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Solar power in the European Union

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Solar power consists of photovoltaics (PV) and solar thermal energy in the European Union (EU).

Map of solar insolation on the Europen continent. Annual values range from 900 kWh per square metre (in Northern Scotland) to 1900 kWh per square metre (in Southern Spain).
Solar potential in Europe

In 2010, the €2.6 billion European solar heating sectors consisted of small and medium-sized businesses, generated 17.3 terawatt-hours (TWh) of energy, employed 33,500 workers, and created one new job for every 80 kW of added capacity.[1]

Solar energy, the fastest-growing energy source in the EU, saw an 82% cost reduction between 2010 and 2020. Solar capacity expanded from 164.19 GW in 2021 to an estimated 259.99 GW by 2023.[2]

In 2022, four EU member states—Spain, Germany, Poland, and the Netherlands—ranked among the top 10 globally for additional solar capacity installed in the preceding year.[3]

During 2023, an additional 55.9 gigawatts (GW) of photovoltaics systems were connected to the grid in the European Union, taking cumulative capacity to 263 GW.[4] 2023 also saw a record high 9.1% of EU electricity generation coming from solar power.[5]

EU solar energy strategy

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The EU's solar energy capacity increased significantly from 164.19 GW in 2021 to 259.99 GW by 2023, with employment in the sector growing from 466,000 workers in 2021 to 648,100 by the end of 2022, representing a 39% increase. These developments are part of the REPowerEU plan, which targets over 320 GW of solar photovoltaic capacity by 2025 and nearly 600 GW by 2030. The growth in jobs suggests the possibility of exceeding 1 million solar workers by 2025, ahead of previous estimates for 2030.[2]

In support of its solar energy strategy, the EU has implemented three key initiatives. Firstly, the European Solar Rooftops Initiative aims to increase solar installations on buildings. Secondly, the EU Large-Scale Skills Partnership targets the skills gap in the renewable sector. Lastly, the EU Solar PV Industry Alliance focuses on enhancing solar manufacturing capacity within the EU.[2]

Photovoltaic solar power

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Further information: Photovoltaics and Growth of photovoltaics
 
PV growth in watts per capita from 1992 to 2014
  <0.1, n/a
  0.1-1
  1-10
  10-50
  50-100
  100-150
  150-200
  200-300
  300-450

In 2012, photovoltaic systems with a total capacity of 17.2 gigawatt (GW) were connected to the grid in Europe, less than in 2011, when 22.4 GW had been installed. In terms of total installed capacity, according to EPIA's 2012-report, Europe still led the way with more than 70 GW, or 69% of worldwide capacity, producing 85 TWh of electricity annually. This energy volume is sufficient to power the supply needs of over 20 million households.[6]

In 2011, solar photovoltaic continued its growth trend and Italy was the top market for the year, with 9.3 GW connected, followed by Germany (7.5 GW). These two markets were followed by France (1.7 GW) and the United Kingdom (784 MW). In terms of cumulative capacity, Germany with more than 24 GW, is the leading country in Europe,[6] followed by Italy, with more than 12 GW. PV is now a significant part of Europe's electricity mix, producing 2% of the demand in the EU and roughly 4% of peak demand.[6]

 
PV roof-top system in Berlin, Germany.

In 2011 the EU's solar electricity production is evaluated as ca 44.8 TWh in 2011 with 51.4 GW installed capacity, up 98% on 2010. In 2011 in the EU new installations were 21.5 GW. The solar power share in 2011 was around 3.6% in Italy, 3.1% in Germany and 2.6% in Spain. EuroObserver expects the total installation to reach at least 120 GW in 2020. The national strategies are equivalent to 84 GW solar capacity in 2020 which may underestimate the actual development taking place. For example, according to AGEE-Stat (the Ministry of Environment's Working Group on Renewable Energy Statistics), Germany connected solar capacity 7.5 GWp in 2011, twice the 3.5 GWp target. EU accounted for 74% of all newly connected capacity in 2011. According to Photon International magazine the worldwide solar cell production capacity was 12.5 GW in 2009 and 37 GW in 2011. In 2012, production capacities are set to rise to 69 GW, same as the total installed capacity worldwide at the end of 2011.[7]

