Germany’s Plans For Solar Tender Make No Sense, BSW Solar Says

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German flagGermany’s plans for its first national solar tender make no sense, according to the country’s national solar trade organization, BSW Solar. BSW Solar notes that the tender will lower market volumes for large solar farms right at the time that the power generated by them continues to fall in price.

As per a recent statement from BSW Solar, the provisional plan that includes the solar tender will result in new solar farms no longer receiving fixed feed-in tariffs (FiTs). As a result of a recent decision from the EU, this support program must instead be substituted with the mooted auction process.

It’s worth noting here, of course, that the plans for the solar tender have yet to be approved — the German Federal Cabinet will decide on them tomorrow, on January 28th. If approved, the 1.2 GW tender will be spread out over the next few years — with 500 MW up this year, 400 MW in 2016, and 300 MW in 2017.

The plan will reportedly see solar farm sizes capped at a 10 MW generation capacity max — it’s not completely clear yet what qualifies as a “solar farm” in this instance.

The recent comments from BSW Solar aren’t the first time that the organization has criticized the energy policy path taken by the current government in Germany — most notably, it previously did so when it argued against renewable energy surcharge exemptions for major industrial corporations.

The chief executive of BSW Solar, Carsten Körnig, also made note of the reality that solar farms as a whole seem to have the approval of the public (in Germany), but there are still significant restrictions in place with regard to where they can be developed — thereby driving up prices beyond what they would be otherwise (according to Körnig).

Image Credit: Public Domain


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James Ayre

James Ayre's background is predominantly in geopolitics and history, but he has an obsessive interest in pretty much everything. After an early life spent in the Imperial Free City of Dortmund, James followed the river Ruhr to Cofbuokheim, where he attended the University of Astnide. And where he also briefly considered entering the coal mining business. He currently writes for a living, on a broad variety of subjects, ranging from science, to politics, to military history, to renewable energy.

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