German wind sector "slump" political failure, not companies’ fault – wind industry association

The “market slump” in the German wind power sector, which continues to lead to job cuts at manufacturers and suppliers, is caused by government regulation, writes the German Wind Energy Association (BWE) in a press release. “On the one hand, the federal government talks about reaching ambitious expansion and climate targets by 2030 and 2050, but at the same time it is placing restrictions on companies here and now, which are meant to make reaching these goals possible,” said BWE head Hermann Albers. The BWE criticised the introduction of expansion limits with the Renewable Energy Act (EEG) reform in 2016/17 and calls on the government to introduce the planned special auctions fast, as well as “a dependable timeline and volume concept for further expansion until 2030”.

Find the press release in German here.

For background, read the CLEW article Minister promises stability for troubled German wind power sector and the CLEW dossier Onshore wind power in Germany.