Denmark reached its governmental goal of achieving 200 MW of photovoltaic capacity by 2020 already in 2012, eight years in advance. At that time Danish energy sector players estimated that this development would result in 1000 MW by 2020.[8] Croatia as the newest member of the EU has a less than enthusiastic embrace of solar power due to a number of reasons. However, in past few years, Croatian solar energy has seen a dramatic increase in the overall output. From 32.4 MWh in 2012, to an additional 46,2 MWh in 2013 with another 108 MWh[9] awaiting to be connected to the national grid and additional power plants under construction with total energy output exceeding 200 MWh. Croatian national renewable energy strategy is to increase participating share of renewable in overall energy mix from current 15.8% (end of 2012) to around 25% by 2020 with solar generating at least 500 MWh.

PV in the European Union (MWpeak)[10][11][12][13][14][15][16]
# Country 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009
1   Germany 81,737 67,477 60,036 53,669 48,912 45,156 42,291 40,677 39,222 37,898 36,708 32,698 24,875 17,370 9,959
2   Italy 29,789 24,555 22,594 21,650 20,865 20,108 19,682 19,283 18,901 18,594 18,185 16,361 12,764 3,478 1,157
3   Spain 28,712 23,311 13,715 10,136 8,807 4,764 4,723 4,713 4,704 4,697 4,690 4,516 4,214 3,808 3,438
4   Netherlands 23,904 19,600 14,911 11,108 7,226 4,608 2,911 2,135 1,526 1,007 650 321 118 97 68
5   France 20,542 17,341 14,603 12,056 11,917 10,729 8,610 7,702 7,138 6,034 5,277 4,027 2,831 1,054 335
6   Poland 15,809 12,170 7,416 3,955 1,539 562 287 187 108 27 2 3.4 1.8 2 1
7   Belgium 8,549 6,756 6,012 5,573 4,637 4,000 3,621 3,329 3,132 3,015 2,902 2,649 1,812 787 574
8   Greece 7,030 5,430 4,277 3,288 2,834 2,652 2,606 2,604 2,604 2,596 2,579 1,543 631 205 55
9   Austria 6,832 3,792 2,783 2,043 1,702 1,455 1,269 1,096 937 785 626 421 173 103 53
10   Hungary 5,835 4,235 2,968 2,131 1,400 728 344 235 172 89 35 3.7 4.1 2 0.7
11   Portugal 3,876 2,646 1,646 1,100 901 667 579 513 477 415 296 228 143 131 102
12   Denmark 3,529 3,070 1,704 1,304 1,080 998 906 851 782 607 571 391 16 7 5
13   Sweden 3,488 2,388 1,606 1,107 714 428 244 153 104 60 43 23 18 10 9
14   Bulgaria 2,937 1,737 1,275 1,100 1,044 1,033 1,031 1,030 1,028 1,029 1,019 933 132 17 6
15   Czech 2,499 2,420 2,246 2,172 2,111 2,081 2,075 2,068 2,075 2,067 2,064 2,022 1,959 1,953 463
16   Romania 1,917 1,809 1,394 1,383 1,398 1,386 1,374 1,372 1,326 1,293 761 49 2.9 2 0.6
17   Lithuania 1,165 572 255 164 103 82 74 70 69 69 68 6.1 0.1 0.1 <0.1
18   Slovenia 1,034 626 461 370 278 247 247 233 238 223 187 217 90 36 9
19   Finland 900 664 425 318 222 140 82 39 17 11 11 11 11 10 8
20   Ireland 738 289 228 152 96 53 29 11 5 3 1 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6
21   Estonia 690 520 395 208 121 32 15 10 7 3 2 0.2 0.2 <0.1 <0.1
22   Slovakia 631 549 537 535 490 472 528 533 533 533 533 517 488 144 0.2
23   Cyprus 606 424 315 229 151 118 110 84 76 64 35 17 10 6 3
