A total of 245 bids with a volume of 1,952 MW were awarded.

04/14/2023

Source: Energy & Management Powernews

For the first time since June 2022, there was real competition in the PV tender of the Federal Network Agency to 1. March 2023. More bids were submitted than quantities were tendered.

The Federal Network Agency has announced the results of the photovoltaic tenders to March 1, 2023. The tender was for solar plants of the "first segment". These are ground-mounted PV systems and solar systems installed on, at or in structural facilities that are neither buildings nor noise barriers. "For the first time since June 2022, the quantity of bids received significantly exceeds the quantity put out to tender," said the authority's president, Klaus Müller.

Never before have so many bids been submitted in such a tender by the Federal Network Agency, the president said. "Now it is important to maintain this high level of bids in order to drive forward the necessary expansion in the long term," Müller warned at the same time. With a tendered volume of 1,950 MW, 347 bids were submitted with a volume of 2,869 MW. Thus, according to the agency, this was the bid date with the highest number of bids ever.

More awards for projects in Bavaria and Brandenburg

A total of 245 bids with a volume of 1,952 MW could be awarded. Regionally, by far the largest awarded volume was for bids with sites in Bavaria (845 MW, 119 awards), followed by sites in Brandenburg (223 MW, 17 awards) and Rhineland-Palatinate (163 MW, 18 awards).

Divided by category, most awards were made to projects on arable land or grassland, totaling 86 awards with 851 MW. The category with the second highest total volume of awards - verges along highways or railroads - accounted for 91 awards with 755 MW.

The Federal Network Agency had raised the maximum value for this bidding segment to 7.37 ct/kWh before the bidding deadline. The award values determined in the bid price procedure range between 5.29 ct/kWh and 7.30 ct/kWh. The average volume-weighted surcharge value in this round is 7.03 ct/kWh and thus significantly below the maximum value.

25 bids had to be excluded from the procedure due to formal errors. Due to the high number of bids submitted, this figure of less than 10 percent is not above average. The next bidding round for first-segment solar plants ends on July 1, 2023.

Information on the PV bidding for the March 1, 2023 bidding deadline is available online.

Author: Susanne Harmsen