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Germany’s Economics Minister calls for PV cap and drastic cuts

It seems Germany’s FDP Economics Minister has submitted his own solar incentive proposal. According to media reports, he wants to introduce a nine gigawatt (GW) cap for newly installed photovoltaic capacity until 2020, and a drastic one-time reduction in remuneration.

Philipp Rösler (FDP) wants to introduce stringent solar cuts.

Flickr/Liberale

Philipp Rösler (FDP) is seemingly on a collision course with Environment Minister, Norbert Röttgen (CDU), despite initially appearing positive about the proposals Röttgen put forward, together with representatives of the photovoltaic industry.

According to various media reports, he is once again calling for a ceiling to be placed on the amount of newly installed photovoltaics in Germany.

Handlesblatt and the Financial Times Deutschland report that on Monday, Rösler sent a letter to the parliamentary leaders of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Christian Social Union (CSU) and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) containing his own plan for solar subsidies. In it, he reportedly calls for drastic cuts, including a nine GW cap on the market until 2020 - equivalent to an annual cap of one GW. Furthermore, it has been said that he wants to slash the feed-in tariffs (FITs), as quickly as possible, by between 25 to 32 percent.

Originally, both ministers were supposed to jointly develop proposals outlining the development of solar energy and how the renewable energy law (EEG) should be kept stable.

At a meeting last Thursday, both Röttgen and the solar industry agreed on monthly FIT cuts. They also agreed that maximum reductions annually ought not be over 24 percent. Tomorrow, Wednesday, January 25, the energy workgroup of the government parties will meet to decide on the future of Germany’s solar incentives.