German industry org requires separate tender for agri-PV

• Germany should introduce a separate auction for agrivoltaic solar projects to take advantage of the dual use agricultural land and also reach the targeted installed solar capacity of 215 GW by 2030, according to energy and also water industry association BDEW.

BDEW's head, Kerstin Andreae, suggests that regular solar tenders are not ideal for properly promoting the development of agri-PV as a result of the varying cost structure of these projects. In order to motivate the synchronised use of agricultural land and photovoltaics, Andreae proposes the development of a separate tender category. At first, this category would use a capacity of 200 MW in 2024, with an organized rise to 1 GW per year beginning in 2028.

While it is currently feasible to promote unique solar setups outside of tenders, the level of promo stays insufficient. In addition, BDEW recommends that the support for small-scale agri-PV projects be without delay identified.

The organisation likewise highlights the limited use of assigned "disadvantaged areas" as a governing obstacle. To totally manipulate the potential of numerous fragmented plots, BDEW suggests making such areas offered for solar setups listed below 1 MW.

To guarantee the swift availability of land, it is important to keep agri-PV areas as agricultural land without requiring reclassification. The reclassification of land ought to not be needed, as the land made use of for agrivoltaics can be solely used for agricultural functions after the solar system is decommissioned.

One major obstacle hindering the acceleration of agri-PV is the requirement to present evidence of continuous agricultural task every 3 years, validated by experts. In order to improve investment safety and security for equity companies as well as providing banks, BDEW recommends eliminating the recurring proof requirement and developing a more sensible method for verification.

These propositions are part of a detailed set of 12 procedures that were introduced by the organisation recently, aiming to cultivate the expansion of agri-PV, floating PV, and also solar systems on carports.

Additional tips include offering a clearer interpretation for permanent grassland, applying functional requirements for solar installments on peatlands, and facilitating biodiversity PV via extensive agri-PV.