- The awarding of 99.2 per cent of the tenders to projects without approval increases realisation risks
- Bundestag must stipulate approval in accordance with the Federal Immissions Control Act (BImSchG) as a standard prequalification as soon as possible
- Federal Network Agency must correct the ceiling price for 2018 since the basis for calculation has been distorted by projects without planning approval
- Endangerment of both energy policy targets and employment along the entire value chain
- Expansion path can only be secured through additional tendering volumes in 2018
The Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) today published the results of the third and final EEG (Renewable Energies Act) bidding round for onshore wind energy in 2017. The 1,000 MW call for tenders was significantly oversubscribed with bids of 2,591 MW, the average bid being around 3.8 Ct/kWh. In addition, 99.2 per cent of the tenders were awarded to projects as yet without planning approval. This continues the trend set by the two previous rounds for competition, prices and dominance of the unapproved projects.
“The EEG is in urgent need of repair if the energy transition is to be continued and to maintain the progress made with wind energy,” says Matthias Zelinger, managing director of VDMA Power Systems. “In other words, only approved projects should be considered in the call for tenders. The ceiling price has to be altered to reflect this change and unrealised capacities must be put out to tender once again.”
The high number of bids for projects without BImSchG approval endangers the expansion path still further. This has a significant impact on both energy targets and on businesses and jobs along the entire value chain in the wind industry. There is a need for direct political action in order to weaken or stop this development. “The Bundestag must set approval as a standard requirement for future calls for tender, now and in perpetuity”, demands Matthias Zelinger. “Germany as industrial base for the wind business is a pioneer in terms of innovation and cost reduction in the energy transition. We must make sure that this potential is preserved by means of a sound market perspective!”
The very low bids made by projects without approval are based on the expected low generation costs of future wind turbines. Since they come up against approved projects that can only bid on the basis of existing technology and production costs, this results in uneuqal competition. “Since the basis for the determination of the ceiling price is distorted by the fact that the great majority of projects awarded tenders are those without approval, BNetzA must raise the maximum price for the 2018 bidding rounds by 1 December 2017”, emphasises Zelinger.
Foreseeable non-realised capacity must also be added to the auction volume again in later rounds to avoid endangering the continued expansion of onshore wind energy and the achievement of climate protection goals. A solution here could for example be extra volume for the two bidding rounds in the second half of 2018.
