The German solar market is showing few signs of recovery. The German Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur) published installation figures yesterday in which it was revealed that 100.29 MW of solar was installed in May. While this is the highest figure recorded in 2016, it is well short of the rebound expected in the summer months, which present ideal conditions in which to install PV.
The results are somewhat surprising, in that four tenders for large-scale projects have already been completed, yet it appears little is being installed. The Bundesnetzagentur figures reveal that two utility scale projects were completed in May, together worth 12.389 MW of capacity. Of the 120 greenfield projects that have won tenders, under the four rounds, roughly ten have been completed as of end of May.
On the plus side, Germany has now passed the 40 GW installed PV capacity milestone. Agency figures show that 40.093 GW of PV is currently connected to the German grid.
Due to the low installation levels, PV FITs will again not be reduced. The current rate of 0.0853 to 0.1231 – dependent on system size – will be maintained through to September. FIT digressions are scheduled to take place if PV installation exceeds a ‘corridor' set out by the government, under the EEG legislation. The official government target is for 2.4 to 2.6 GW of PV to be installed annually, however in the period between June 2015 and May 2016, 1.336 GW was installed. In 2016, only 400 MW of solar had been connected to the German grid, as of the end of May.
Translated and edited by Jonathan Gifford
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Sandra Enkhardt
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