«Lately renewables are on all politicians´ lips but little is being done to favor them,» said José Miguel Villarig during the presentation of the Study of the Macroeconomic Impact of Renewable Energies in Spain, presented by APPA, the association he chairs.
The press has been called once again for a presentation of the most relevant data of the battered renewable sector, but before Villarig wanted to give his point of view on some issues that are still keeping him up at night: the tariff deficit, the auctions, the remuneration to renewables...
José Miguel Villarig told us that the thirty years of APPA´s presence ran parallel to the evolution of renewable energy in Spain, a few years in which a hard battle has been waged to implement them in the energy mix and integrate them into the grid. By the way the integration was represented by REE´s Electric Control Center whom the entire sector is very proud of
During those thirty years, APPA and other associations that were born later have tried to make society understand the economic and environmental benefits of the development of renewables. It has been a hard job, but today it is already recognized that for example in 2016 they produced an average saving per MWh acquired of € 21.50, and that had this production not existed, the price would have been € 61.17 instead of the final 39.67€.
Or that they generated savings of 5,370 million euro in the electricity market and also prevented the emission of 52.2 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere.
Data and more data that substantiate the speeches of the renewables supporters throughout those thirty years, and that finally the politicians have adopted, but they do not act.
Villarig complained that Law 24/2013, of December 26, on the Electricity Sector has taken away strong revenues for the sector. Specifically, the «reasonable remuneration» has deducted about 560 million euro. At the time, Villarig explained, it was set at 7.5% on a MWh price that was around 52 €. However, in the first half period, the average price was 38 € MWh, which means that the sector has failed to receive around 560 million euro.
And it is not about him failing to understand that the tariff deficit of 26 billion euro was a drag on development, indeed, according to the association president, it is assumed that it was the result of improvisation and lack of planning. What he complains about is that the modification of the law, apart from reducing the income from renewables, brought with it a regulatory uncertainty that ended investments and paralyzed the sector.
And after this paralysis more than 8,000MW are intended to be installed in a couple of years, something that surprises APPA, who disagrees with the way the auctions have been carried-out, especially in the purely speculative first one.
But they look strong, crusted with the layer of patience they have developed over these thirty years. And they see in renewables the future of the world energy because even politicians admit through their speeches that they are right. Renewables are on everyone’s lips.
