Federal government failed in its mandatory task: missed deadline - CHP rule for EEG surcharge lost

Federal government failed in its mandatory task: missed deadline - CHP rule for EEG surcharge lost

But the BMWI statement actually means the exact opposite: it was a nasty surprise for operators of functioning combined heat and power (CHP) plants! The renowned law firm Maslaton from Leipzig sums up what the BMWI spokespersons are blurting out: "The European Commission is refusing to continue the pro rata EEG levy exemption for CHP plants!"

In any case, the fact is that on New Year's Eve 2017, the authorization to charge only the reduced rate of 40 percent of the regular EEG levy for self-generated and self-consumed electricity in CHP plants that have been in operation since 2014 came to an end.The Maslaton lawyers are nevertheless very fond of the German government: "In view of the agreement reached in advance between the German government and the European Commission on the design of the self-supply regulation, the European Commission has now surprisingly refused to grant state aid approval for the continuation of the pro rata EEG levy exemption for CHP plants." Other insiders claim the opposite: The ministerial staff had known for a long time that the EU Commission would make this decision shortly before Christmas. But instead of coming clean to the affected CHP operators at an early stage, they remained silent. And when there was no other option, the ministers glossed over the situation. The operators' association B-KWK is not the only one to feel that "trust in the legislation has been shaken".Because it had been clear since 2014 that the derogation had only been approved by the European Commission for a limited period of time. Even the date was always clear: 31.12.2017. "The Federal Ministry of Economics has not sought a successor regulation with sufficient vigor," B-KWK Vice President Heinz Ullrich Brosziewski fumes

PS: "Following an agreement with Brussels, the EEG surcharge cap for new CHP self-supply plants is to be revised by law next year and submitted to the European Commission for approval without delay." This is also stated in the BMWI information from 19.12.2017, in which State Secretary Rainer Baake continues to praise the green clover: "In the event of a switch from coal to more climate-friendly energy sources, the full exemption from the EEG levy will even remain in place. The Commission also approved the relief for new plants that generate electricity from renewable energies. Many photovoltaic systems on buildings in particular will benefit from this."

However, this does not help CHP plant owners who have built since 2014 and do not operate an EEG plant. Only for old systems and for operators of new CHP systems that use biomass or biogas to generate electricity, "the reduced levy rate will initially continue to apply in the context of self-supply", explain the Maslatons

Many people are also wondering: what does the word "swiftly" mean for State Secretary for Energy Baake and co? Apparently more than four years. At any rate, the ministry has obviously not sent anything constructive to Brussels for that long. Otherwise the 40 percent CHP rule would not have been overturned at the turn of the year.

Link: http://www.bmwi.de/Redaktion/DE/Pressemitteilungen/2017/20171219-eu-kommission-genehmigt-vollstaendige-eeg-entlastung-von-bestandsanlagen-bei-eigenversorgung.html

But perhaps the supposed incompetence of those responsible for the energy transition in Germany is part of the current political staging "Just no progress" and thus planned uncertainty? Another building block that the "retro-energy lobbyists" have foisted on the conceptless and clueless permanent interim politicians to cause lasting damage to the future of energy?

We will not be discouraged; the right path to an environmentally friendly energy supply will prevail despite all the disruptive fire!

Our team is starting an exciting 2018 full of enthusiasm.

(Author: Zukunftsenergie-Team Gammel)