PGE Polska lands EIB loan: The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved PLN 2.25 billion ($597 million) for Polish utility PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna (PGE) to support its renewable energy projects. To be provided under REPowerEU, these funds will advance the company’s nearly 730 MW of solar PV projects and help upgrade a 540 MW pumped storage power plant in Southern Poland. The projects will be mainly located in regions where GDP per capita is below the EU average. This will strengthen territorial and economic cohesion, said the bank.
Largest financing to date for Technique Solaire: French independent power producer (IPP) Technique Solaire has announced raising a €302 million ($343 million) financing from Bpifrance, Crédit Agricole group and Société Générale. This will support the build of its 341 solar project portfolio with a combined 240 MW installed capacity. These projects are spread across Europe, with 185 MW in France, 32 MW in Spain and 23 MW in the Netherlands. Project construction on most facilities will begin in 2025, and for the remaining in 2026 and 2027. The portfolio comprises PV systems for agricultural sheds, climate shelters, aviaries, greenhouses, ground-mounted farms and floating farms, with a majority of these being regulated tariffs. This is the group’s largest debt raise in the group’s history, both in terms of the amount and power projects financed. Technique Solaire targets to expand its solar energy production capacity from more than 1 GW in operation or under construction now in France, India, the Netherlands and Spain, to 4 GW by 2030. For this, it needs to raise €4 billion ($4.55 billion).
Short-term work at Meyer Burger: Heterojunction (HJT) solar PV manufacturer Meyer Burger Technology AG will introduce short-time work at its Thalheim solar cell manufacturing factory in Germany from May 1, 2025. The decision is intended to save costs in the short term as the company faces ‘temporary material bottlenecks’ in production. For the same reason, the manufacturer has also adjusted the production processes at its Goodyear solar module fab in Arizona, US, which is fed by the Thalheim fab. The short-time work in Germany will impact some 300 company employees. According to the management, further adjustments to the workforce are being prepared to further reduce costs.
Solar PPA in Greece: Switzerland’s Axpo has entered a short-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with EDF Renewables Hellas to source 100% power generated by 2 solar power plants of the latter in Greece. Representing a combined 102 MW installed capacity, the Skala Korinis and Loutsa solar power plants were built in the Viotia region in 2023.
287 MW RE changes hands in Italy: Renewable energy developer Limes Renewable Energy has offloaded 287 MW worth of solar PV and wind energy projects in Italy. The buyer is an international IPP with presence in the country, it said. Split equally between solar PV and wind projects, the portfolio comprises 50 MW of PV projects already authorized. On completion, these assets will generate close to 669 GWh/year. Limes said it will continue to provide development support until these reach ready-to-build (RTB) stage.
110 MW solar and storage project: Fortis Energy of Turkey will build a 110 MW Erdevik Solar Power Plant in Serbia with an integrated 31.2 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS). To be located in the Šid region, the hybrid facility has secured approval for its grid connection study. Fortis says it has formally initiated the process of concluding the grid connection agreement with the national transmission system operator Elektromreže Srbije. Fortis had earlier announced a framework agreement with PowerChina to cooperate on the development of 850 MW of wind and solar power projects in Serbia and Southeast Europe (see Europe PV News Snippets: John Smirnow On US’ IRA Impact On PV Manufacturing At RE+ & More).
Huasun’s new offerings at Intersolar: Huasun Energy, the leading heterojunction (HJT) solar module manufacturer, will be exhibiting its 2 new next-generation HJT innovations at the upcoming Intersolar Europe 2025. “In addition to its commercial-ready product portfolio, Huasun will officially unveil two groundbreaking innovations at the exhibition—technologies that push beyond the conventional efficiency limits of silicon solar cells and significantly expand the application potential of traditional solar modules. These advancements are expected to unlock substantial new market opportunities and mark a significant milestone in the evolution of solar technology,” stated the manufacturer. Intersolar Europe will be held from May 7 to 9, 2025 in Munich, Germany. Huasun Energy’s Director South Asia Abhishek Kaushal was among the speakers at the TaiyangNews Solar Technology Conference.India 2025 (see TaiyangNews STC.I 2025 Day 1: Innovation & Strategic Collaborations Key To India’s Solar Manufacturing Success Story).
157 MW deal for European market: China-based SUMEC Group has signed a 157 MW high-efficiency solar module supply agreement with a European PV module distributor. They plan to cooperate for innovative PV applications in the future, including carports, agricultural greenhouses, storage integration, among others.
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