Since 2017, Vietnam’s solar market has grown rapidly under strong policy support, especially feed-in tariff incentives. This drove fast capacity expansion but also exposed grid constraints as development outpaced transmission infrastructure. As subsidies gradually phased out, market logic shifted from policy-driven growth to energy security and system stability.

The National Energy Administration recently held a national monthly dispatching meeting on renewable energy power development and construction, disclosing that as of the end of April, the cumulative grid-connected capacity of wind and solar power reached 1.911 billion kW (including 1.25 billion kW of PV and 661 million kW of wind power), and wind and solar power generation accounted for 24.1% of total societal electricity consumption. The meeting outlined seven key tasks, including increasing the grid connection and accommodation of new energy, promoting the implementation of direct green electricity supply policies, and accelerating the construction of large-scale wind and solar power bases.

Colombia’s system operator XM has completed its latest Firm Energy Obligations auction, awarding 4.07GW of new net effective capacity for the period from Dec. 1, 2029 to Nov. 30, 2030. Solar accounted for 1.55GW, alongside 246MW of wind and 2.28GW of thermal capacity. A total of 77 out of 85 participating plants secured allocations, including 29 solar projects. Although solar represented nearly 38% of newly awarded capacity, it accounted for only 7.7% of total firm energy allocated, reflecting Colombia’s reliability charge mechanism, which favors technologies with higher dispatch firmness. SMM believes solar is gaining a stronger role in Colombia’s capacity market, but storage, hybridization and improved dispatchability will be key to strengthening project revenue stability.

Record industrial demand, supply deficits, and new U.S. policy changes now place silver at the center of modern manufacturing.

Romania’s Environmental Fund Administration may not run the Casa Verde rooftop solar grant program this year, after the scheme was also suspended last year. The program previously covered up to 90% of household PV system costs, but local reports suggest it may be transformed into a battery storage grant scheme for prosumers, of which Romania now has more than 250,000. RPIA said a proposed EUR 76 million budget in 2026 is expected to support hybrid PV-plus-storage systems for residential and C&I users, mainly targeting existing PV prosumers. SMM believes Romania’s policy focus is shifting from pure solar capacity expansion toward higher self-consumption, grid flexibility and distributed system resilience, with storage becoming a key driver for continued rooftop PV growth.

Mendoza province has inaugurated the 360MW El Quemado Solar Park in Las Heras, making it the largest photovoltaic plant in Argentina, surpassing the 315MW Cauchari complex. The USD 220 million project was originally developed by provincial utility Emesa and later acquired and built by YPF Luz, with the first 100MW unit entering commercial operation last December. The plant covers around 620 hectares and includes more than 511,000 bifacial modules, 5,800 trackers and 1,170 inverters, with an estimated capacity factor of 31.4%. With El Quemado online, Mendoza’s installed solar capacity now exceeds 700MW, while its project pipeline is expected to surpass 1GW.