Czech Minister: Solar Cuts a Priority
THESTREET - The political battle over solar feed-in tariff incentives in the Czech Republic has taken a more public -- and high profile -- turn. On Monday, Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer told a Czech newspaper, E15, that the government's priority is to pass a bill that would cut the rates paid to producers of renewable energy, notably solar companies.
Prime Minister Fischer argued to the Czech newspaper -- in an article quoted by Bloomberg -- that without a substantial reduction in the feed-in tariffs, the rate of solar growth in the Czech Republic would lead to a "significant" increase in electricity prices for consumers. In previous weeks, the Czech state-run grid operator has made its case that the rate of solar expansion may be too fast for the grid and could lead to problems in energy distribution -- and even the need to shut down conventional power plants during peak seasons.