24   Croatia 461 222 138 109 85 68 60 56 48 33 19 20 16 16 12
25   Luxembourg 432 317 277 187 160 131 128 122 116 110 95 76 30 27 26
26   Latvia 353 113 7 5 3 2 1 1 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 <0.1 <0.1
27   Malta 231 222 205 188 151 132 112 94 75 55 29 18 11 2 2
  United Kingdom 16,800 - - - 13,224 13,059 12,760 11,914 9,601 5,528 2,937 1,657 1,014 75 30
  EU (GWp) 251.73 203.26 162.43 136.24 131.02 114.81 106.69 101.11 95.02 86.85 80.33 68.64 51.36 29.33 15.86
PV in watts per capita[13][14][15][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]
# Country 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011
1   Netherlands 1081.5 815.4 636.9 400.6 250.3 160.9 120.1 83.1 65.4 39.6 19.1 7.1
2   Germany 794.2 706.2 645.4 590.4 546.9 512.0 503.1 489.8 474.1 447.2 399.5 304.3
3   Belgium 590.3 544.7 483.0 395.5 373.2 338.4 302.8 286.7 277.2 267.3 240.0 165.5
4   Greece 532.9 371.0 307.3 260.5 246.9 242.2 241.4 241.7 236.8 233.7 136.7 55.8
5   Cyprus 508.4 352.7 256.7 146.9 130.9 123.1 64.7 82.0 75.5 40.2 19.9 12.5
6   Luxembourg 488.4 435.3 296.6 229.0 222.6 215.0 212.8 222.0 200.1 186.2 89.9 59.9
7   Italy 425.5 373.1 364.2 345.7 332.4 325.0 317.7 311.3 303.5 295.1 269.0 210.5
8   Denmark 421.8 273.5 223.6 186.0 173.3 158.3 150.4 138.3 106.9 94.8 70.2 3.0
9   Estonia 396.6 311.3 156.4 80.8 0.0 0.0 7.7 3.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
10   Austria 392.4 314.5 229.1 187.5 162.4 142.3 123.9 108.9 90.6 81.7 49.9 20.7
11   Malta 387.9 369.9 364.8 305.1 276.0 247.9 188.8 170.5 127.5 58.7 45.0 27.4
12   Spain 381.2 276.5 214.0 196.7 101.8 109.8 103.4 106.0 102.9 100.7 97.8 91.3
13   Hungary 309.9 219.0 218.6 130.7 77.1 37.6 29.3 14.0 3.9 1.6 0.4 0.4
14   Poland 303.3 202.7 104.4 34.7 12.8 7.1 5.2 2.03 0.6 0.1 0.1 0.0
15   Bulgaria 301.3 171.5 158.6 152.1 146.9 144.8 144.3 141.7 140.8 139.9 127.4 17.7
16   Slovenia 299.2 174.0 176.0 106.7 123.9 124.9 125.5 124.8 124.2 123.8 105.7 44.1
17   France 256.1 218.5 178.4 157.9 141.4 120.5 107.3 99.1 87.6 71.6 61.6 43.5
18   Sweden 248.5 154.6 106.9 68.2 41.9 23.1 15.6 13.3 8.2 4.5 2.5 2.0
19   Czech 246.2 198.0 203.0 197.2 193.0 192.9 194.0 197.7 196.1 196.1 192.5 186.0
20   Portugal 243.6 160.0 106.8 88.3 65.2 55.2 45.4 44.3 40.2 26.8 21.7 13.5
21   Lithuania 200.6 91.2 58.7 29.7 26.3 28.8 27.7 25.0 23.2 22.9 2.0 0.0
22   Finland 106.4 73.0 57.5 39.0 22.7 11.1 3.6 2.7 1.9 2.1 2.1 2.1
23   Slovakia 98.9 98.0 98.0 86.6 97.6 98.1 100.5 109.0 109.0 99.3 95.7 89.8
24   Romania 74.2 72.8 71.8 71.4 70.5 70.0 69.4 66.7 64.8 51.1 0.3 0.1
25   Croatia 47.2 26.9 26.9 16.9 14.9 12.4 12.0 10.6 8.1 5.1 0.1 0.1
26   Latvia 29.8 4.2 2.6 1.6 0.5 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.7
27   Ireland 26.3 27.2 18.1 7.3 6.0 1.9 1.1 0.5 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2
28   United Kingdom - - - 204.3 197.0 193.9 176.8 137.7 81.3 42.9 26.3 16.2
–   EU 466.5 354.2 334.5 254.5 223.6 208.3 197.8 186.1 171.5 155.8 136.3 102.2

