Thomas, Henning --- "Transforming the German feed-in tariff system: Legal aspects from a regional perspective" [2014] ELECD 946; in Peeters, Marjan; Schomerus, Thomas (eds), "Renewable Energy Law in the EU" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2014) 75

Book Title: Renewable Energy Law in the EU

Editor(s): Peeters, Marjan; Schomerus, Thomas

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781783473182

Section: Chapter 5

Section Title: Transforming the German feed-in tariff system: Legal aspects from a regional perspective

Author(s): Thomas, Henning

Number of pages: 24

Abstract/Description:

The future development of the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) finds itself at a crossroads. With the amendment of the Act in 2012, elements of market and system integration and, in particular, rules for direct marketing of electricity have been implemented and strengthened with the amendment in 2014. But given the steady increase of renewable energy sources in the German energy markets, the discussion on their integration and on increasing energy prices intensifies. Several proposals discuss the further development of the Renewable Energy Sources Act as well as new structures for the energy market in general. Here, the question of how energy markets should be designed if renewable energy is to find its place within them needs to be addressed. The discussion on the future of the EEG will have an important impact on decentralized energy projects in Germany. First, this is true for the choice of the support scheme in general. Some market participants express their fear that changing the support scheme from feed-in tariffs to procurements by tender or to quota obligations would place hardship in particular on regional (independent) renewable power producers and public participation. Secondly, there are a number of parameters that could or would have particular relevance for regional energy projects if they are about to change or if they were to be introduced in an amendment of the EEG.