Czech solar installations continue to decline, with ČEZ Distribuce connecting 40% fewer this year

The decline in new solar power installations continues this year. The largest electricity distributor, ČEZ Distribuce, connected 9084 new photovoltaic power plants to the grid in the first half of this year, 40 percent fewer year on year. Installed capacity, which amounted to more than 253 megawatts (MW) this year, fell by roughly a fifth compared with last year. ČEZ Distribuce announced this today. This continues the trend seen last year, when fewer installations were added but the share of larger sources increased.

As usual, more than 72 percent of this year's installations in ČEZ Distribuce's area were microgeneration units of up to ten kW connected to the low-voltage grid. However, their share has gradually declined compared with the past. Larger sources are becoming more common than in previous years. More than 86 percent of new installations are equipped with battery storage.

"We are continually carrying out investment projects to develop, renew and strengthen the distribution system so that we can connect our customers' requests, particularly for renewable electricity sources. This year, we also expect to receive more applications to connect electricity storage facilities, especially battery storage, and a significant amount will also go towards digitising and automating our distribution network," said ČEZ Distribuce CEO Martin Zmelík.

There are now 142.972 photovoltaic power plants connected to the ČEZ Distribuce grid, with an installed capacity of 2798,6 MW. Connecting new sources requires investment in the grid, and ČEZ will invest 19,2 billion crowns in its network this year. The money will go mainly towards upgrades and expansion of its distribution system.

The trend of fewer installations, but often with higher capacity, was also evident last year. A total of 44.593 new photovoltaic installations were commissioned in Czechia last year, 38.106 fewer year on year, although last year's installed capacity of 967 megawatts (MW) was the same as in the record year of 2023. Large-scale and commercial projects began to account for the majority of capacity. By contrast, according to industry representatives, the household market had been largely saturated in previous years, which is why the total number of new sources is lower.