Federal Network Agency

Germany has concluded a new renewables tender, securing 408 MW of capacity at an average price of €0.0833 ($0.09)/kWh.

The German authorities say that the country’s new 1.5 GW tender is a response to the current energy crisis. Selected PV projects will have to reach completion within nine months after securing feed-in premium tariffs.

The newly installed PV capacity for the first eight months of the year was 3.6 GW, which compares to 3.2 GW in the same period of 2020.

RWTH Aachen University and Forschungszentrum Jülich evaluated the data. It shows a growing demand for photovoltaic storage systems in 2019 and continued positive market sentiment lasting well into 2020.

Tariffs ranged from €0.0470 to €0.0620 as the solar power price rose from the last national procurement round, which settled at €0.0459-0.0520 in October for an average €0.0490/kWh. Some 501 MW of generation capacity was allocated in the latest exercise.

In September, PV systems with a total generation capacity of 287 MW were registered in the country. The feed-in tariff has fallen again for this quarter as a result of the new capacity additions.

The average price in the October round of Germany’s solar capacity procurement program fell back below the five-cent mark, helped by expansion of the quota for solar on Bavarian agricultural land. Nineteen of the 27 projects allocated by the Federal Network Agency were such schemes.

In August alone, around 327 MW of new solar generation capacity was registered in the country. This month the FIT for solar systems up to 750 kW in size will fall another 1.4%.

Demand for systems with a generation capacity of up to 750 kW is driving the market. The 52 GW capacity cap for solar under the national FIT scheme is approaching. In September, feed-in tariffs and market premiums will fall a further 1.4%.

After a strong start to the year, demand for PV systems has slowed because of FIT reductions. Solar subsidies will fall by a further 1.4% per month until November.