Spain is among the European countries with the greatest photovoltaic potential. During the
first decade of the 2000s, Spain was a European leader in installed photovoltaic power and job creation
in the renewable energy sector, strongly influenced by a very favorable regulatory framework and
public subsidies at a time of economic growth. That situation would be completely reversed with the
regulatory changes introduced in 2012 to combat the tari deficit and the instability in the electricity
supply system, problems accentuated by the economic crisis. The main objective of this study is to
present an exhaustive review of the legislative changes that have a ected photovoltaic energy in
Spain. Using real data on electricity production and the remuneration of a typical photovoltaic plant,
we show that there was a very significant fall in the economic returns that investors had come to
expect, within a system that prioritized, first and foremost, the initial investment rather than the
levels of electricity production. The changes to the legislative framework a ecting a typical 100 kWp
photovoltaic (PV) facility that entered into service before 2007 provoked a significant decrease of 8.7%
in expected revenues, calculated from real data of production and income. These economic losses
can be even higher, with a drop in revenue of almost 25% if the entire period of the installation’s
useful life is analyzed. Public support for renewable energy is important for its introduction into the
electricity market, but so is regulatory stability that o ers investment security and predictability for
maintaining investment and development in the renewable energy sector
