The energy park developer Alterric views the further delay of the planned reform of the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG 2027) and the new grid connection package with great concern. The draft bills from the German government, which have so far only been leaked, would jeopardize the financial viability of new wind energy projects. This threatens to severely slow down the supply of urgently needed, affordable energy to Germany’s industrial sector. Instead of accelerating the transition, current challenges are being solved unilaterally at the expense of producers rather than by optimizing the overall system.
“Redispatch reservation” jeopardizes project financing
A key point of criticism from Alterric is the planned “redispatch reservation” (Redispatch-Vorbehalt) in the grid connection package. Under this proposal, operators of new plants could be curtailed without financial compensation for up to ten years in the event of grid bottlenecks. The company sees this as an existential risk for the predictability and financial viability of new wind farms. The sluggish expansion of the grid must not come at the expense of producers. Without effective expansion incentives for grid operators, this threatens to trigger a massive investment freeze.
Even though the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action recently signaled a willingness to discuss alternative instruments, the debate remains narrowed down to putting the brakes on renewable installations at overloaded grid nodes. Alterric considers this the wrong focus: it is not generation that must be slowed down; instead, grid expansion must gain the necessary momentum. Binding deadlines and effective sanctions for grid operators are currently completely missing from the drafts.
“The current approaches do not solve the central problem: grid expansion lags far behind the expansion of renewables,” says Dr. Frank May, CEO of Alterric. “Instead of correcting this imbalance, the costs are being unilaterally burdened onto the producers.”
“The consistent expansion of a secure and affordable energy supply in Germany directly impacts the investment willingness of industry and the economy. Companies invest where energy is reliably, securely, and affordably available. That is why the expansion of renewables is not just an industry-specific issue, but central to the future of Germany as an industrial location.”
Lack of auction incentives slows down expansion in the south as well
A key component of this investment-friendly legal framework is the provision of sufficient auction volumes. However, the 12,000 megawatts of additional onshore wind auction capacities set out in the Climate Protection Program are missing from the leaked EEG draft. Yet, a smart design for distributing these additional volumes is fundamental to keeping wind energy expansion viable in southern Germany, thereby ensuring a system-supporting distribution of generation as well as lower grid expansion and redispatch costs. Alterric also strongly rejects a reduction in the so-called correction factor (Korrekturfaktor) for locations with lower wind speeds, as this would further strangle regional expansion.
Progress in storage and funding framework – but adjustments needed
The company views with concern that parallel processes are considering spatial steering signals for renewables, including through construction cost subsidies. This could lead to unnecessary and uncoordinated double burdens. On the positive side, Alterric welcomes the simplifications for connecting battery storage systems at existing sites. However, this technology neutrality must now be systematically extended to the shared use of grid connections for wind and solar plants. Only through such overbuilding (co-location) can existing grid capacities be utilized optimally and cost-effectively.
Designing the investment framework in a market-oriented way – introducing CfDs with a market value corridor
While Alterric welcomes the fact that the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs is adopting European guidelines for the further development of renewable energy hedging by introducing two-way, production-dependent Contracts for Difference (CfDs), the model falls far short of its potential in its current form. Alterric is particularly critical of the lack of a market value corridor: the operation of renewables is being pushed further away from the market, meaning there are fewer incentives to build and operate in a system-integrated manner. In short, this risks making the expansion less market-driven and less efficient. Targeted fine-tuning is therefore required for a system-supporting and investment-friendly expansion. This applies in particular to securing PPAs (Power Purchase Agreements), as already announced by the Federal Government in autumn 2025.
It is now crucial that the federal government swiftly presents official draft laws so that the parliamentary process can begin—especially since the European Commission must still grant state aid approval before they can enter into force on January 1, 2027. The uncertainty for companies and the German economy resulting from this delay is unacceptable.