EurObserv'ER logo

Solar Thermal policy in Sweden

General
In the EU-directive 2001/77/EG for RES, the indicative target of the electricity consumption in Sweden should increase from 49.1% in 1997 to 60% in 2010. That means 16 TWh of new RES. Although wind power today supplies less than 1% of Sweden’s total electricity production, it has the potential to supply a considerably greater share, making it an area of political priority. In Bill No. 2001/02:143, Cooperation for Reliable, Effective and Environmentally Friendly Electricity Production, the Swedish Parliament has set a national planning target of 10 TWh of electricity from wind power by 2015. Instructed by the Government, the Swedish Energy Agency has proposed a new planning target of 30 TWh of wind power production in 2020. Of this, 20 TWh should be onshore, and 10 TWh offshore. This will necessitate an increase in the number of wind power plants from less than 1000 to 3000–6000.

Swedish RES-E policy is composed of the following mechanisms:

Biomass is a traditional and increasingly important energy source in Sweden. Government policies, especially CO2 taxation on fossil fuels first imposed in 1990, have strongly contributed to this increase. 

According to the Directive 2009/28/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources the target for the share of energy from renewable sources in gross final consumption of energy in the year 2020 for Sweden is 49% (in the year 2005 the share was 39.8%). The Directive has a mandatory 10 % target for transport to be achieved by all Member States, which refers to renewable sources as a whole, not biofuels alone.

Renewable energy projections according to the National Renewable Energy Action Plan for Sweden
The National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP) for Sweden was submitted in July 2010. The target according to Annex I of Directive 2009/28/EC is 49% for the year 2020 and the projected NREAP share in that year is 50.2%.  According to the projection, the most important contribution in the year 2020 is expected from biomass (renewable heating and cooling) (9491 ktoe, 48% of all renewable energy). Second important contribution is expected from hydropower (68.0 TWh or 5847 ktoe, 30% of all renewable energy). The third largest contribution is from biomass (renewable electricity) (16.7 TWh or 1435 ktoe, 7% of all renewable energy). Wind power contributes with 4.5 GW (12.5 TWh) in the year 2020 (onshore wind 4.4 GW and 12.0 TWh, offshore wind 0.2 GW and 0.5 TWh). For solar photovoltaic the 2020 contribution is projected to be 8 MW (4 GWh). For solar thermal the 2020 contribution is projected to be 6 ktoe. The two most important biofuels are projected to contribute 251 ktoe (biodiesel) and 465 ktoe (bioethanol / bio-ETBE) by 2020. The renewable electricity production from solid biomass amounts to 16.6 TWh (1430 ktoe) and for biogas it is expected to be 0.1 TWh (5 ktoe). The consumption of renewable heat is expected to amount to 9415 ktoe for solid biomass and 11 ktoe for biogas.

Renewable heating and cooling policy: solar thermal
Historically the market for solar thermal systems in Sweden has not been strong although growth has been evident in recent years. Between 2001 and 2005 the installed capacity of solar thermal increased from 135 MW (192,157 m2) to 145.8 MW (220,000 m2).

Solar heating is subsidised through two schemes. First, permanent residences and non-commercial buildings receive a subsidy of SEK 2.5/kWh (27.5 €ct/kWh) per year. The maximum annual subsidy is SEK 7 500 (€825) for one-family houses, and SEK 5 000 (€550) for individual apartments. The grant is limited to a maximum of SEK 250 000 (€27,500) per property. Second, since 1 July 2006, commercial buildings are also eligible for the SEK 2.5/kWh (27.5 €ct/kWh) subsidy. The subsidy is granted on the total annual energy production. The maximum grant is 30% of the total costs for material and labour, and it is paid out as a tax refund.

The subsidies for solar heating are in force until 2010, with a total budget of some SEK 150 million (€16,500,000). The buget for 2009 is MSEK  46.4 (approx.M€ 4.4) and in 2010 MSEK 24 (approx. M€ 2.3) plus funds remaining from the previous year.

Future programme changes expected
No information available.

Sources

IEA: Energy Policies of IEA Countries; SWEDEN, 2008 Review, ISBN 978-92-64-04333-6

The National Renewable Energy Action Plans (NREAPs) are all published on the Transparency Platform on Renewable Energy: http://ec.europa.eu/energy/renewables/transparency_platform/action_plan_en.htm (sourced July - December 2010)

Renewable Energy Projections as Published in the National Renewable Energy Action Plans of the European Member States, http://www.ecn.nl/nreap (sourced December 2010)


Interactive EurObserv’ER Database
http://www.eurobserv-er.org
Last update: December 2010


This information can be referenced without permission provided that the source is mentioned completely and correctly: 'Interactive EurObserv'ER Database, http://www.eurobserv-er.org (date of last update)'

Suggestions for improvements to the policy description can be sent to EurObserv'ER by e-mail: project@eurobserv-er.org

The EurObserv'ER barometer is a project supported by the European Commission within the DG TREN 'Intelligent Energy Europe' programme and by Ademe, the French Environment and Energy management Agency. The EurObserv'ER Barometer is the result of the investigation and research work of its authors. The European Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.