The opening session of this year’s conference was a particularly special moment for SolarPower Europe, as our CEO Walburga Hemetsberger received the Becquerel Prize for Outstanding Merit in Photovoltaics, which is awarded each year to an individual who has demonstrated significant continuous contributions to the development of photovoltaic solar energy. In her acceptance speech, Walburga Hemetsberger reflected on some of the milestones achieved during her time at the helm of SolarPower Europe, including EU Solar Strategy, REPowerEU and the European Solar Charter, and thanked her team, saying; “Whatever I have been part of achieving has always been the result of teamwork. I have been extremely lucky to work with brilliant colleagues over the years, and I want to highlight in particular the SolarPower Europe team – whose dedication, creativity, and commitment I value enormously. Any success I am being recognised for today belongs as much to them as to me.”
During the first day of the conference, Walburga Hemetsberger participated in a moderated panel discussion titled ‘Solar in Turbulent Times: Global Dynamics and the Way Forward,’ and moderated the opening session of the Industry Summit, ‘Solar PV production in Europe – the way forward,’ which looked at how module production in the EU can scale up to a multi-gigawatt capacity through innovative technologies and EU and regional government support. Later in the day, Head of System Integration Catarina Augusto moderated a session of the Industry Summit titled ‘PV Systems: how do we get the produced electricity in Europe into the grid?’ This session explored the importance of both innovative solutions and collaboration across different industries in achieving the full potential of renewable energy sources throughout the EU.
On the second day of the conference, Walburga Hemetsberger participated in a session organised by Women in PV focused on ‘Embracing the 6 Traits of Inclusive Leadership,’ where she was assigned to guide the group discussion on the cognisance of bias. In the afternoon, Catarina Augusto moderated a session hosted by SolarPower Europe titled ‘Advancing the EU Grid (and Flexibility) Package: Research Supporting Flexibility in the Energy Transition.’ This centred on the main elements needed for the package and highlighted how flexibility contributes to strengthening grid resilience, improving market design, and promoting sector integration. At the end of day, Head of Supply Chains Anett Ludwig unveiled SolarPower Europe’s new study ‘Reshoring Solar Manufacturing to Europe.’ The discussion that followed dived into the impacts of the Net-Zero Industry Act, as well as cost gaps in the EU solar manufacturing sector and possible financing solutions.
On the third day, Head of Market Intelligence Raffaele Rossi contributed to a panel discussion on the 'Challenges and Opportunities of PV up to 2030,' where he emphasised how; “Policymakers must strive to improve framework conditions to ensure an attractive solar business case across all segments, while at the same time pulling the right levers to enhance product circularity.” Later in the day, Head of Research & Innovation Thomas Garabetian was a speaker at a parallel event organised by ETIP PV, ‘How Innovations in Integrated Photovoltaic (PV) Technology Can Address Emergency Situations,’ where he presented the Solar for Ukraine campaign and Increase’s activities in Ukraine.
EU PVSEC also provided an excellent platform to highlight the contributions of our partner research projects, such as EVERPV and Increase. These EU-funded projects focus respectively on end-of-life strategies for solar technologies and the integration of solar panels into buildings and infrastructure.
This year’s edition of EU PVSEC served as a valuable forum for exchanging ideas and shaping the key priorities of the European solar PV industry.
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