[SMM PV News] Greece Launches First ’Apollo‘ Auctions for 600 MW Renewable Capacity; Solar-Storage Capped at €80/MWh

[SMM Analysis: Space PV Stimulates Market Sentiment to Heat Up, Yet the Path to PV Commercialization Remains Long] On January 22, Musk strongly endorsed space PV during the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, and disclosed key capacity plans. Musk stated that SpaceX and Tesla are simultaneously advancing solar capacity expansion, aiming to achieve an annual solar manufacturing capacity of 100 GW within the next three years to power ground-based data centers and space AI satellites. Following the earlier visit by Musk's SpaceX team to China to meet with Chinese PV enterprises, market sentiment in the PV sector further rose.

Omani manufacturer United Solar Holding has commenced production at its polysilicon facility in the Sohar Freezone, targeting an annual capacity of 100,000 metric tons, which enough to support 40 GW of solar modules. The milestone follows the closure of a massive debt financing package in mid-January totaling over $900 million, split between a $480 million facility led by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and over $400 million from local commercial banks. The project's largest shareholder, Future Fund Oman, has increased its stake to approximately $260 million.

Italy deployed 6,437 MW of new photovoltaic capacity in 2025, a 5% decrease from the 6.8 GW added in 2024, bringing the country's cumulative total to 43.5 GW. The overall decline was driven by a sharp 24% contraction in the residential sector and a slowdown in commercial installations. However, the utility-scale segment surged by 15%, connecting 3.4 GW of new capacity largely due to a wave of previously issued authorizations. This growth was heavily backloaded, with the final quarter alone accounting for 2.4 GW of the year's total, fueled significantly by projects larger than 10 MW.