Concentrated solar power

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Main article: Concentrated solar power

Solar power, the production of electricity from solar energy, is performed either directly, through photovoltaics, or indirectly, using concentrated solar power (CSP). One advantage that CSP has is the ability to add thermal storage and provide power up to 24 hours a day.[24] Gemasolar, in Spain, was the first to provide 24-hour power.[25] There is considerable academic and commercial interest internationally in a new form of CSP, called STEM, for off-grid applications to produce 24-hour industrial scale power for mining sites and remote communities in Italy, other parts of Europe, Australia, Asia, North Africa and Latin America. STEM uses fluidised silica sand as a thermal storage and heat transfer medium for CSP systems. It has been developed by Salerno-based Magaldi Industries. The first commercial application of STEM will take place in Sicily from 2015.[26]

CSP in Europe (MWpeak)[27][28]
# Country 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
1   Spain 10.00 60.00 281.40 531.40 1,151.40 1,953.90 2,303.90
2   Italy 0 0 0 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.35
3   Germany 0 0 0 1.50 1.50 1.50 1.50
4   France 0 0 0 0.50 0.75 0.75 0.75
  EU 10 60 281 738 1,159 1,961 2,311

Solar thermal

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Main article: Solar thermal energy

Over the next 10 years the European solar thermal will grow on average at a rate of 15% per annum. According to the National Renewable Energy Action Plans the total solar thermal capacity in the EU will be 102 GW in 2020 (while 14 GW in 2006).[1]

In June 2009, the European Parliament and Council adopted the Directive on the promotion of the use of energy from Renewable Energy Sources (RES). For the first time, heating and cooling accounting for half of the final energy demand will be covered by a European directive promoting renewable energies. The overall renewable target is legally binding but renewable mix is free. According to the delivered national plans the highest of solar heating markets during 2010-2020 will be in Italy, Germany, France, Spain, and Poland in respect to the national target in 2020 and capacity increase. Top countries per capita will be Cyprus, Greece, Austria, Italy, and Belgium.[1]

In some European countries the solar thermal market is still in its infancy. Bulgaria, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom have extremely low targets in their plans. Estonia, Finland, Latvia, and Romania have not included solar thermal in their national plans at all.[1]

Solar heating is the usage of solar energy to provide space or water heating. Worldwide the use was 88 GWthermal in 2005. Growth potential is enormous. The EU have been second after China in the installations. If all EU countries had used solar thermal as enthusiastically as the Austrians, the EU's installed capacity would have been 91 GWth (130 million m2), far beyond the target of 100 million m2 by 2010, set by the white paper in 1997. In 2005 solar heating in the EU was equivalent to more than 686,000 tons of oil. ESTIF's minimum target is to produce solar heating equivalent to 5,600,000 tons of oil (2020). A more ambitious, but feasible, target is 73 million tons of oil per year (2020) – a lorry row spanning 1,5 times around the globe.[29]

