Wind falls short in German tender

The country’s energy regulator, the Bundesnetzagentur (BNetzA), received 26 bids for 191.05MW of capacity – 69% of the 275.176MW on offer. It awarded contracts to all auction participants.

Successful bid prices ranged between €55/MWh and €62/MWh, with a weighted average of €61.40/MWh. The range expanded from €59-62/MWh, while the weighted average remained the same as in the country’s last wind-only tender in June.

The auction regulator has previously acknowledged that state-level permitting difficulties were deterring developers from taking part in tenders.

Germany approved a series of climate measures in October 2019, including plans to accelerate permitting. In June 2020, the government agreed to give states the final say on setback distancing, making more sites available.

The regulator has not published the results of the latest round online, and will not do so until the coronavirus pandemic has receded. This is because publication of the results triggers the clock for completion of these projects, and BNetzA believes the pandemic may hinder construction.

However, the agency added that the largest volume of capacity went to Schleswig-Holstein (three bids for 48.6MW), followed by Lower Saxony (nine bids, 48.35MW) and Brandenburg (four bids, 41.3MW).

Three so-called citizens’ projects were successful, the BNetzA added.

Community-owned projects dominated earlier auction rounds, until the agency scrapped rules deemed advantageous to citizens’ projects – particularly rules allowing them to enter tenders without having secured permitting approvals.

Solar competition

A separate, but concurrent solar PV tender for 192.716MW of capacity received 174 bids for a combined volume of 779.418MW. The regulators awarded projects for a combined capacity of MW.

Successful bid prices ranged between €46.90/MWh and €56.30/MWh, with a weighted average of €51.80/MWh – down from a €49-54/MWh range and €52.70/MWh weighted average in the June round.

Solar PV developers won all the capacity on offer in a technology-neutral auction in May, with no wind developers submitting bids.