Developers will compete for 700MW capacity with a ceiling price of €62/MWh — €0.20/MWh below the average price in Germany’s most recent, undersubscribed onshore wind tender in October.
By comparison, 175MW of solar PV capacity will be available in a separate auction with a ceiling price of €89.10/MWh.
Only 400MW of bids was received in the last tender, which had a total available volume of 670MW, causing average prices to rise again to €62.60/MWh, up from €61.60/MWh.
The BNA had initially planned to auction 2,675GW of wind power capacity across four rounds, but an extra 1GW across two 500MW rounds was made available in November.
An additional 250MW of capacity will also be available in a technology-neutral tender, pitting wind power against solar PV. There will also be two technology-neutral tenders for 200MW each next year.
Transmission
Of the 700MW available for wind developers in February’s auction, under 155MW will be available in the northerly network development area, which is already densely populated with installed wind capacity.
This restriction aims to limit bottlenecks in transmission, the energy regulator explained, and is intended as a temporary instrument until grid expansion reduces blockages.
Germany’s cabinet approved draft legislation to accelerate the expansion of the country’s grid system in mid-December.
The draft bill strengthens links between different levels of the approvals process, tightens deadlines, and removes unnecessary procedural steps, the ministry of economic affairs and energy (BMWi) claimed.
