Photovoltaics
Germany Eases Regulation to Promote Solar Power Growth
Germany’s governing cabinet has approved a package of legislation to cut red tape and enable solar expansion.
Aug 17, 2023
The government’s new legislative package will remove bureaucratic barriers to rooftop solar modules on commercial buildings. It will also accelerate the connection of smaller photovoltaic (PV) units to the grid. Moreover, government support for solar electricity will be extended to exterior building surfaces not presently used for that purpose and to “repowering,” the replacement of existing with more efficient units.
The legislative package also makes it easier for individual households in shared residential buildings to generate solar electricity, for example by installing PV modules on balconies.
“We need greater tempo and less bureaucracy in our solar power expansion, and that’s precisely what we’ve done with this solar package,” said German Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action Robert Habeck in a statement. “We need to triple the rate of expansion and be adding 22 gigawatts of capacity annually by 2026. That’s an ambitious target. Last year, expansion was 7.5 gigawatts.”
