Spain's solar PV industry association (ASIF) has announced that according to the Energy National Commission's provisional figures, an impressive 428 MW were connected to the grid in 2007. At the moment there are around 600 MW installed in the country.
The figures are amazing. According to ASIF, the solar PV industry meant investments of 5 billion euros last year, including solar PV facilities (2.5 billion), new manufacturing plants (400 million) and equity investments in stockmarkets (2.1 billion).
In total, the new Spanish solar PV business was worth 7.7 billion in 2007.
Despite the big numbers, solar PV is still tiny in Spain, as it represents no more than 0.05% of the country's electricity. At the moment, there are 569 MW connected to the grid and 24 MW off the grid, able to provide electricity for 210,000 households. On the other hand, the solar PV industry is a great source of employment for Spain; according to ASIF, the solar PV industry has already created around 23,000 jobs, with 15,000 additional people being owners of small facilities.
For additional information:
www.asif.org
