The electricity authority of Ecuador adopted a system of feed-in tariffs for the development of renewable energy on April 14, 2011. The regulations cover both continental Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands.
The program by the South American country of 15 million people includes multiple technologies, including solar photovoltaics. Biomass-biogas and hydro projects are further differentiated by size.
Ecuador joins a growing list of developing countries that recently have adopted systems of feed-in tariffs, including Malaysia and Uganda. Botswana and the Philippines are both expected to introduce programs in 2011.
Paul Gipe has written extensively about renewable energy for both the popular and trade press. He has also lectured widely on wind energy and how to minimize its impact on the environment and the communities of which it is a part.