The federal government wants to make it easier to install power plants on balconies

The federal government wants to promote the expansion of solar energy systems. So after ARD– Also simplistic planned information for balcony power plants. The Cabinet must decide on the corresponding reform tomorrow.

Producing electricity using balcony mini power plants should get easier. This stems from the draft law of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, which ARD Capital Studio Present. The Federal Cabinet wants to decide on the so-called solar energy package on Wednesday. The rules could go into effect in the new year.

The reform aims to reduce bureaucracy and accelerate the recently increased expansion of solar power in Germany. With the new rules, more systems can also be built on farmland.

database for Balcony power plants

The draft makes it possible to operate the photovoltaic systems for the balconies as easy as possible. So far it has been like this: If you want to install a power plant on the terrace, you have to register it with the network operator. In addition, the so-called two-way counter is still in demand. Both must disappear.

In the future, only the balcony power plant should be entered into a database. For a transitional period, old non-digital electricity meters can continue to be used, which in turn simply snap back on when electricity is fed into the grid from the balcony. So far, a person with a small solar system can produce 600 watts of electricity – that limit needs to be raised to a maximum of 800 watts.

More open space than solar gardens

According to the plans, the use of self-generated solar energy in residential buildings should also be simplified. Large systems with a high level of self-consumption should also benefit from changes in the law in the solar energy package: the proposal states that systems with an installed capacity of 100 kilowatts can transfer excess quantities to the grid operator without charge, but also without costs. Until now, the operators of these systems had to sell them directly.

In addition, more open spaces will be used as sun parks. To this end, disadvantaged farming areas should also be opened up to promote photovoltaic systems. The expansion of photovoltaics on farmland will be limited to 80 gigawatts by 2030. Federal states can also cap expansion if a certain percentage is already used by photovoltaic systems.

Reduce bureaucracy Aims to

For the first time, the “practice check” has also been used for solar array, which is a new tool to promote the reduction of bureaucracy. “In Germany, a forest of bureaucracy has grown up over decades that is difficult to break through,” said Economics Minister Robert Habeck. Less bureaucracy can help “unleash” badly needed investments. When it came to the solar power package, participants faced a total of 50 bureaucratic hurdles that now need to be cleared.

The goal of the government made up of SPD, Greens and FDP is to increase the share of renewable energies in total electricity consumption in Germany to 80% by 2030. According to the ministry, the increase in photovoltaics last year was about 7.5 gigawatts. In the current year, until July alone, more than 7.5 GW has been added, and double-digit growth is expected.

Criticism of the Farmers Association

Criticism of the plans comes from the Farmers’ Association. On the one hand, it aims to limit the expansion of photovoltaic cells on agricultural land. On the other hand, the so-called commitment to tolerance is criticized. By law, landlords or tenants of forestry and agriculture must allow solar system operators on their property in order to lay or maintain communication lines, for example.

The German Farmers Association considers this to be “constitutionally questionable”. After the plans became known, he said it would amount to “expropriation without compensation”. This may lead to a “loss of acceptance” in rural areas of renewable energies.

With information from Christopher Jähnert, ARD Capital Studio