Recently, Italy’s energy agency GSE (Gestore dei Servizi Energetici) officially launched the second photovoltaic auction under the “transitional” FER X incentive mechanism, drawing widespread attention from the industry. A total of 818 projects submitted applications for this auction, with a combined capacity of 10.1 GW.

According to GSE, this tender is open to commercial and industrial PV projects as well as large-scale power plants. The bidding period is set from October 17 to November 16. However, it is noteworthy that for small-scale PV projects with a capacity not exceeding 1 MW, the Italian government has explicitly imposed restrictions, prohibiting the use of Chinese-made modules, cells, and inverters. This move is seen as Italy’s response to relevant EU policies, aimed at promoting the development of the local and EU PV manufacturing industry and enhancing the security of the energy supply chain.

Looking back at the first FER X auction, the market response was also active, with 1,387 projects submitted, totaling 17.537 GW. Pre-qualified developers are required to submit their final bids by September 12. In the most recent auction (Round 16) under the old FER X mechanism, GSE awarded 53 PV projects with a total capacity of 278.5 MW, along with two wind power projects totaling 88.4 MW. In the previous round, the maximum discount offered by developers ranged from 2.01% to 7.91% of the auction’s ceiling price of €0.078175/kWh (approximately $0.084949). The final lowest winning bid was €0.07199/kWh, which corresponded to a 2.7 MW PV plant in the province of Ancona in central Italy.

The final results of this round of bidding will be announced on December 11. The minimum allocated capacity is expected to be 200 MW, with a maximum of up to 1.6 GW. Industry experts point out that this series of tender activities will significantly impact the landscape of Italy’s renewable energy industry, and subsequent developments are worth continued attention.