Direct marketing of renewable energies

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Direct marketing of renewable energies is a form of marketing of renewable energies that has been promoted in Germany since 2012 .

history

The term direct marketing was first introduced in Section 17 of the Renewable Energy Sources Act 2009 (EEG) and at that time led to the loss of the right to remuneration. With the amendment to the EEG 2012, the regulations were further developed ( Sections 33a to 33i EEG 2012). This type of direct marketing is to be promoted by the so-called optional market premium . Since the 2014 revision of the Act, the provisions can be found in Sections 34 to 36 EEG 2014.

With the changes in the version of the EEG 2014 to the current version of the EEG 2017, Part 3: Market premium and feed- in tariff was extended to §§ 19-55a and in 2017 Annex 1: Amount of the market premium was added. The regulations on market premiums and other direct marketing can currently be found in §20 and §21a and for general tendering provisions in §§ 28-35a .

Market premium model according to EEG 2012

background

Normally, the operator of a renewable energy system (e.g. a wind turbine or a biogas system ) sells his electricity to the responsible regional network operator . The system operator receives remuneration that is above the market price for the respective form of energy (mostly electricity). The network operator or the responsible transmission network operator forwards the electricity to the end customer and in turn is reimbursed for the difference between the market price and the price paid to the system operator. This reimbursement is financed by a levy paid by consumers.

Alternatively, the system operator can also route the electricity - unsubsidised - through a public grid and sell it directly to an interested buyer (cf. § 33a EEG 2012). This is known as "direct marketing". Electricity marketed directly in this way can be subsidized with the so-called optional market premium and the additional management premium . The market premium is intended to provide an incentive for EEG system operators to operate their systems in a market-oriented manner: they should increasingly feed in RE electricity when demand is particularly high (and thus the price on the electricity exchange is often also high). With the normal delivery of the generated electricity to the network operator, however, the latter has an obligation to purchase and the remuneration is constant.

According to the EEG 2012, there are three options for green electricity producers to market their electricity directly:

  1. for the purpose of using the so-called optional market premium according to § 33g EEG 2012 (from January 1, 2012),
  2. for the purpose of reducing the EEG surcharge by an electricity supply company according to § 39 EEG 2012.
  3. than other direct marketing.

The further explanations here deal with the so-called market premium model , the most important component of which is the market premium mentioned.

The market premium model

The market premium model was proposed in May 2011 by Federal Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen for better market integration of renewable energies (RE), was decided in the Bundestag on July 28, 2011 and came into force on January 1, 2012. Since then, operators of a system for regenerative power generation have been able to decide on a monthly basis whether they want the electricity to be paid for via the EEG or to market the electricity themselves, but must notify the network operator of this before the start of the previous calendar month. The market premium model comprises the market premium itself, a flexibility premium for operators of biogas plants and a management premium.

In addition to the green electricity privilege, the market premium model is an essential economic motivation for the direct marketing of EEG electricity.

Optional market premium

The optional market premium is a monetary premium stipulated in the EEG 2012 for producers of electricity from renewable energies or mine gas who forego the receipt of the EEG remuneration and sell their electricity directly to third parties or on the stock exchange in accordance with §§ 33a and 33b number 1 EEG 2012 market.

Market premium amount

The amount of the respective market premium is the difference between the remuneration set for each form of energy for energy from wind, sun, etc. and the monthly calculated average exchange price for electricity (see Section 33g EEG 2012; see also electricity price ). In the case of wind and PV electricity, this is corrected by a value factor that reflects the respective market value on the exchange. For Germany, this electricity is traded on EPEX SPOT SE in Paris. In addition, an additional system-specific management bonus is used to offset the costs of compensating for forecast errors. The network operator pays the entire premium monthly and retrospectively.

Calculation of the market premium ( Annex 4 EEG)
Market premium = EEG remuneration - reference value
EEG remuneration: according to §§ 23-33 EEG
Reference value = MW - Pm
  • MW = monthly mean value of the energy carrier-specific market price
  • Pm = energy carrier-specific management bonus

Advantages and disadvantages of the market premium model

Direct marketing according to the EEG 2012

The calculation shows that there is an opportunity or a risk for system operators in the context of direct marketing:

  1. A system operator receives a higher remuneration for his electricity than the EEG remuneration if he achieves a higher price for his electricity on the exchange than the average wind or PV system.
  2. A system operator receives a lower remuneration for his electricity than the EEG remuneration if he achieves a lower price for his electricity on the exchange than the average wind or PV system.

