By Holger Hansen and Christoph Steitz
BERLIN/FRANKFURT, Jan 15 (Reuters) – Germany said on Thursday it had reached an agreement with the European Commission on a plan to build new power stations, adding it would tender 12 gigawatts (GW) worth of capacity in 2026, with a focus on gas-fired sites.
This is a major step on Germany’s path to ensure security of supply in light of the country’s ongoing phase-out of coal-fired power capacity.
“With the short-term tenders … we are also laying the foundation for a secure electricity supply in Germany in the future and thus for the competitiveness of our industry,” Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said.
Most of the new capacity, 10 GW, must be able to generate electricity over a longer period of time to ensure steady supply, Germany’s economy ministry said, adding that this included but was not limited to gas-fired power stations.
The new power stations, which are expected to enter service in 2031, will be able to run on hydrogen by 2045 at the latest, in line with Germany’s goal of becoming climate neutral that year, the ministry said.
State aid procedures related to the plan have not been completed yet, Berlin said, adding that the strategy would still have to be finally approved by the European Commission.
Germany’s top utilities, most notably RWE, Uniper, and EnBW, have been waiting for details of the power plant strategy, eager to start building the sites provided the regulatory framework allows profitable operation.
Uniper CEO Michael Lewis called the agreement an “urgently needed step towards making the energy transition in Germany cost-efficient and pragmatic.
Instead of rigid requirements, operators can make business decisions about when to switch to hydrogen.”
The ministry said there would be additional tenders for new capacity in 2027 and 2029/2030, which would also have to be available by 2031.
(Reporting by Holger Hansen and Christoph Steitz; Editing by Susan Fenton, Ed Osmond and David Gregorio)
