The cabinet has passed a draft bill that includes amendments to the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) to address some of the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic. The bioenergy associations welcome the fact that this "EEG corona amendment" initially grants important deadline extensions. At the same time, however, they criticize the lack of decisive steps to create a secure framework for the flexibilization of biogas plants. Nor does a short-term amendment replace the comprehensive EEG reform.
"The bioenergy sector is facing major challenges due to supply bottlenecks and staff shortages caused by the coronavirus crisis, especially with regard to meeting statutory deadlines. Even under normal conditions, these are almost impossible to meet," explains Sandra Rostek, Head of the Bioenergy Capital Office in Berlin, on behalf of the bioenergy associations. "We are pleased that the German government is addressing these challenges with its draft legislation." The draft stipulates a six-month extension of the deadlines for EEG tenders and the transitional regulation for grid connection conditions in accordance with the Energy Industry Act. "Both changes are important so that plant project planners, manufacturers and operators can operate under the originally intended framework conditions and do not have to accept the loss of their EEG surcharge through no fault of their own," summarizes the Head of the Bioenergy Capital Office. "In order to really enable the industry to realize its projects, this regulation must be permanently included in the EEG and expanded over time."
"This law should also urgently include an extended deadline for the flexibility premium for biogas plants," demands Rostek. This concerns the date by which existing biogas plants can register for the flexibility premium for the last time in order to finance their investments in converting to a demand-oriented operation of the plant. As the cap for the flexibility premium was already reached in July 2019, operators are now only entitled to the premium if the flexibilization measure is completed by the end of November 2020. However, for many projects that are currently in the conversion process, this cannot be met due to the effects of the coronavirus crisis. If the flexibility premium planned for the projects were to be canceled, refinancing would not be possible in the vast majority of cases and insolvency could not be avoided.
In order to prevent ongoing flexibilization projects from being abandoned and to prevent plant insolvencies, the bioenergy associations are calling on the Bundestag to create pragmatic regulations in the further course of the procedure. The aim must be to ensure that operators who are unable to fully complete flexibilization by the end of November 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic remain entitled to the flexibility premium. This is the only way to ensure immediate investment security.
The associations also point out that the current EEG coronavirus amendment does not replace the long-announced "major" EEG amendment. In this context, it is urgently necessary for the bioenergy tender volumes for the years 2023 to 2030 to be set out in the EEG and for the tender design to be further developed in order to make participation more attractive for operators. In general, the bioenergy associations consider an extended implementation period of 36 months to be necessary, as well as an increase in the maximum bid values. An expansion of the fermentation of farm manure and agricultural residues in biogas plants must also be implemented through the further development of the special remuneration class for manure fermentation. In addition, the cap on the flexibility premium must be abolished or significantly increased.
