* Distributors, grid operator call for legislation changes
* Stricter rules needed for connecting to grid
* Output from renewables uneven, threatens grid stability
By Jana Mlcochova
PRAGUE, March 10 (Reuters) - The installed capacity of wind
and solar energy projects approved in the Czech Republic is
nearly four times what can be safely fed into the country's
electricity grid, energy distributors said on Wednesday.
The Association of Czech Regulated Electro-Energy Companies
(CSRES) said the installed capacity of all projects approved by
the end of January was 8,063 MW.
The limit from solar and wind projects that won't overload
the grid is 1,650 MW until 2012, which corresponds to installed
capacity of 2,200 MW, according to estimates made by the CSRES.
"We are obliged to connect to the grid or distribution
system anyone who asks if it does not threaten a safe operation
of the system. So our options are limited, it is up to lawmakers
to resolve this," said Petr Zeman, chief executive of grid
operator CEPS and a member of CSRES.
He added it was necessary to adopt legislation that would
help eliminate applications which looked unviable.
The gap between the installed and actual output from
renewable resources is so wide because production is affected by
changing weather.
Meanwhile, projects with installed capacity of 2,352 MW have
already signed connection contracts with operators, the
association said.
CSRES includes the distribution units of central Europe's
largest power utility CEZ <CEZPsp.RP, Germany's E.ON <EONGn.DE>,
Czech power group PRE and grid operator CEPS.
BOOM IN SOLAR POWER
Generous feed-in tariffs -- which guarantee prices far
higher than current market levels -- have led to a boom in solar
plants which guarantee high return thanks to a drop in prices of
photovoltaic panels.
The Czech parliament is debating a bill to reduce regulated
prices for solar energy by more than the 5 percent a year than
they are allowed to fall under current law.
CEZ Chief Executive Martin Roman wrote in an opinion piece
for daily Mlada Fronta Dnes that current prices are around 10
times higher than those determined on power exchanges and said
the situation was unsustainable and would cost consumers up to
1,200 billion crowns ($63.59 billion) over the next 20 years.
The country's grid operator has also warned that a lack of
legislation regulating connection of renewable sources could
threaten stability of supplies because sudden swings in output
pressures the system.
"We need to have some reserves to balance out the
distribution system and the grid...to make up for the various
outages and volatility mainly in production of renewables,"
Zeman said.
Eastern Europe, which relies mainly on coal and nuclear
energy for its electricity production, is lagging behind its
western neighbours in meeting EU renewable energy goals.
The EU wants 20 percent of its energy sourced from
renewables by 2020, from under 10 percent now. It also wants to
reduce dependency on Russian gas imports, amid recurrent tension
over gas supplies between Russia and Ukraine.
(Additional reporting by Robert Mueller; editing by Michael
Kahn and James Jukwey)
