization, yet regional price disparities and supply challenges remain front and center. Here’s your concise update on the latest trends shaping electricity prices across Europe.

📊 Wholesale Electricity Prices: Stability Amid Regional Variations

• Italy leads with the highest wholesale prices in Europe, reaching up to €153.83/MWh in February 2025.

• In Central and Eastern Europe, Poland tops the charts with prices exceeding €137/MWh, while Latvia and Lithuania hover near €122/MWh.

• The price of natural gas remains a key factor, with Dutch TTF gas futures at €40.67/MWh for April 2025 — about €13 higher than last year, reflecting ongoing supply constraints.

🏠 Retail Electricity Prices: Elevated but Stabilizing

• Household electricity prices remain elevated compared to pre-crisis levels:

  • Germany: €0.40/kWh

  • Denmark: €0.37/kWh

  • Belgium: €0.34/kWh

  • Italy: €0.33/kWh

• Countries like Hungary (€0.11/kWh) and Slovakia (€0.18/kWh) enjoy comparatively lower rates.

• Despite wholesale price stabilization, retail prices have not dropped as rapidly due to contract structures and national mitigation policies.

🔍 Market Outlook & Insights

• Wholesale prices have steadied since the 2021–2023 energy crisis but remain above historical averages.

• The EU’s energy import bill, while reduced from its peak in 2022, still poses economic challenges.

• Industrial electricity prices in Europe are currently 2–4 times higher than in major global competitors, raising competitiveness concerns.

• The European Commission underscores the need for continued policy action to balance affordability, competitiveness, and decarbonization goals.

Expect continued efforts across Europe to manage energy affordability and supply security while accelerating the transition to renewable energy. Market dynamics will remain sensitive to gas prices and geopolitical developments, so stay tuned for further updates.

2. 🌬️Germany Shatters Onshore Wind Permitting Record in Q1 2025

Germany has kicked off 2025 with a remarkable milestone in its energy transition journey. The country broke its previous record for onshore wind permitting in the first quarter, signaling strong momentum for expanding wind power capacity on land.

Record-breaking permits: Germany approved more onshore wind turbine installations in Q1 2025 than ever before, reflecting accelerated efforts to meet climate and energy goals.

Leading turbine suppliers: Vestas and Nordex topped the rankings for turbine installations during this period, underscoring their pivotal role in Germany’s wind energy expansion.

Notable projects: RWE’s Königshovener Höhe wind farm exemplifies the scale and ambition of new developments fueling Germany’s green energy growth.

🌍 Why This Matters

• The surge in permitting marks a critical step toward Germany’s target of significantly increasing renewable energy capacity by 2030.

• Expanding onshore wind resources is essential to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and achieve carbon neutrality.

• This momentum supports Europe’s broader energy security and sustainability objectives amid ongoing geopolitical and market challenges.

Germany is well-positioned to accelerate construction and commissioning of new wind farms throughout 2025 and beyond. Continued collaboration between policymakers, developers, and turbine manufacturers will be key to sustaining this growth trajectory.

3. Germany’s PV Market Sees Significant Drop in Installations in March 2025

Germany’s solar energy sector experienced a notable slowdown in March 2025, with new photovoltaic installations dropping sharply compared to previous months. 

📉 March 2025 PV Installations at a Glance

• New capacity added: Approximately 787.2 MW of PV capacity was installed in March.

•  Comparison: This is less than half of February’s 1,665 MW and significantly lower than March 2024’s 1,401 MW.

• Lowest since December 2022: The March figure marks the weakest monthly performance in over a year.

• Q1 2025 total: Despite the March dip, the first quarter saw a total of 3.78 GW installed, slightly up from 3.71 GW in Q1 2024.

•  Cumulative capacity: Germany’s total installed PV capacity reached about 104 GW by the end of March.

🏠 Rooftop and Solar Parks

• Around 25,000 new rooftop solar systems were installed in March, adding 385 MW down from previous months.

• New rules introduced in February limit payments for solar power when electricity prices are very low and set new limits on small systems without smart meters.

• Solar parks added 280 MW in March, much less than in February, but this number can change a lot month to month.

⚡ What This Means

• New government rules are slowing down some solar installations, especially smaller rooftop systems.

• Despite this, Germany’s solar market is still growing steadily overall.

• We’ll keep watching how these changes affect solar energy in the coming months.

4. 📉 Renewable Energy Stocks See Mixed Performance This Week

The renewable energy sector experienced a mixed week ending March 28, 2025, with some stocks dropping as much as 5.5% while others showed modest gains.

📊 Weekly Stock Performance Highlights

🔍 Key Company Updates

• Waaree Energies approved new manufacturing lines in Texas (1.6 GW) and Gujarat (3.2 GW), boosting its production capacity.

• Adani Green Energy increased its renewable capacity to 13,487.8 MW with new projects commissioned in Gujarat.

• KPI Green Energy’s subsidiary won contracts for solar projects totalling 13.8 MW.

• Inox Wind reported strong income and profit growth over recent quarters, maintaining analyst optimism despite the stock dip.

• Premier Energies faces short-term margin pressure due to falling prices of non-DCR solar modules but remains a key solar manufacturer.

• Suzlon Energy is well-positioned to benefit from India’s ambitious wind capacity target of 100 GW by 2030.

• NTPC Green Energy began commercial operations of the final 100 MW segment of its 320 MW solar project in Rajasthan.

• Acme Solar Holdings plans a ₹32,000-35,000 crore investment by 2027 to expand its portfolio from 2.5 GW to 7 GW.

