08.07.2025

Source: E & M powernews

The German Wind and Solar Agency has expanded its online tool for the financial participation of municipalities in wind turbines.

Since July, the online calculator has also included the participation laws from Thuringia, Saxony and Saarland. According to the Wind and Solar Agency in Berlin, "the map provides local authorities with an overview of the amount of payments they can expect from operators of neighboring wind turbines."

In addition to the nationwide regulations - in particular from the Renewable Energy Sources Act of 2023 - the tool takes into account all relevant state laws, including those already in place in North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony, Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The map is freely accessible via the website of the Wind and Solar Agency.

The application shows in which cases local authorities can hope for voluntary payments from wind turbine operators - and where there are binding entitlements based on state laws.

All approved or operated wind turbines in Germany can be displayed at the click of a mouse. The tool provides basic data on each turbine and shows how potential operator payments are distributed proportionately among neighboring municipalities.

However, the specialist agency points out: "The amounts shown on the map are estimates." The data is primarily based on information from the market master data register. A flat-rate value of 2,000 full-load hours per year is used to estimate the financial contribution. Feed-in data from individual plants is not included in the calculation.

The Wind and Solar Agency is organized as a non-profit association. Its members include the federal and state governments, leading municipal associations, companies in the energy industry and environmental and nature conservation associations. The agency sees itself as a platform for well-founded information, dialog and acceptance promotion in the expansion of wind and solar energy.

Stefan Sagmeister