Latest news with #StefanThimm
Telegraph
07-08-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
German wind auction flop sparks fears for Miliband's UK sale
A German offshore wind auction has received no bids after developers baulked at the low subsidies, just as Ed Miliband prepares to offer lucrative taxpayer support in Britain to avoid a similar flop. The Federal Network Agency offered up plots in two areas of the North Sea, which authorities were hoping could host wind farms that would have opened in the early 2030s. But the competition was snubbed by developers, with an industry association claiming the result was a 'clear message' that Germany's government needed to stump up more cash. Stefan Thimm, of the German Offshore Wind Energy Association, said: 'The German offshore wind market is currently not attractive to investors. The federal government is thus missing the opportunity for significant value creation and employment in Germany and Europe.' The failed auction came as Britain quietly launched its own similar auction on Thursday, with Mr Miliband, the Energy Secretary, expected to offer bumper subsidies to attract enough wind farm capacity to meet his clean power targets. The German results underscored the difficulties being experienced by Europe's offshore wind industry, which has been buffeted by rising costs and interest rates in recent years. That has squeezed the profitability of projects, making them more reliant on top-ups from government subsidies. However, the precise level of state support has proved a sticking point. Britain's own wind auction received no bids in 2023 after ministers initially refused to raise the subsidies on offer. They later backed down, with Mr Miliband overseeing a record £3bn of contract for difference (CfD) awards last year. He has since reformed CfDs, which guarantee wind farm revenues, so that they last 20 years instead of 15. The costs are added to the bills of consumers, who will end up paying them until the 2040s. This year's auction round in the UK, known as AR7 to the industry, is viewed as critical because it is the last time the Government can realistically attract new capacity in time for the 2030 clean power targets, given the time it takes to construct a wind farm. Analysts at Bernstein said the auction held 'existential' importance for Mr Miliband's flagship policy and estimated that winning bids could pay at least £85 ($114) a megawatt-hour, up from £82 last year. That is higher than wholesale power prices last year, which averaged £74 per megawatt-hour, and would mark the second time in a year that the price for offshore wind has risen. Andy Mayer, an energy expert at the Institute of Economic Affairs, said he expected the British auction to 'go the other way' to its German equivalent. He said: 'The straightforward reality for the wind market at the moment is that costs are rising – they are as affected by rising inflation as any other industry. 'So the myth that the price of renewables would always get cheaper, which existed between 2015 and 2022, has been blown apart. 'But in Britain's auction, I expect developers will fill their boots, because the politicians have decided that we must roll out a certain amount of wind power per year at all costs.' Under Mr Miliband's clean power action plan, the Government is targeting 43 to 50 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity compared to about 15 gigawatts today. However, the plans are opposed by Reform UK – led by Nigel Farage – which has threatened to scrap any contracts awarded to wind farm developers and slash net zero-related expenditure across Whitehall. Richard Tice, the party's energy spokesman, wrote to energy companies last month to warn them of the Reform plan. He said: 'You should treat any long-term revenue streams as politically and commercially unsafe.' Mr Mayer said reneging on the contracts would be hugely risky and might cause a collapse of business confidence in Britain. However, he suggested the party may avoid the need to do this by simply introducing a windfall tax to claw back the revenues, something Mr Tice has also threatened in the past.
Yahoo
04-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Germany's offshore wind farms generate more electricity
Wind farms in the North and Baltic Seas are making a significant contribution to Germany's energy transition, and their share of electricity generation is increasing. Last year, offshore wind energy generated a total of 25.7 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity, compared with 23.5 TWh the year before. Offshore wind energy's share of German electricity generation was 5.9% in 2024. Stefan Thimm, from the German Offshore Wind Energy Association, said that huge progress had been made since the birth of the sector 15 years ago. By the end of 2024, a total of 1,639 offshore wind turbines with a total capacity of around 9.2 gigawatts (GW) were in operation in Germany. For comparison, the installed capacity of onshore wind turbines at the end of 2024 was around 63.5 gigawatts, while the total solar capacity was around 99 gigawatts. Electricity from wind and sun plays a key role in the German government's climate protection targets and the gradual reduction of fossil fuels use. By 2030, 80% of the electricity is to come from renewable energy sources. Last year, according to industry figures, it was 55%. However, the legally stipulated expansion target of at least 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030 will probably not be met until 2031, the industry association says. The target for 2035 of at least 40 GW, on the other hand, should be met a year earlier. With Germany heading to the polls in early parliamentary elections later this month, Thimm said political predictability was vital. And, with the increasing importance of offshore wind power for energy supply, there is a growing need for better physical and cyber security to better protect critical maritime infrastructure.