📈 Market Outlook

While benchmark indices like NIFTY and SENSEX gained over 1% this week, renewable energy stocks showed mixed results driven by company-specific developments and sector dynamics. Investors should watch for ongoing capacity expansions and policy impacts shaping the green energy market.

1 . ☀️ ReNew Starts Large 1.3 GWp Solar Project in Rajasthan, India

ReNew, a leading Nasdaq-listed clean energy company, has inaugurated a landmark 1.3 GWp solar project in the Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan, marking a major milestone in India’s renewable energy journey. 

🌟 Project Highlights

• Location: Spanning approximately 3,500 acres across several villages in Jaisalmer’s Pokran and Bhaniyana areas.

• Capacity: 1.3 GWp solar power plant using ReNew’s own solar panels.

• Made in India: 90% of the solar panels are manufactured at ReNew’s Jaipur factory, supporting the government’s Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) initiative.

• Electricity Supply: The project will provide power to Rajasthan consumers at a competitive tariff of INR 2.18 per kWh.

• Impact: Expected to generate 2,490 million units of electricity annually, enough to power around 500,000 households.

• Environmental Benefit: Will offset approximately 2.3 million tons of CO2 emissions each year.

• Community Benefit: Local villagers receive fixed income from land lease agreements for 25 years on uncultivated land used for the project.

This project is a significant step forward for India’s clean energy ambitions and a strong boost to local economies and sustainability efforts.

2. 🌊 Siemens Gamesa Marks Milestone with 14 MW Offshore Wind Turbine Installation in Taiwan

Siemens Gamesa has achieved a major milestone by installing the first of 66 SG 14-236 offshore wind turbines, each with a massive 14 MW capacity, at Ørsted’s Greater Changhua 2b and 4 offshore wind project in Taiwan.

⚡ Project Details:

• Turbine model: SG 14-236, Siemens Gamesa’s latest 14 MW offshore wind turbine.

• Project: Greater Changhua 2b and 4, a flagship offshore wind farm developed by Ørsted.

• Location: Taiwan’s coastal waters, a rapidly growing hub for offshore wind energy.

• Significance: This installation marks Siemens Gamesa’s first deployment of the SG 14-236 turbine, showcasing cutting-edge technology designed to deliver higher energy output and efficiency.

• Scale: 66 turbines will be installed, contributing significantly to Taiwan’s renewable energy capacity and climate goals.

🌍 Why This Matters 

• The SG 14-236 turbine features a rotor diameter of 236 meters, enabling it to capture more wind and generate more power.

• This project supports Taiwan’s ambition to expand offshore wind capacity and reduce carbon emissions.

• Siemens Gamesa’s advanced turbine technology is a key driver in accelerating the global energy transition toward cleaner, sustainable power.

3. ⚡ Fronius Launches New Hybrid Inverters for Residential and Commercial Use

Austrian inverter manufacturer Fronius has introduced its latest hybrid inverter series, Fronius Verto Plus, designed specifically for small residential and commercial solar applications.

🔋 Key Features of Fronius Verto Plus

• Versatile applications: Ideal for farms, small businesses, and single or multi-family homes.

• Flexible installation: Supports complex roof layouts, multiple module orientations, and mixed module types.

• Power options: Available in six models with rated AC power from 15 kW to 33.3 kW.

• Compact design: Measures 865 x 574 x 279 mm and weighs 43 kg.

• Robust build: IP66-rated for protection against dust and water, with regulated air cooling.

• Wide voltage range: DC voltage range of 150–1,000 V and three MPPT inputs with two DC connections each.

• Temperature resilience: Operates efficiently between -25 °C and 60 °C.

• Advanced safety: Includes automatic arc fault detection (AFCI).

• Enhanced power output: When paired with battery storage, can supply three-phase emergency power and boost PV system output by up to 150% with Dynamic Peak Manager for shading management.

🔒 Data Security and Quality Assurance

• Fronius emphasizes high data security standards, storing all customer and system data exclusively on European servers.

• The company follows ISO27001-certified information security protocols and conducts regular security audits.

The Fronius Verto Plus is a powerful, flexible, and secure inverter for diverse solar setups, maximizing energy yield and reliability in challenging conditions.

1. 💧 Testing Floating Solar Panels at Different Heights🌍

Researchers from Curtin University Malaysia recently conducted a fascinating study comparing the performance and thermal behavior of floating photovoltaic (FPV) panels installed at different heights above water, alongside a land-based PV system.

🔍 Study Setup

• Location: Miri, East Malaysia, over a 5-meter-wide water channel.

• Panels: Three 100 W monocrystalline PV modules (15.5% efficiency).

• Configurations:

  FPV Low Height: 250 mm above water.

  FPV High Height: 800 mm above water.

  Land PV (LPV): 800 mm above ground.

• Tilt angle: 15° (ideal for Malaysia), facing south.

🌡️ Thermal Behavior & Cooling Effects

• The high-height FPV panel showed the greatest cooling effect, maintaining temperatures 0–2°C cooler than the land PV for 57% of the daytime.

• The low-height FPV was about 2°C cooler than the land PV only at sunrise but generally had minimal cooling benefits during the day.

• Cooler panel temperatures help improve efficiency and power output.

⚡ Performance Highlights

• The high-height FPV outperformed the low-height FPV by up to 2.45% in peak power generation.

• It also exceeded the land PV’s peak output by 1.47% during the afternoon.

• The low-height FPV’s performance was close to or slightly below the land PV system.

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