Management bonus

The management bonus is part of the market bonus model and is intended to compensate system operators for the additional effort and risk that arise from direct marketing. This includes costs for listing on the stock exchange, for trading connections, for transactions, for recording actual values ​​and billing, for IT infrastructure, staff and services. A main cost factor, however, is the creation of feed-in forecasts and costs due to deviations of the actual feed-in from the forecast: If you want to achieve an optimal price for electricity from renewable energies on the electricity market, you need particularly precise forecasts. The better operators and traders can predict the amount of electricity they will then produce, the fewer reserves they have to provide or the less expensive balancing energy they have to buy. The central point when trading electricity in day-ahead trading is that the electricity volumes must be transmitted to the transmission system operator and EEX in advance - one day in advance. The quantities must be correct in megawatt hours for each of the 24 hours - rounded to one place behind the decimal point. In addition, as part of direct marketing, plant operators are obliged to make forecasts about the duration and amount of the feed-in in order to keep unexpected over- or under-production as low as possible.

For system operators who can fall back on a reliable forecast, this also means that they receive an additional fixed income from the management bonus.

For some renewable energies such as biogas and hydropower, it is relatively easy to make a feed-in forecast, as these are particularly easy to regulate. Wind power forecasts and solar power forecasts, on the other hand, are very complex because current meteorological data must be taken into account. Therefore, the legislature approves a significantly higher management premium for volatile energies.

The management premium is paid to the plant operator, depending on the amount of energy fed in, and is subject to a degression over time:

Management premium amount ( Annex 4 EEG 2012, § 2 MaPrV)
year Wind on- and offshore, solar Hydropower, landfill gas, sewage gas, mine gas, biomass, geothermal energy
2012 1.2 ct / kWh 0.3 ct / kWh
2013 0.65 - 0.75 ct / kWh 0.275 ct / kWh
2014 0.45 - 0.6 ct / kWh 0.25 ct / kWh
2015 0.3 - 0.5 ct / kWh 0.225 ct / kWh

Flexibility bonus

For biogas plants , Section 33g EEG 2012 contains an additional so-called “flexibility premium” as part of the market premium model, which is intended to lead to investments in larger gas storage facilities and generators and thus to an increase in demand-oriented electricity production from biomass . The bonus promotes the provision of additional controllable installed power for demand-oriented electricity generation, whereby the overall approved output power remains constant. The prerequisites for claiming the bonus are - apart from the provision of additional controllable services - u. a. participation in direct marketing and registration with the Federal Network Agency.

Changes in the market premium model by the EEG 2014

With the market premium model according to EEG 2014, the direct marketing of the electricity generated from renewable energies became binding for the majority of the system operators: Since January 1, 2016, all systems with an installed capacity of more than 100 kW must have their generated electricity directly on the electricity exchange market. In addition, the compulsory remote control of the systems via a suitable remote control unit applies . Exceptions to the mandatory direct marketing only apply to existing systems that were approved and commissioned before the EEG 2014 came into force ( EEG 2014 , §100, Paragraph 1, No. 6). According to the EEG 2012, biogas and biomethane plants already had to market their electricity directly if the plant went online after January 1, 2014 and the output was over 750 kW.

A major change in the EEG 2014 is the fact that the management premium is included in the market premium: the network operator no longer lists the management premium as a separate item on the bill, but instead allows it to be included in the market premium. According to the current status, which remains unchanged in the EEG 2017, the management premium for controllable new systems (biogas etc.) is 0.2 ct / kWh and for non-controllable new systems (wind, sun) 0.4 ct / kWh.

Development from the flexibility premium to the flexibility premium

With the flexibility surcharge, the EEG 2012 flexibility premium for new systems was replaced on August 1, 2014. Since then, biogas and biomethane plants with an installed capacity of 100 kW or more have been paid EUR 40 per kW of installed capacity. The provisions in Section 50a of the EEG 2017 remain unchanged. With the instrument of a flexibility surcharge, the energy policy requirements that new plants in the biogas sector should produce electricity flexibly and thus demand-oriented in the future are to be met.

The value to be applied in the EEG 2014

The value to be applied, already mentioned in the EEG 2012, has been of increased importance since the EEG 2014. In Section 33h of the EEG 2012, the value to be applied was still equated with the amount of the previous feed-in tariff; the management bonus was paid "on top".

With the EEG 2014, the value to be applied was legally defined more precisely: the management premium was priced into it, and the legislature also wrote out the values ​​to be applied individually for the various energy sources and stipulated them by law. For certain energy sources, a gradual degression of the applicable value has been introduced: Since 2016, the applicable values ​​for onshore wind energy have been falling depending on the fulfillment of the expansion corridor; a corresponding adjustment is also being made in photovoltaics.

Changes in the market premium model by the EEG 2017

With the EEG 2017, the basic mechanism of promoting renewable energies was not changed by the legislator: There is still a market premium, and the management premium will continue to be paid out, priced into the value to be applied to calculate the market premium. What is new, however, is the Federal Network Agency's auction procedure for determining the value to be applied, which gives it a completely new meaning in the process of approval and commissioning of plants for the generation of renewable energy.

