Germany to introduce investor-friendly reforms in gas power stations
According to a draft document that will be presented to the German parliament on Thursday, the governing coalition in Germany has agreed to reforms to encourage?the construction of gas power stations? and attract investment.
The conservatives of Chancellor Friedrich Merz and their Social Democratic partners plan to increase the maximum bid permissible for tenders from EUR173,000 (197,687) up to EUR244,000.
This move is part of the government's plans to tender 12 gigawatts of capacity by?2026. The focus will be on gas-fired plants to support the?continuing phase out of coal-fired capacity.
BDEW, the energy industry association, welcomed the decision. According to Kerstin Andreae (managing director), it "ensures economic viability" of investments in "modern gas-fired plants", despite rising costs.
The Greens, an environmentalist group, criticised the reforms. Michael Kellner is the spokesperson for the Greens on energy policy.
To make the?reforms more investor-friendly, they also propose a change to a rule that requires uninterrupted power supply for over 10 hours.
The expansion will be managed regionally. One-third of the tender volume is developed in northern Germany and two-thirds?in southern Germany.
The BDEW demanded that 'the measures be passed before the German Parliament's summer recess, and?approved? by the European Commission. This would allow 'the next tenders? to take place between September and December this year. ($1 = 0.8751 euros) (Reporting by Holger Hansen, Writing by Rachel More, Editing by William Maclean)
(source: Reuters)
