According to data recorded by the Spanish Photovoltaic Union (UNEF), the majority association of solar energy in Spain that already has more than 800 companies, in the second quarter of 2024 there has been a rebound in the pace of self-consumption installation in Spain, installing 413 MW of new power, 41% more than in the first quarter of the year.
The industrial sector leads the recovery, installing 47% more compared to the first quarter of 2024, with 221 MW of new installations. This is followed by the residential sector, which shows a 31% increase in the installation rate compared to the previous quarter, with 107 MW of new self-consumption installed during this second quarter. Finally, the commercial sector experiences a growth of 29% more in new installed power, 78 MW.
For their part, isolated installations represent 2% of the installed power in the quarter and show the potential of self-consumption to bring clean energy to remote areas.
José Donoso, general director of UNEF, has positively valued these results: “At UNEF we see these data as a good sign, which demonstrate the resilience and growth potential of self-consumption in Spain and denote growing citizen interest in adopting this clean and efficient technology. The figures indicate that more and more Spaniards are aware that with self-consumption, your roof becomes your personal power plant, offering energy independence and savings because the sun rises every day and does not charge a bill.”
The UNEF Self-Consumption Observatory highlights that this upward trend is due to reasons such as the drop in interest rates that makes facilities more financeable, greater awareness of the benefits of self-consumption or the growing perception of its value as an investment for the future. .
“Now it is time to continue supporting this citizen interest with the promotion of self-consumption from the institutions: our next challenges are to regulate the figure of the self-consumption manager, extend the simplified processing and simplified compensation to all facilities with access capacity of up to 450kW or promote attractive tax reduction measures for those who invest in self-consumption, in addition to applying 0% VAT to the elements of the installation,” says Donoso.
Regarding the notable increase in the industrial sector, UNEF concludes that it is closely related to future European regulations. The review of the EU Emissions Directive, which will expand the emissions rights system from 2027, is encouraging small and medium-sized industries to invest in self-consumption. These companies have less than three years to adapt and maintain their competitiveness, and photovoltaic self-consumption is presented as an effective solution to reduce emissions and energy costs, preparing them for the future regulatory framework.
“We are seeing the fruits of information campaigns and new initiatives to support self-consumption. Citizens and companies are increasingly understanding the long-term value of investing in solar energy: self-consumption is the best umbrella for the storm of prices,” adds Donoso.
UNEF underlines the importance of maintaining this momentum and calls on public institutions to continue working hand in hand with the private sector to promote self-consumption. “It is crucial to continue simplifying administrative processes, offer attractive tax incentives and promote the training of professionals in the sector,” he emphasizes.
Looking to the future, UNEF states that “Self-consumption is key to the energy transition and the fight against climate change. It is important to work to continue improving these results because they will bring us closer to the objectives of the National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC). and will reinforce Spain’s role as a leader in solar energy,” concludes Donoso.
UNEF reaffirms its commitment to continue working to promote self-consumption in all sectors, thus contributing to a cleaner, sustainable and economically beneficial energy future for all Spaniards.
