CSP Global Market Initiative

Objectives

The Global Market Initiative for Concentrating Solar Power (GMI-CSP) is part of the worldwide action programme adopted as a result of the International Conference on Renewable Energies by the participants in Bonn in July 2004. The aim of the GMI-CSP is to create appropriate conditions conducive for the worldwide implementation of projects aiming at the solar thermal generation of energy by coordinating the efforts of all parties concerned. The elimination of existing obstacles in the electricity markets of the suitable countries situated in the sun-belt of the earth is just as part of the initiative as the provision of funds for the implementation of concrete projects. Specifically, the aim is to achieve an installed solar thermal capacity of approximately 5.000 MW by the year 2015, so as to achieve the threshold price competitiveness in the market by significantly reducing the cost of this technology.

For this purpose, a visible, reliable and growing market for solar thermal power with normal risk levels must be established in order for project developers and CSP equipment suppliers to make the needed long-term investments to achieve acceptable investment costs, and hence competitive rates. The following policy areas will have the greatest impact on the use of concentrating solar power. Each country or state participating in the CSP GMI will contribute with the following policy measures:

• Targets: As the overall goal of the CSP GMI is 5,000 MWe to reach cost competitiveness by 2015, national and/or regional targets will be set for CSP capacity.
  These targets may be a specific number of MW over a certain period of time, or may be a percentage of CSP within the new capacity to be built over a certain period of time, as in Renewable Portfolio Standards.

• Tariffs: The level of revenue for CSP projects needs to be adequate to encourage private sector investment and provide a stable investment climate. This can be achieved by feed-in tariffs, production tax credits, or public benefit charges specific for CSP. These supports will be designed to reduce over time as the CSP technology becomes competitive in the power market after 5,000 MWe of CSP has been built by 2015. Coordination with participating neighboring countries, states or regions with preferential tariff schemes will allow CSP based electricity imports from high solar radiation areas (and therefore lower electricity costs). The use of longterm power purchase agreements or similar long-term contracts with credit-worthy offtakers, or equity ownership by public organizations will build confidence of investors and financial institutions.

• Financing: Cooperating bilateral and/or multilateral financial institutions will ensure that project-related flexible Kyoto instruments such as Clean Development Mechanisms and Joint Implementation Actions become applicable to CSP and ensure that the mechanisms are bankable. The establishment of national or regional loan guarantee programs via existing windows at multilateral banks, national lending programs and global environmental programs, such as GEF, UNEP, and UNDP will further reduce the inherent risk of introducing new technology for private sector banking institutions. Investment tax credits, which stimulated the first 354 MWe of CSP plants in the United States, should be maintained and production tax credits similar to those that have stimulated the growth of wind power in the United States should be made available to CSP plants. Cost-shared development of transmission lines between regions with excellent solar resources and urban load centers, even across borders of participating countries and regions will optimize the development and exploitation of all regional resources.

• Regulation: Limitations on CSP plant capacity or operating strategies that make the technology introduction more costly need to be avoided. Legal restrictions and barriers to allow more cost-effective connections of CSP plants to the electric grid at the end user (customer), distribution and/or transmission points shall be identified and eliminated.

In the CSP Global Market Initiative (PDF 1.727kB) the following organizations have joined forces to aggregate there individual efforts to promote, develop and implement Concentrating Solar Power projects:

• the governments of Algeria, Egypt, Germany, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Morocco and Spain

• the Global Environmental Facility, who had allocated a total of 200 million USD for the implementation of four CSP projects in Egypt, India, Morocco and Mexico

• the UNEP-GEF Technology Transfer Networks of the United Nations Environment ProgrammeDivision of Technology, Industry & Economics

• the German Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau, who had been supporting the implementation of a CSP Project in Mathania, India, since 1986 and who had been appointed in 2001 as the administrator for the German CSP R&D projects by the German Ministry for Environment

• the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) of the U.S., whose members have been promoting and developing CSP projects in the U.S. and in Mexico.

• the European Solar Thermal Industry Association (ESTIA), whose members have been promoting and developing CSP projects in the Mediterranean countries of Europe and North-Africa and

• the IEA SolarPACES Implementing Agreement, whose 13 member countries have advanced the CSP technologies in the last twenty years by international cooperative Research and Development.

To achieve their objective of launching the CSP Global Initiative, the involved stakeholders have started in 2002 the following CSP GMI process:

• Formulation of the Berlin Declaration in June 2002 in Berlin

• Registration as Type II Partnership at the WSSD in Johannesburg in August 2002 and Work Group Meetings

• Launching the CSP GMI in Palm Springs in October 2003

• Endorsement of the CSP GMI at the Renewables 2004 Conference in Bonn by Algeria, Egypt, Germany, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Morocco, Spain and Nevada.

• Further endorsement in 2005 by Jemen and Nevada

The next envisaged steps in CSP GMI process are:

• Seek formal endorsement with the supporting CSP GMI states and countries to the GMI targets and actions

• Start the process for opening the European and US market for renewable electricity to imports of CSP electricity from the Southern Mediterranean and Mexico

• Monitor the implementation of the action plan and facilitate networking support where needed

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