BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The EU Commission and the German federal government have reached a breakthrough regarding the construction of new gas power plants in Germany. There is a fundamental agreement with the European Commission on key points of the power plant strategy, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs announced in Berlin. The new power plants are intended to ensure security of supply in Germany.
Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Katherina Reiche (CDU), said: "The agreement on the power plant strategy is a decisive step for security of supply in Germany." With short-term tenders for twelve gigawatts of new, additional controllable capacity, the foundation for a secure electricity supply in Germany will also be laid for the future, thus ensuring the competitiveness of industry.
First Step
As part of the power plant strategy, the ministry stated that in a first step, 12 gigawatts (GW) of new, so-called controllable capacity will be put out to tender this year. For 10 GW of these tenders, a "long-term criterion" is planned – the awarded capacities must be able to generate electricity continuously for a longer period of time for supply security reasons. These long-term capacities, such as – but not limited to – modern and highly efficient gas power plants, should commence operation no later than 2031. All power plants built as part of the strategy must be hydrogen-ready and fully decarbonized by 2045 at the latest.
For context: a modern gas power plant has an electrical output between 500 and 800 megawatts. In their coalition agreement, CDU, CSU, and SPD announced their intention to incentivize the construction of up to 20 gigawatts of gas power plant capacity by 2030.
The EU state aid procedure is not yet complete with this fundamental agreement, according to the ministry. The power plant strategy must still receive final approval from the European Commission under state aid law after the draft legislation is submitted.
Government Aims to Create Incentives
A multi-billion euro state subsidy is planned for the construction of the new gas power plants. So far, companies have been hesitant to invest. If the plants are mainly used to balance fluctuations, they will be underutilized, making it harder to operate them profitably. The EU Commission must approve this state aid. Environmental organizations criticize the construction of new gas power plants.
Security of Supply
New gas power plants are intended to ensure security of supply. In the future, they are to serve as backups when electricity demand cannot be met by renewable energy sources – during "dark doldrums" when there is neither sun nor wind. Germany has phased out nuclear energy. The country aims to gradually phase out coal-fired power generation by 2038, which will result in the loss of a significant amount of so-called secured capacity./mjm/DP/nas