Solar heating in the European Union (MWthermal)
# Country 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
1   Germany 7,766 9,036 9,831 10,496 11,416 12,055
2   Austria 2,268 3,031 3,227 2,792 3,448 3,538
3   Greece 2,708 2,853 2,855 2,861 2,885 2,915
4   Italy 1,124 1,410 1,753 2,152 2,380 2,590
5   Spain 988 1,306 1,543 1,659 2,075 2,238
6   France 1,137 1,287 1,470 1,277 1,691 1,802
7   Poland 254 357 459 637 848 1,040
8   Portugal 223 395 526 547 677 717
9   Czech Republic 116 148 216 265 625 681
10   Netherlands 254 285 313 332 605 616
11   Denmark 293 339 379 409 499 550
12   Cyprus 485 490 491 499 486 476
13   United Kingdom 270 333 374 460 455 475
14   Sweden 202 217 227 236 337 342
15   Belgium 188 204 230 226 334 374
16   Ireland 52 85 106 111 177 196
17   Slovenia 96 111 116 123 142 148
18   Hungary 18 59 105 120 125 137
19   Romania 66 80 73 74 93 110
20   Slovakia 67 73 84 100 108 113
21   Croatia 84 98
22   Bulgaria 22 56 74 81 58 59
23   Malta 25 29 32 36 34 35
24   Finland 18 20 23 23 30 33
25   Luxembourg 16 19 22 25 23 27
26   Latvia 1 1 1 3 10 12
27   Lithuania 1 2 2 3 6 8
28   Estonia 1 2 2 3 4 6
  EU (in GW) 19.08 21.60 23.49 25.55 29.66 31.39
Notes:
  • The relation between collector area and rated power: 1m2 = 0.7 kWthermal
  • Data source for 2013: Divergent figures from different reports. Total of 31.39 GWth corresponds to figures from EurObserv'ER report,[28] while report from the European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF) accounts for 30.2 GWth and includes capacity from non-EU member Switzerland.[30]
  • Data sources of previous years: 2012 not sourced – 2011[31] – 2010[32][33] – 2009[34] – 2008[35]
  • For historical data from 2004 to 2010 see collapsed table below
Solar heating in watts per capita[27][28]
# Country 2011 2013
1   Cyprus 609 551
2   Austria 397 419
3   Greece 253 263
4   Germany 130 150
5   Malta 80 83
6   Denmark 78 108
7   Slovenia 65 72
8   Portugal 58 68
9   Czech Republic 53 65
10   Spain 41 48
11   Luxembourg 37 51
12   Sweden 35 36
12   Netherlands 35 37
14   Italy 34 43
15   Ireland 27 43
15   Belgium 27 34
17   France 25 27
18   Slovakia 19 21
19   Poland 17 27
20   Bulgaria 11 8
21   Hungary 9 14
22   United Kingdom 7 7
23   Finland 5 6
24   Romania 4 6
24   Latvia 4 6
26   Estonia 1 4
27   Lithuania 1 3
28   Croatia n.a. 23
  EU average 55 62

