By Paul Davies and Michael Green

The first solar farm has successfully launched in the UK without government subsidisation. Clayhill Solar Farm, a 10 megawatt (MW) site near Flitwick in Bedfordshire, is capable of generating enough power for 2500 homes. Clayhill’s developer, Anesco, is a private company specialising in the design and development of solar and battery storage sites.

Renewable energy projects like Clayhill have become increasingly viable in recent years due to the falling cost of solar panels and batteries. In particular, cheaper manufacturing costs have enabled solar generation to become cost-competitive with electricity from fossil fuels. However, despite these favorable conditions, the Renewables Obligation subsidy scheme — one of the UK government’s main mechanisms for encouraging renewable electricity projects — closed to new applicants in March 2017.

By Cesare Milani

On December 7, 2016 the Italian Constitutional Court (the “Constitutional Court”) rejected the appeal filed by four solar energy operators against Art. 26, paragraphs 2 and 3 of Italian Law Decree no. 91, dated June 24, 2014, (the “Decree”, so-called “Spalma-Incentivi” Decree), (introduced in 2014 by the Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s government). The Decree changed the state incentives scheme applicable to the renewable energy sector, with retrospective effect. As a result, the number of years over which the state incentives to solar plants with a capacity of more than 200Kw are spread out, increased.

The Constitutional Court declared the question of constitutional legitimacy concerning the Decree groundless.