Today the Federal Cabinet finally approved changes to the network charges regime for large electricity consumers. The Federal Council had already approved the revision, on 5 July 2013, subject to certain conditions, which the Cabinet accepted. The revision shall address concerns raised by the European Commission and German courts.
Monthly Archive for July, 2013
Yesterday BMW officially launched its first pure electric car, the four seater i3, in London, New York and Beijing.
In late April Parliament (Bundestag) passed the “Second Law Concerning Measures to Accelerate the Expansion of the Electricity Grids”, part of which is the “Federal Requirement Plan for Transmission Networks”, which contains two DC extra-high voltage power line projects that end respectively start in the town of Meerbusch-Osterath. The town of Meerbusch announced to file a constitutional complaint with the Federal Constitutional Court, alleging a violation of its municipal planning rights.
The postal service provider Deutsche Post DHL has announced to convert its fleet of delivery vehicles in the city of Bonn and its surroundings to electric cars, making the city the first German CO2-free DHL location.
Continue reading ‘DHL Makes Bonn Pilot City for Electric Delivery Vehicles’
Andreas Mundt, President of the German Cartel Office, has demanded a fundamental EEG reform in the near future in an interview with Handelsblatt. Renewable energy production was completely regulated, but without rhyme or reason, he said. In the interview he also indicated that the feed-in priority for renewables under the current EEG could be abolished.
More and more producers of renewable energy are selling the electricity directly, the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) informed. According to latest data from the transmission system operators (TSOs), almost half of the electricity from renewable sources has been traded entirely via the electricity exchange, and was therefore subject to competition in the wholesale market, BMU said. A year and a half after the EEG amendment (of 2012) and the introduction of the market premium, and only six months after the corresponding management premium ordinance entered into force, considerable progress had been made, the ministry stated.
Continue reading ‘BMU: Almost Half of the Renewable Energy Marketed Directly’
Combined heat and power is essential for reaching Germany’s energy policy goals, the Federal Association of the Energy and Water Industry (BDEW) and AGFW, the German Heat & Power Association, said when presenting a new study on CHP. To better tap the potential of CHP, they demanded changes of the legal framework.
Yesterday, the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig (BVerwG) dismissed lawsuits by a municipality, a cooperative of forest owners (Waldgenossenschaft), and private land owners against the plan determination decision (Planfeststellungsbeschluss) for the 380 kV extra-high voltage power line between Vieselbach near Erfurt and Altenfeld, both located in Thuringia. Continue reading ‘Federal Administrative Court Dismisses Lawsuits Against Extra-high Voltage Line in Thuringia’
The Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) has put up a “Guideline Establishing the Damages Payable to Operators of Offshore Power Plants in Case of a Disruption of the Connecting Power Line, a Connection Delay or Maintenance Work, Which Are Passed on the End Consumers”, for consultation until 12 August 2013.
Continue reading ‘New Consultation on BNetzA Guideline on Offshore Damages’
On 12 July 2013 representatives of the Saxon State Ministries of Economics and of the Interior signed a joint “Decree on Minimum Distances between Residential Housing and Priority Areas and Other Areas Suitable for Wind Power”. The decree essentially stipulates a general minimum distance of 1,000 metres between residential housing and wind power plants, a press release issued by the State of Saxony says.