Organisations

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  • SolarPower Europe[41] is a member-led association representing organisations active along the whole value chain that aim's to ensure that more energy is generated by solar than any other energy source by 2030 and to lead their members to make solar the core of a smart, sustainable, secure and inclusive energy system to reach carbon neutrality before 2050.
  • The European Solar Manufacturing Council[42] is an industry association that represents European solar photovoltaics (PV) manufacturers, research and development organizations, and companies engaged in the upstream PV industry in Europe. ESMC's primary objective is to promote the PV manufacturing industry and its associated value chains at the European level by fostering a supporting political environment.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d [Solar Thermal Markets in Europe Trends and Market Statistics 2010], European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF) June 2011 p. 14-15, Figure Capacity in operation 2010/2020
  2. ^ a b c "Solar energy". European Commission.
  3. ^ "The world's solar rooftop power doubled in 2022, new report reveals". euronews. 13 June 2023. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  4. ^ "New report: EU solar reaches record heights of 56 GW in 2023 but warns of clouds on the horizon". SolarPower Europe. 12 December 2023. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  5. ^ "European Electricity Review 2024". Ember. 12 December 2024. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "Global Market Outlook for Photovoltaics until 2016". Archived from the original on 17 January 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  7. ^ Photovoltaic barometer 208[permanent dead link‍] February 2012
  8. ^ Lubbe, Anne (12 September 2012). "Denmark reaches 2020-goal for solar energy before time". um.dk (Press release). Archived from the original on 19 October 2012.
  9. ^ "Razgrabljeni poticaji za solarne elektrane".
  10. ^ "Photovoltaic energy barometer 2010 – EurObserv'ER".
  11. ^ "Photovoltaic energy barometer 2011 – EurObserv'ER".
  12. ^ Photovoltaic energy barometer 2012 – EurObserv’ER
  13. ^ a b "Photovoltaic energy barometer 2012 – EurObserv'ER".
  14. ^ a b Photovoltaic energy barometer 2013 – EurObserv’ER
  15. ^ a b Photovoltaic energy barometer 2014 – EurObserv’ER
  16. ^ "Renewable capacity statistics 2024". www.irena.org. 27 March 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  17. ^ "Photovoltaic barometer 2016". 28 November 2015.
  18. ^ "Photovoltaic barometer 2017". 28 November 2016.
  19. ^ "Photovoltaic barometer 2018". 28 April 2018.
  20. ^ "Photovoltaic barometer 2019". 7 May 2019.
  21. ^ "Photovoltaic barometer 2020". 30 April 2020.
  22. ^ "Photovoltaic barometer 2022". 28 April 2022.
  23. ^ "Population change - Demographic balance and crude rates at national level (DEMO_GIND)". Eurostat. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
  24. ^ "Concentrating Solar Power" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 January 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2014.
  25. ^ Goodman, Al (3 October 2011). "Spain's round-the-clock solar power plant". CNN.
  26. ^ CSP Today, 11 April 2014 "Italian project shows strong potential for sand based CSP"
  27. ^ a b EurObserv'ER: Solar thermal and concentrated solar power barometer - May 2012
  28. ^ a b c EurObserv'ER: Solar thermal and concentrated solar power barometer - May 2014 Archived 6 November 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  29. ^ "Solar Thermal Action Plan for Europe ESTIF, 1/2007" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 September 2007.
  30. ^ http://www.estif.org/ European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF) Solar Thermal Markets in Europe - Trends and Market Statistics in 2013, June 2014 archive
  31. ^ http://www.estif.org European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF) Solar Thermal Markets in Europe - Trends and Market Statistics in 2011, June 2012 archive
  32. ^ http://www.estif.org European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF) Solar Thermal Markets in Europe - Trends and Market Statistics in 2010, June 2011 archive
  33. ^ http://www.eurobserv-er.org - EurObserv'ER Solar thermal and concentrated solar power barometer for 2010, May 2011, archive
  34. ^ http://www.estif.org European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF) Solar Thermal Markets in Europe - Trends and Market Statistics in 2009, June 2010 archive
  35. ^ Solar Thermal Markets in Europe - Trends and Market Statistics in 2008, May 2009 archive
  36. ^ since 2010 overseas departments excluded
  37. ^ Solar Thermal Markets in Europe, Trends and market statistics 2006 Archived 28 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine European Solar Thermal Industry Federation ESTIF, June 2007
  38. ^ "Solar Thermal Markets in Europe, Trends and market statistics 2008" (PDF). Retrieved 24 April 2011.
  39. ^ estif.org - European Solar Thermal Industry Federation Solar Thermal Markets in Europe, Trends and market statistics 2009[dead link‍]
  40. ^ estif.org - European Solar Thermal Industry Federation Solar Thermal Markets in Europe, Trends and market statistics 2010, June 2011
  41. ^ "SolarPower Europe". Retrieved 11 March 2020.
  42. ^ "European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC)". Retrieved 12 January 2024.
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