The industry increased its exports by 10% in 2023, exceeding 4 billion euros.
The solar energy sector contributed more than 18 billion euros to Spanish GDP last year, accounting for 1.23% of the total.
With 3.6% invested in R&D, national photovoltaics triples the average expenditure on innovation in the Spanish industry.
The sector generated 160,396 new jobs last year.
A total of 7,489 MW were installed last year, mainly in ground-based installations, which have grown by 26.5% year-on-year.
The weight of photovoltaic energy has grown by 40% in the energy mix, contributing an average of 13.6%.
The Spanish photovoltaic industry continues to consolidate its growth and its contribution to the innovation and wealth of our country, being a fundamental pillar to achieve the energy decarbonization objectives towards which all countries are directing their efforts.
Under the title “Forging the transformation towards sustainability”, the Spanish Photovoltaic Union has today presented its Annual Report, prepared in collaboration with the University of Castilla La Mancha, and which offers an in-depth analysis of the situation of the photovoltaic industry in Spain and in the world.
Driver of employment and prosperity
According to the report, the Spanish photovoltaic industry contributed 18,015 million euros to the GDP last year, representing 1.23% of the national total.
It also stands out as a driver of prosperity thanks to its contribution to tax revenues, which increased by 6%, reaching 2,143 million euros. Of this total, nearly 1.49 billion euros correspond to national taxes, 257.9 million to local taxes and some 395.2 million to social security contributions, data that highlight the sector’s ability to face territorial challenges and contribute to generating equity.
The solar energy industry in Spain during 2023 consolidated its position as a generator of jobs and development for the territories, creating a total of 160,396 new jobs between direct (34,037), indirect (86,968) and induced (41,391) jobs, according to data from the University of Castilla La Mancha.
The expansion path of solar energy in Spain has also been reflected in investment in R&D, which exceeded 610 million euros in 2023, dedicating an average budget of 3.6%, three times the average expenditure on innovation in the Spanish industry.
In the words of Rafael Benjumea, president of UNEF: “This progress not only demonstrates the vitality of our industry, but also its ability to adapt and grow in a changing environment, in which the sector works to overcome new challenges.”
A 40% growth in energy generation
The Report gives an account of the leadership position and the spirit of innovation of the industry during the past year, in which photovoltaic energy was consolidated as the technology with the most installed power in Spain (including ground and self-consumption plants), with 32,488 MW. It follows the line of the global commitment to this technology, since, in 2023; photovoltaics was again the most installed energy source (renewable and non-renewable) in the world.
During 2023, a total of 7,489 MW were installed in Spain, 5.7% more than in 2022. With these installation data for 2023, Spain was ranked as the second European photovoltaic market, breaking the annual installation record.
Also noteworthy is the increase in the weight of Spanish photovoltaic energy in the energy mix, which increased by 40% last year, with an average of 13.6%.
The sector that showed the greatest growth during the year was ground-based plants, with 26.5% more installed capacity, to close at 5,783 MW. With 2,032 MW of new ground-based plant capacity, Castilla La Mancha led photovoltaic development last year.
In the case of self-consumption, 2023 ended with 1,706 MW installed, representing 32% less growth than a year ago.
Challenges and opportunities
UNEF stresses that solar energy offers Spain the opportunity to have competitive electrical energy that favors the industrialization of our economy. Although most of the Autonomous Communities are seeing solar energy as an opportunity for their territory, the association warns that these positive advances that are being carried out in most of the territories contrast with the barriers that are being observed in some Autonomous Communities. “While in general there is a positive alignment between the central government and the communities to advance in decarbonization, we are concerned about actions such as retroactive taxes in Aragon, the unjustified moratorium in La Rioja, the barriers to storage in Asturias or the restrictions on free enterprise in the Canary Islands,” says José Donoso, general director of UNEF.
To promote self-consumption, UNEF considers the support of the administrations to be essential, regulating the figure of the self-consumption manager, extending the simplified processing and simplified compensation to all installations with access capacity of up to 450kW or promoting attractive tax reduction measures for those who invest in self-consumption, such as applying 0% VAT to the elements of the installation.
The sector, they point out, currently has three major challenges. The first of these is social acceptance: that people understand that the projects are positive, that they are located in the right place and that they do not pose any threat to security or to the development of the rural world, but rather the opposite, a great opportunity.
The second major challenge points towards electrification: “the decarbonisation of the electricity sector in our country has been a great success, but we need to move forward in replacing fossil fuels with electric energy,” added Donoso.
Storage would be the third major challenge for the sector: “Including a storage solution for a photovoltaic plant is something as fundamental as the panels themselves,” says Donoso. “The advancement of storage is essential to be able to extend these cheap hours of solar energy beyond the hours of radiation, which will allow us to provide a guarantee to consumers and reduce the consumption of combined cycles.” To this end, UNEF is calling for a specific regulatory and remuneration framework.
“We are on track to achieve the objectives of the PNIEC, provided that the sector and society remain aligned in their achievement, seeking solutions to the challenges that appear at this time,” concluded the UNEF general director.
