Germany's solar capacity addition increases by 50% in first half of 2018

According to the German solar power industry group (Bundesverband Solarwirtschaft, BSW), 1,340 MWp of new solar capacities were commissioned in Germany in the first half of 2018, which is 50% more than in the first half of 2017 (901 MWp). The domestic solar power output also went up by 8% in the same period as 23.6 TWh were injected into the grid.

The recent data meet BSW’s expectations for the first time in the last years and are more in line with the annual PV expansion target set by the Federal Government. The constant decrease in the solar PV installation costs is the main factors for the boost in PV systems demand. The government is trying to slow down the momentum: a slight regulation of the subsidies will be implemented and the funding rates will be adjusted to avoid overcapacity. In August 2018, the German Federal Network Agency already announced additional cuts for solar PV projects commissioned between 1 August 2018 and 31 October 2018 by 1% per month.

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German solar PV subsidies will drop by 1% per month in Q3 2018

The German Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur or BNetzA) will cut subsidies for solar PV projects commissioned between 1 August 2018 and 31 October 2018 by 1% per month. The BNetzA estimates that the newly solar PV added capacity (2,727 MW) is above the planned capacity expansion path of 2,500 MW. For this purpose, a slight regulation of the subsidies will be implemented and the funding rates will be adjusted to avoid overcapacity.

Germany is shifting from a subsidy-based system to an auction-based one. Since the beginning of 2017, solar and wind power projects over 750 kW have to compete in tenders in order to secure power purchase deals, as feed-in tariff (FiT) contracts are no longer available. However, projects that were approved in 2016 are still eligible.

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AEMO expects Australia to phase out coal power in the next 20 years

The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) has unveiled the new Integrated System Plan for the National Electricity Market, which forecasts the likely changes that will be occurring over the next 20 years across the domestic power market. Despite the anticipated electrification of the transport sector over the next 20 years, electricity grid demand will flatten, due to the growth of solar rooftop PV installations and energy storage coupled with energy efficiency efforts.

Existing coal-fired power plants that generate around 70 TWh/year - one third of the NEM's demand - will continue operating until the end of their operational life (by 2040 at the latest) as it would be uneconomical to retire them before the end of their operational lifespan. Replacing them later on with renewables - whose costs are falling -, gas-fired capacity, distributed generation capacity and energy storage systems (including pumped-storage) would be more cost efficient.

The domestic power grid will shift to a more decentralised system model: 28 GW of solar, 10.5 GW of wind, 17 GW of storage and 500 MW of flexible gas-fired generation will be set up along with a significant upgrade of the domestic power transmission system.

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