Germany had another round of undersubscribed rooftop solar auction as Bundesnetzagentur says bids came in for only 128 MW against 202 MW on offer for solar systems on buildings and noise barriers, and only 1 bid for innovative tenders which was a solar and storage project.
Out of 128 MW capacity submitted as 67 bids, the agency selected 56 bids with a volume of 105 MW.
Lowest and highest winning bids for this auction were determined as €0.0809 per kWh and €0.0891 per kWh, while the weighted average dropped to €0.0874 per kWh compared to €0.0884 per kWh in the previous round.
Most of the winning bids, 12 for 28 MW, were for projects in the western state of North-Rhine Westphalia, followed by 8 bids for 6 MW in Baden-Württemberg, 6 bids for 7 MW in Berlin, and 6 bids for 12 MW surcharge amount in Lower Saxony were awarded.
The Federal Network Agency points out the auction volume of 202 MW corresponds to the average of the bid volume of the accepted bids of the bidding round of April 1, 2022 and August 1, 2022. In the previous round, which was also undersubscribed, 767 MW was offered for this category but interest came in for only 214 MW while 201 MW was auctioned (see Germany's 4th Rooftop Solar Auction Undersubscribed).
For the innovation tender, the sole bid for a solar project with storage meant the round was 'drastically undersigned'. "For the first time, a variable market premium was offered, which is offset against the stock exchange price and no fixed market premium as before, which is paid in addition to market proceeds," stated the agency. The winning bid wasn't disclosed.
"We are currently creating new framework conditions for more successful tenders next year. After the necessary checks, the Federal Network Agency will use the powers to determine the maximum values decided by the Bundestag as soon as possible. The tenders for roof-top solar systems are taking the energy transition with large systems to urban regions," said President of Bundesnetzagentur, Klaus Müller.
Also the onshore wind energy tender was undersubscribed with bids for only 203 MW coming in against 604 MW offered which itself was reduced from the original offer of 1.19 GW.
The next auction for solar on rooftops and noise barriers will be held on February 1, 2023, and for the innovation category the next tender date is May 1, 2023.