On April 26th, the German parliament passed the "Solarpaket 1" plan with 384 votes in favor, 79 votes against, and 200 abstentions. The plan includes multiple incentive policies aimed at promoting the installation and grid connection of photovoltaic systems in Germany.
The plan was first proposed as a draft in June of last year and underwent 10 months of deliberation before receiving formal approval through a vote last week.
Key aspects of the plan include increasing the feed-in tariffs for commercial and industrial (C&I) solar projects by raising the current tariff by 0.015 euros (approximately 0.016 US dollars) per kilowatt-hour. This is intended to incentivize more businesses to invest in photovoltaic projects, thereby driving the development of the solar industry.
Additionally, the plan aims to simplify the deployment process for rooftop solar systems and encourages the creation of energy communities to promote the utilization and sharing of distributed energy resources. This will make it easier for residents and businesses to participate in the construction and use of renewable energy sources.
Of note, the new regulations also raise the cap on solar projects from the previous 20 megawatts to 50 megawatts, providing greater room for the development of larger-scale photovoltaic projects.
In order to meet the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, which aims to limit global warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius, G7 countries, under the leadership of Germany, have pledged to achieve near-zero carbon electricity supply by 2035. According to the Renewable Energy Act of 2023, the mid-term target is to increase the share of renewable energy in electricity consumption to 80% by 2030, meaning that rapid growth of 22 gigawatts per year will be achieved starting from 2026.
Solarpaket1 lays the foundation for accelerating the expansion of solar power generation and streamlining processes. It comprehensively considers various scenarios of photovoltaic (PV) generation, including small projects on balconies, single and multi-family residential PV, rooftop projects for commercial and industrial buildings, as well as large ground-mounted projects. Additionally, important new regulations are also made for other renewable energy sources, storage, and the grid. The implementation of Solarpaket1 will be an important part of the German Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection's photovoltaic strategy.
