Solar energy faces obstacles abroad and at home (3)

The announcement said State Grid will be responsible for covering the cost of the connections.

Tang Wenqian, deputy secretary-general of the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association, said State Grid's new policy will not have a substantial effect on the photovoltaic market.

"State Grid should have helped people connect to its power grid," Tang said.

"The new announcement just shows the company's changing attitude, but big changes will only be possible after subsidy standards come out."

Currently, State Grid pays 1 yuan per kilowatt-hour for the electricity generated by photovoltaic systems. But Tang said the government should offer more subsidies to photovoltaic users.

"The photovoltaic system costs a lot of money, and without government subsidies, users will stick to the cheaper types of power — thermal power, for instance, " she said.

On Dec 19, the State Council held a meeting to discuss measures to boost the development of the solar industry.

Five policies won approvals at the meeting, including various ones that called for exploring the domestic solar-energy market, increasing government subsidies to solar energy users and encouraging more private users to connect their solar-power generators to the grid.