Southern Bavaria’s Wind Rollout Splits Between Local Successes and Stalled Projects

Overview

• Citizen‑funded parks are proving viable: the Hofoldinger Forst has operated three turbines for about a year after raising €6 million in local subordinated loans and won strong local support.
• The Windpark Ampertal has secured key permits and roughly €1.2 million in citizen loans and plans foundations and tower erection in 2027 but will only start full construction if it wins an EEG auction award to lock 20‑year revenues.
• Several projects near approval, notably the BEG proposal at Allershausen, are paused because forest site access and the need to negotiate with many landowners make construction impossible even with permits.
• Federal auction prices have fallen sharply, with the average awarded rate dropping from about 7.33 to 4.79 cents per kWh over two years, leaving southern bids largely uncompetitive and prompting calls for a southern quota or other targeted policy fixes.
• Despite setbacks, developers say a handful of sites have begun preparatory work and expect foundations or towers in 2027, but wider rollout depends on auction reforms and clearer federal support to make costly forest and southern builds viable.