To accelerate solar energy expansion in the country, the Federal Council of Switzerland is seeking stakeholder opinion on its plans to offer additional incentives to the market, especially for rooftops and building façades, while also aiming to simplify the approval process for the same.
It wants to ensure investments in PV systems are tax-deductible for new buildings since the allowance is currently available only for renovations, to make the most of untapped potential in this segment. "A notification procedure should suffice for facades, although the cantons in protection zones can continue to require a permit," stated the council.
In addition, the council has also proposed measures to speed up the process of setting up water and wind power plants while ensuring the surrounding eco-system is not harmed. The consultation is open till May 23, 2022.
These measures are part of the government's plans to ensure energy security for the country and expansion of its renewable energy resources in line with the Energy Strategy 2050.
At the end of 2020, Switzerland's total installed solar power capacity was around 3 GW with the addition of 493 MW during the year, up from 332 MW in 2019, according to the Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) (see Switzerland 2020 PV Additions Grew Nearly 50% To 493 MW).
Local solar association Swissolar wants the government to aim for close to 50 GW of solar power capacity by 2050 with the help of 1.5 GW annual additions, if it wants to replace nuclear power from its energy mix. However, the Federal Council only wants to aim for 700 MW annual solar capacity addition from 2023 and 2035.