Germany’s first tender for 4.5 gigawatts of new gas-fired power capacity has attracted more bids than the available volume, in a sign of strong industry interest in the government’s plan to reinforce electricity supplies.
The Federal Network Agency said the successful bidders are expected to be announced by 3 November. The auction closed on 8 September as part of a wider programme to procure new dispatchable capacity for Europe’s largest economy.
Successful projects will be required to keep the capacity available for 15 years in return for annual payments. The scheme is intended to provide electricity during prolonged periods when wind and solar generation is low, or imports are unavailable.
The first round forms part of plans to tender about 11 gigawatts of new capacity, with a further 4.5 gigawatts due to be offered later this year and another 2 gigawatts planned for May 2027. The Federal Network Agency has said the programme will prioritise cost-effective projects that strengthen security of supply.
New plants must be capable of switching to hydrogen. Germany’s environment ministry said facilities initially running on natural gas would eventually have to convert to green hydrogen, with the country’s capacity market required to be climate-neutral by 2045.
Utilities including RWE and Uniper had previously indicated that they were targeting bids totalling about 4.7 gigawatts. The European Commission approved the German support scheme last week, with the overall programme estimated to cost up to €35.2 billion.
