Overview
- A deal announced Saturday between the Union and SPD keeps the traditional feed-in tariff for new rooftop solar up to 25 kilowatts and requires 26–50 kW systems to be marketed by network operators at annual market value.
- The agreement dilutes Economy Minister Katherina Reiche’s package that sought to cut subsidies, introduce profit‑sharing and tie new capacity to grid constraints through the so‑called Netzpaket.
- Lawmakers must still resolve the Netzpaket and Redispatch rules that would force generators to align output with transmission limits, and the coalition is split on whether to link passage of the EEG to that wider grid legislation.
- The sector warns that continued uncertainty raises financing costs, is already driving insolvencies among developers and could threaten hundreds of thousands of jobs if policy clarity is not restored quickly.
- Timelines add urgency: existing subsidy rules lose EU state‑aid approval at the end of 2026 and the EU Commission must approve the new framework to avoid a lapse of the EEG on 1 January 2027, which could halt valid support for new projects.