Editorial June

Following an extensive break, we finally hosted the ‘Treffpunkt Erneuerbarer Energien’ (TEE) in Hamburg on 7 June. We were very excited about this following the pandemic-induced hiatus, as direct, personal, face-to face communication always offers exceptional added value – despite all the fantastic features of digital technology. It gives rise to projects, new ideas and partnerships, as well as political papers, which are important for the development of the industry.

There is currently plenty to talk about. An amendment to the Renewable Energy Act, the Offshore Wind Energy Act and a new Allocation Directive are currently under discussion in Berlin. It is clear that all three laws are providing major impetus for the extremely positive development of renewables. As always, however, the devil is in the detail: in the case of onshore wind energy, approval procedures must be significantly accelerated; in the case of offshore wind, the precise terms for the tendering of wind farms are critical, as these will determine whether the German offshore wind market is competitive. And in the case of solar energy, it is primarily about the level of feed-in tariffs in combination with improved personal consumption regulations, which determine whether the smaller solar system segment will regain momentum.