Germany set to reduce Solar PV tariff rates
It seems that it is not only the UK Government who are causing disruption with regards to feed-in-tariffs for Solar PV. Recent news coverage has announced that the German government are set to make changes to their feed-in-tariff for Solar PV
As a country, Germany are extremely focused on renewable energy and in particularly Solar Photovoltaic installations. The feed-in-tariff was introduced around 10 years ago in Germany and appears to have had a fair and set structure from the start. The basic idea behind the German feed-in-tariff reduction scale is that it will be reduced at a steady rate set against specific levels of installed capacity.
The most recent news from Germany is that aggressive cuts will take place mid year and will not exceed 12% – a far cry from the 50% imposed by the UK government. However, the German tariff structure is slightly more complex than this, and a 12% reduction will only apply once installed capacity in the country reaches 6.5GWp. In addition to this, if installed capacity fails to reach 2.5GWp then the tariff will actually be increased. The proposed reduction changes are as below:
If installation reaches <2.5GWP – feed-in-tariff will be increased by 2.5%
>3.5GWp – no cut, feed-in-tariff remains the same
>4.5GWp – feed-in-tariff cut by 3%
>5.5GWp – feed-in-tariff cut by 6%
>6.5GWp – feed-in-tariff cut by 9%
<6.5GWp – feed-in-tariff cut by 12%
Whilst the German Solar PV market were not expecting this announcement, the scale does seem fair and at least offers some clarity to the German Solar PV industry. At present, Germany has over 1.7GWp installed and there is no mistaking that the feed-in-tariff has been part of its success.
For further details on the UK feed-in-tariff scheme, contact Energi today.
