Wind industry names priorities for the new legislature

26.05.2025

Source: E & M powernews

The German Wind Energy Association (BWE) believes that expansion is currently on track, but recommends measures from the new government to increase the pace of RE expansion and realistic electricity demand forecasts.

With the new legislative period, the German Wind Energy Association (BWE) analyzes the plans and presents recommendations for the first 60 days of the new federal government. Key measures from the coalition agreement must be implemented quickly in order to advance the expansion of wind energy. Thanks to the acceleration measures of the EU and the traffic light system, wind power expansion has now returned to the high level of 2017, BWE Managing Director Wolfram Axthelm summed up in the policy briefing on May 23.

Approvals and expansion on course for growth

The expansion status of onshore wind energy continued to improve in the first months of 2025. According to the BWE, 28,869 wind turbines are currently in operation - 133 more than at the end of 2024. 5,184 MW were approved nationwide from January to April, an increase of 61 percent compared to the same period last year. The approval period fell to an average of 17.5 months and is therefore back at the 2017 level.
A total of 284 new turbines with a capacity of 1,523 MW were installed by 20 May, which corresponds to +39 percent. At the same time, 151 old systems (235 MW) were dismantled. This results in a net addition of 133 turbines.

According to Axthelm, progress is also being made at the regional planning level. All planning regions are currently in the process of designating areas.

Political recommendations of the BWE

In her government statement, Katherina Reiche (CDU) named key energy policy projects: Monitoring on the status of the energy transition should be available by the summer. The Economics Minister also held out the prospect of tenders for 20,000 MW of new gas-fired power plant capacity and announced a package to reduce electricity costs.

According to Reiche, the new German government is focusing on open technology and including all colors of hydrogen in the ramp-up of the hydrogen economy. The expansion requirements for electricity grids and renewables must also be closely synchronized.

In an impulse paper, the BWE formulates concrete recommendations for action for the first two months of the legislative period. These include, among other things:

• Implementation of the RED III Directive into practicable German law
• Facilitated distribution grid expansion and introduction of a simplified procedure
• Digitalization of the grids and reform of the grid connection procedure
• Deregulation of storage facilities and electrolysers
• Introduction of a "fair" lease limitation model
• Promotion of community energy and energy sharing
• Contradictory forecasts for electricity demand in 2030

The German Renewable Energy Federation (BEE) is critical of new electricity consumption forecasts for 2030, which are lower than those of the traffic light on which the expansion targets of the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) are based. The previous German government assumed 750 billion kWh, which would correspond to a share of 600 billion kWh from renewables (80 percent). More recent studies by McKinsey, BCG or Aurora see a significantly lower demand, which is why Minister Reiche wants to review the expansion targets for renewable energies.

However, a study by Fraunhofer ISE shows higher demand according to the client BEE - among other things due to the increasing electrification of industry, growing data center capacity and domestic hydrogen production, which are not taken into account in the other studies. The BEE expects consumption to reach 700 billion kWh in 2030 and therefore recommends sticking to the expansion targets.

The BWE announced that it would commission its own monitoring by the summer break in order to evaluate the actual electricity demand, the status of grid expansion, security of supply and progress with renewables, digitalization and hydrogen ramp-up.

Criticism of projects in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania has presented a draft law that provides for new regulations for the participation of municipalities and residents in wind and PV systems. Payments of between 0.2 and 0.8 cents per kWh generated are envisaged. Alternatively, a corporate participation of at least 20 percent should be possible, as implemented in state law. The BWE criticizes this regulation as disproportionate and warns of damage to the economic viability of projects. It refers to the nationwide participation rules already in force.

In addition, the state is seeking a Bundesrat initiative to amend Section 8 (4) EEG in order to adapt the conditions to the grid bottlenecks. Instead, the BWE is calling for measures to improve grid transparency, upgrade the distribution grids and facilitate approvals for storage facilities and electrolysers.

The BEE forecast for electricity consumption in 2030 is available online.

Author: Susanne Harmsen