Röttgen gets out his red pencil

Federal Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen wants to considerably reduce solar rewards.

The photovoltaic boom in Germany could soon be at an end. In April, the subsidies for solar energy are due to face a one-off cut of 15 to 25 percent. The manufacturers are aghast –  are warning of a wave of bankruptcies, and threatening to turn their backs on Germany in favour of other more welcoming markets for their technologies. The suppliers, on the other hand, still see further positive growth opportunities.

Threats are even coming from the United Arab Emirates. Rainer Gegenwart, head of solar producer Masdar Photovoltaics (PV), recently explained in Abu Dhabi, he will not be campaigning for the development of the new Masdar factory in Ichtershausen near Erfurt if the Federal government persists with its intention of reducing the buyback price for solar energy by around 15 percent in April. Gegenwart is getting het up about the legislative plan of Federal Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen (CDU) to reduce the photovoltaics (PV) subsidies. Originally, Masdar PV wanted to quadruple the capacity of its Thuringian thin-film production line from 210 Megawatt (MW) subject to the market development. Instead, Gegenwart says that a new factory could now be built in the United States instead.

The solar manager will soon have to intensify the search for a suitable location. Because, in essence, the parliamentary groups are already agreed: The solar energy remuneration should be considerably reduced as a result of the reorganisation of the Erneuerbare-Energien-Gesetz (EEG – Renewable Energy Law) in order to relieve consumers. In concrete terms, Röttgen wants to reduce the buyback price for roof-top systems from April and for open-air power stations from July by 15 percent to 33 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh). The much increased and controversial PV use on agricultural land should be limited further: For this, Röttgen has suggested a one-off reduction of 25 percent.