Germany launches 1,950 MW of large-scale solar tender

The German Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur) has launched the first tender for 5,850 MW of ground-mounted solar. The ceiling price has been raised to €0.0737 ($0.080)/kWh.

The Bundesnetzagentur has opened the first round of tenders for large-scale solar systems in 2023, with a target capacity of 1,950 MW. Bid deadline is March 1.

Since the beginning of the year, a surcharge has been imposed on photovoltaic ground-mounted systems with an output of at least 1 MW. In addition, tenders for ground-mounted systems are allowed up to 100 MW.

The Bundesnetzagentur has recently increased the maximum value of the bid. The maximum price for ground-mounted PV systems in the 2023 round is now €0.0737/kWh. This is to account for higher component, installation and financing costs and to avoid unsubscribed bids.

None of last year's rounds fully utilized the ad volume. For the November round, the Federal Network Agency even lowered the originally planned capacity from 1,200 MW to 890 MW. However, only 104 bids for PV projects totaling almost 609 MW were accepted. The average volume-weighted surcharge was €0.0580/kWh, only slightly below the previous year's peak of €0.0590/kWh.

Tenders for large-scale solar systems will total 5,850 MW this year. Phases two and three opened on July 1 and December 1, respectively.

There are also three rounds of tenders for rooftop systems with an output of at least 1 MW this year. The first round of tenders, with a capacity of just under 217 megawatts, has opened and closes on February 1. In 2023, tenders for this segment will total 650 MW, with a significant increase in the ceiling price to € 0.1125/kWh compared to 2022.