Federal Minister of Economy Katherina Reiche (CDU) defended plans to limit the support for and development of renewable energies. She told “Handelsblatt” on Thursday that renewables “have matured and now account for the majority of Germany’s electricity production”. Consequently, she argues they must also accept greater system responsibility.
Reiche explained that her ministry is considering removing compensation for renewable plants if electricity cannot be fed into the grid due to insufficient transmission capacity. The resulting cost of “almost €3 billion a year” for unutilised power would be passed on to all consumers, driving up electricity bills. “That can’t be the solution” she said.
These changes are part of a “grid package” issued by the Ministry of Economy, the draft of which leaked a few days ago. Reiche faces criticism over the package, with the renewables sector accusing her of stalling the sector’s expansion.
Stating that she does not agree with the criticism, the minister said the focus should be “on the overall system costs”. She emphasized her mandate is to reduce, or at least prevent further increases in, the burden on businesses and consumers from energy costs, noting that a fair distribution of responsibilities is essential. “Calling this a ‘blockade’ is a dead‑end maneuver” she added.
Last year’s additions of photovoltaic and wind power fell short of the targets set in the Renewable Energy Act (EEG). From 2025, annual wind capacity additions of 7.8 GW and from 2026, solar additions of 22 GW are required. Cuts to the feed‑in tariff in the EEG since 2012 caused the expansion to stall.
