New Build

In July of 2011, the city council of Rosario - a city located between Buenos Aires and Santa Fé - agreed to establish a solar ordinance. However, to put it into practice, the authorities would have to also work out and publish an actual regulation. In December 2011, the environmentalist organisation Taller Ecologista, which put a lot of effort in getting the solar ordinance passed, published its recommendations on how to draft the regulation, including system definitions and technical specifications.
Figure: Taller Ecologista

The change at the helm of government in Italy has already had some positive effects on the solar thermal sector. The tax credit extensions were confirmed earlier than in the years before. At the beginning of December, the government approved the extension until 31 December 2012 under the current conditions. If they had not done so, the tax reduction would have expired at the end of 2011. According to the current regulations – in place since January 2011 – residential customers can deduct 55 % of the investment costs from their income tax during a period of 10 years.

Has observed the German solar thermal market for decades: Graduate engineer Dietmar Lange had, for many years, been Technical Director at various German collector manufacturers and solar thermal system providers until he became a freelance consultant two years ago. Solarthermalworld.org spoke with him about the technological trends and political developments on the largest European market.

The Canton of Geneva is the third one after Basel-Country and Vaud to have approved a mandate for a solar share in domestic hot water generation. Article 15.2 of the new energy law, which came into power in September 2010, stipulates that at least 30 % of a building's hot water demand is to be covered by a solar water heating system. This regulation applies to all sorts of new buildings, as well as to extensions and roof renovations of existing ones.

Every fourth Greek household gets its hot water from heating with the sun. The solar market, however, stagnated in 2010. Substantial support mechanisms are needed to fulfil the objectives of the National Renewable Energy Action Plan.
Photo: Joachim Berner

All new houses built within the framework of “My Home My Life” (Minha Casa Minha Vida), a Brazilian housing programme for families with an income of a maximum of three times the minimum wage in the South, Southeast and Midwest region, will have to be equipped with solar water heaters. The regulation was announced by Inês Magalhães, the National Secretary of Housing, on 5 November in a news article on the Ecodebate website. The mandate will come into force at the beginning of 2011, during the second phase of the housing programme.

Carlos F. C. Faria is the founder of Brazilian consultancy Studio Equinócio - SE and former director of the Brazilian solar industry association ABRAVA. Studio Equinócio is dedicated to the development of solar energy in Brazil. The company works in partnership with industries, associations, banks, local governments and energy utilities to establish a solar energy network in Latin America. At the Eurosun 2010, solarthermalworld.org spoke with Carlos Faria about what drives the market in Brazil.
Photo: Eurosun

Every fifth building permit for new single-family houses in Hawaii included a tankless gas water heater in the first half of 2010. This is a rather large share, if considered that Hawaii has “mandated” solar thermal water heaters since the beginning of 2010.
Photo: www.kleinezeitung.at

David Pérez from the international consultancy firm eclareon, Madrid, took a closer look at the impact of the Spanish solar thermal obligation on demand, products and the value chain, and presented his conclusions at the European Solar Thermal Energy Conference (estec2009) in May.

This overview, which was presented at the 2007 ESTEC conference, summarises the current status of solar thermal legislation in Spain and in the Catalan region in particular. The leading role Barcelona has played in making the installation of solar thermal systems compulsory in new buildings, and the positive results of it, was a catalyst for setting ambitious goals on national level.