от ivo1009 » 06.12.2011 18:27
India, the world's third-largest energy consumer, is cutting solar-power costs to a record by forcing project developers into auctions, helping avoid the spiraling renewable-energy subsidies that have hurt Europe.
The lowest bid in India's latest national auction on Dec. 2 came from Solairedirect SA, France's second-largest producer, which offered to sell photovoltaic electricity at 7,490 rupees ($147) a megawatt-hour. That's 38 percent below the average price set in a December 2010 auction and about 30 percent cheaper than the global average for solar projects.
Governments in Europe including Germany and Spain, the world's largest solar-panel markets, this year cut above-market rates paid to all plant operators that led to ballooning costs amid an escalating debt crisis. India is staying ahead in driving down costs by forcing companies to compete on price.
Solairedirect's offer is the third-cheapest on record globally behind a bid for $110 a megawatt-hour in China and $120 in Peru, according to Jenny Chase, the Zurich-based head of solar analysis.
In clean-energy auctions this year in Brazil, Uruguay and Peru, wind farm and solar park developers have won contracts to supply power at rates close to or below fossil fuel-based power.
Global solar power prices are plunging because of declining equipment costs, with the spot price of solar panels dropping about 40 percent this year as manufacturers, especially in China, ramped up production.