Why the solar sector will become a pillar of Brazil’s economy

Solar energy is anticipated to turn out to be the primary supply of vitality in Brazil, offering alternatives for funding and growth, if accompanied by satisfactory insurance policies and incentives.

Rodrigo Sauaia, president of the photo voltaic affiliation Absolar, spoke to BNamericas about what is required and the place the sector is headed.

BNamericas: What are these sector expectations for 2023?

Be a part of: Our Absolar projections present that we are going to see an growth of 10.1GW in photovoltaic photo voltaic vitality, which implies we’ll attain 34GW in operational put in energy by the tip of the 12 months.

This growth represents a complete funding of 50bn reais (US$9.4bn) and the creation of 300,000 jobs.

BNamericas: What explains this growth?

Be a part of: A number of essential components occurred.

Within the final decade, now we have noticed a technological evolution within the photo voltaic vitality sector and this has resulted in a rise in effectivity and a lower in gentleness price. This represents a price discount for the ultimate shopper. Within the final decade, the value of photo voltaic vitality has decreased by 86%, and it has turn out to be extra inexpensive power supply.

This reality has already occurred in different international locations. In international locations that focus 60% of the world’s inhabitants, we will already see that the price of photo voltaic vitality is cheaper than thermoelectric, coal and wind vitality.

As well as, in recent times the electrical energy costs have elevated in Brazil, even above inflation, was vastly influenced by the water disaster, which compelled the nation to activate thermoelectric vegetation, which elevated the costs of the speed flags.

One other benefit of photo voltaic vitality is that the set up time may be very quick. It’s doable to put in a photo voltaic system on the roof in simply in the future. A big photo voltaic plant takes 18 months to put in, which is much less time than it takes to construct a thermoelectric and even nuclear energy plant, to not point out that it requires much less upkeep. .

BNamericas: Do the emission discount objectives of firms from completely different sectors additionally profit from photo voltaic vitality tasks?

Be a part of: The sustainability issue is essential. The eye of society and traders to endurance the problems are growing. Giant firms have sustainability objectives and have to generate vitality from renewable sources.

BNamericas: How will the expiration of economic incentives for photo voltaic customers on January 6 have an effect on the sector?

Be a part of: For many who wish to generate their very own photo voltaic vitality, the expertise stays engaging and constructive, even after January 6, when the brand new guidelines of the authorized framework for the technology of renewable vitality have begun.

This authorized framework creates predictability and continuity for the sector, because it allows a easy transition in relation to the price of the electrical energy sector. We should keep in mind that this price problem solely impacts customers who share the surplus vitality generated by the grid and never self-consumption.

If we have a look at the payback interval for the funding, we see that the benefits stay unchanged.

BNamericas: How the brand new authorities can contribute sector growth?

Be a part of: Actually, to succeed in these projected numbers, we want good public insurance policies, good authorities applications and good incentives to maneuver ahead.

At the moment, Brazil practices a contradiction, as a result of public insurance policies within the vitality sector profit extra fossil fuels than renewable sources.

Given what now we have seen from the speeches of this new authorities, which stated in its first days that it intends to prioritize the vitality transition, we would like these speeches to be reworked into follow. It is a level that the federal government ought to take an in depth have a look at as a way to speed up the vitality transition and make Brazil a global chief on this course of.

Along with the federal authorities, we want applicable actions and applications in cities and states that encourage photo voltaic vitality. Some states and municipalities have already performed this, such because the Goais Photo voltaic program, Palmas Photo voltaic program and Salvador Program, however these actions are nonetheless remoted, we want a wider growth in relation to renewable vitality in native governments.

BNamericas: Are different public insurance policies wanted for the sector?

Be a part of: We have to work on entry to financing. It’s essential to ascertain public insurance policies that supply financing for the ultimate shopper.

We even have a second in regards to the tools utilized in photo voltaic vitality tasks. We have now the chance to strengthen the trade of native suppliers, however we have to develop a nationwide coverage and legal guidelines geared toward this industrialization.

In the present day now we have about 30 firms in Brazil that produce tools and parts for the photo voltaic sector, however nonetheless, a lot of the tools used within the tasks is imported.

BNamericas: How has excessive rates of interest affected the sector?

Be a part of: The state of affairs of excessive rates of interest was and stays a problem in 2023. Consequently, growth banks equivalent to BNDES, Banco do Nordeste and Banco da Amazônia might be extra essential and promoters of growth.

We have to improve the quantity of financing by these banks for tasks within the sector, as a result of we will appeal to extra investments and create extra jobs and earnings for various areas of the nation.

BNDES, specifically, can be an inducer of growth for native industrial coverage.

BNamericas: Will photo voltaic vitality surpass hydroelectric vitality within the Brazilian electrical energy matrix?

Be a part of: Market analysts say it’ll occur round 2040. I feel so solely a matter of time. It’ll occur.

In the present day, 109GW [of electric energy] generated by hydroelectric vegetation and our projections for this 12 months level to 34GW of photo voltaic vitality. We’re within the third a part of the [the volume of] hydroelectric vitality, which for many years benefited from an unique public funding coverage.

BNamericas: The place are the primary long-term limits to growth?

Be a part of: The excellent news is that there’s a lot of potential for growth in all areas.

Brazil has 92 million electrical energy consumption items, that are residential, business and industrial. Of this complete, solely 2 million are customers of photo voltaic vitality, whether or not customers who’ve their very own technology or who use vitality from some consortium. So now we have 90mn vitality consumption items to discover.

I see inexperienced hydrogen as a EXPANDED border. We have now a job pressure right here at Absolar to discover the potential of this market and I see the chance that the price of producing inexperienced hydrogen in Brazil would be the lowest on this planet by 2030, due to the assist of vitality tasks in photo voltaic and wind.