German authorities have described the first round in the pilot tender as a step towards “real competition.” A total of 25 bids have been approved after 170 bids were submitted by mid-April.
Two weeks after the deadline for submissions, Germany’s Federal Network Agency has granted the contracts in the first round of the ground-mounted PV tender.
The agency accepted 25 bids totaling 156.97 MW of PV capacity, with the average capacity of the tendered projects at 6.3 MW at a rate of €0.0917 per kilowatt hour.
Contractors submitted a total of 170 bids up to the April 15 deadline – four times more than the tendered amount of 150 MW.
“The large number of bids received is a testament to the intense competition for funding approvals for ground-mounted photovoltaic systems,” said Federal Network Agency President Jochen Homann.
The contracted price was well below the tender’s maximum limit of €0.1129 per kilowatt hour. Nevertheless, the rate is still higher than the current price of solar power of €0.0902 under Germany’s current market premium model, which declines on a monthly basis.
Successful bidders now have 24 months to realize their PV projects.
According to the Federal Network Agency, one as of yet unnamed company amassed 40% of the tendered capacity through number of bids, confirming to some extent initial fears among smaller players that the ground-mounted PV tender would favor larger and financially stronger companies capable of offering lower prices.
Winning bidders now have 10 days to pay a security deposit to ensure their projects, otherwise they lose their contracts. The 24-month period allotted to bidders to realize their projects commences after they submit their deposits.
The agency said it disqualified 37 of the initial 170 bids because they did not meet eligibility requirements, including incomplete paperwork and lack of other required documentation or fees.
While the Federal Network Agency has published some information about the tenders, it does not list the exact size or offered price of the individual projects.
This article was first published at PV-Magazine. Reproduced with permission.
Update: This article was corrected to add in missing decimal point in strike rate of auction.
