User:Watti Renew/Sandbox/Solar

Solar heating
During 2010, the European solar heating yield was 17.3 TWh, annual turnover 2.6 Billion € and employment 33,500 persons (1 job for 80 kW new capacity). Turnover is concentrated in local small and medium businesses.

In June 2009, the European Parliament and Council adopted the Directive on the promotion of the use of energy from Renewable Energy Sources (RES). For the first time, heating and cooling accounting for half of the final energy demand will be covered by a European directive promoting renewable energies. The overall renewable target is legally binding but renewable mix is free. According to the delivered national plans the highest of solar heating markets during 2010-2020 will be in Italy, Germany, France, Spain and Poland in respect to the national target in 2020 and capacity increase. Top countries per capita will be Cyprus, Greece, Austria, Italy and Belgium.

In some European countries the solar thermal market is still in its infancy. Bulgaria, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden, and United Kingdom have extremely low targets in their plans. Estonia, Finland, Latvia, and Romania have not included solar thermal in their national plans at all. Total solar thermal capacity in EU was 14 GW in 2006. According to the National Renewable Energy Action Plans it will be 102 GW in 2020 and over the next 10 years solar thermal will grow on average at a rate of 15% per annum.

Solar power in the European Union

 * Renewable energy in the European Union