Legal Shake-Up Threatens Germany’s Energy ‘Revolution’

In Germany, people’s power has wrought a revolution.

All over the country, citizens have formed co-operatives to build wind farms and solar arrays, in a grassroots push that has helped to make Germany a world leader in renewables.

The change is most striking in places like Saerbeck, a village of 7,200 people in the north-west that is a pioneer in collectively-owned carbon-free power. Thanks to a €75m investment in a wind-and-solar park, it is well on the way to becoming entirely self-sufficient in energy.

German Bill Revises Energy Tax Concessions For Industry

The German Cabinet has approved a bill to modify the nation's renewable energy law (EEG) to bring renewable energy tax concessions for energy-intensive companies (EEG-Umlage) into line with European Union law.

Under the changes, companies eligible for concessions will pay 15 percent of the renewable energy levy, currently set at 6.24 cent per kilowatt-hour (kWh), up to a threshold of 4 percent of gross value added, for companies whose electro-intensity is below 20 percent. Meanwhile, the tax is capped at 0.5 percent of gross value for companies whose electro-intensity is above 20 percent.

German Environment Minister plans to reform Renewable Energy Act

With a focus already on federal elections in September 2013, German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier wants to push a common legislative initiative with the goal to limit steadily rising energy costs for consumers and to better coordinate the further expansion of renewables in Germany. In a paper presented today, he proposes to reform the current renewable energy act (EEG). This, according to the minister, should be done in a transparent process by hearing stakeholders as well as the 16 Laender.