Market economy determination of the applicable value in the EEG 2017

According to the EEG 2017 (prospective) operators of systems for the generation of electricity from the renewable energies biogas, wind and sun have had to participate in a bidding process of the Federal Network Agency to determine the value to be applied for their systems since January 1, 2017. The value to be applied is defined in cents per kilowatt of installed power of the system. For onshore wind turbines and photovoltaic systems, the limit to the obligation to participate in auctions is 750 kW of installed power, biomass systems must participate in the tendering process from 150 kW.

As soon as the premilinariums of the bidding process such as the qualification and the deposit of collateral with the Federal Network Agency have been completed, bids can be submitted for the value to be applied. A statutory maximum value defined for each energy source applies to the bids. After the bid deadline has expired, the auction process expires: The cheapest system operator is most likely to win the bid for his systems, but also earns the least. If you offer a high value to be invested in the auction, you can then earn more - or go away empty-handed. The payment of the value to be applied takes place in the pay-as-bid procedure, you get exactly the value that you have bought. The amount of the applicable value is guaranteed for the next 20 years.

Dynamic compensation of fluctuations in electricity prices

Depending on how the electricity price fluctuates on the exchange, the state subsidy component for calculating the value to be applied is adjusted. If the electricity prices are low, the state has to inject a lot of money from the EEG surcharge; if the electricity prices rise, the subsidy share decreases accordingly. The value to be applied remains constant for the system operator.

Penalties (penalties)

Operators who have received an award for their planned systems must put them into operation after the award has been made in periods defined for each energy source. If these deadlines expire, the Federal Network Agency retains part or all of the securities deposited by the system operator before the start of the bidding process. Failure to comply with these penalties can endanger the existence of the system operator.

criticism

In principle, the environment and various energy associations agree on the goal of improving the needs-based integration of renewable energy generation. However, strong criticism is being leveled at the details of the market premium instrument: the administrative effort is extremely high and the specific design of the premium rates leads to significant additional costs.

A study by the IZES ( Institute for Future Energy Systems ) commissioned by the Bundestag parliamentary group B90 / Die Grünen from January 2012 comes to the conclusion primarily because of the unexpectedly high use of the market premium, which could indicate deadweight effects:

"The market premium in its current form does not contribute to the further expansion of RE, nor does it help to lower the EEG surcharge."

In a publication by the Federal Association of New Energy Suppliers , many positive aspects of direct marketing are specifically named.

Market development

As soon as it was introduced in January 2012, the market bonus model was widely used by plant operators and third-party marketers. In March 2013, a total output of 30,229 MW was already being marketed in Germany using the market premium model. The model was most popular in March 2013 among (land) wind farm operators (24,337 MW), followed by solar plant operators (2,854 MW) and biomass plant operators (2,242 MW).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Amendments to the EEG (until 2014) and the EEG 2014
  2. ↑ Part 3: Market premium and feed- in tariff in the EEG 2017 . As of November 20, 2019. Accessed May 12, 2020.
  3. ↑ a b Key points of the EEG amendment as well as other innovations for renewable energies ( memento of the original from February 14, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, last accessed in February 2013  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.erneuerbare-energien.de
  4. ↑ a b c NexT Kraftwerke: What is the management bonus?
  5. ↑ Research report on flexible electricity production from biogas published  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.bmu.de   , Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, April 2011, last accessed in March 2012
  6. ↑ NEXT Kraftwerke: What is the flexibility premium? , accessed April 5, 2012
  7. ↑ Federal Network Agency: Reporting flexibility premium according to § 33i EEG  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed April 5, 2012@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.bundesnetzagentur.de  
  8. ↑ EEG 2017 - single standard. Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  9. ↑ What is the management bonus? Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  10. ↑ EEG 2017 - single standard. Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  11. ↑ Flexibility allowance - what is it? Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  12. ↑ Value to be applied. Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  13. ↑ EEG 2017 series part 1: Introduction to the tenders. Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  14. ↑ EEG 2017 - single standard. Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  15. ↑ EEG 2017 series part 1: Introduction to the tenders. Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  16. ↑ EEG 2017 - single standard. Retrieved February 22, 2017 .
  17. ^ Committee on the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (hearing) - June 8, 2011; Experts criticize the optional market premium for the Renewable Energy Sources Act ( memento of the original from September 3, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; last accessed in March 2012 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.bundestag.de
  18. ↑ IZES gGmbH (Institute for Future Energy Systems), January 18, 2012, brief report: Finding out options for lowering the EEG surcharge ( Memento of the original from January 22, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.hans-josef-fell.de archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , last accessed in March 2012
  19. ↑ bne compass, 01/12; System integration of renewable energies (PDF; 189 kB), interview with Josef Werum; from page 10; last accessed in June 2012
  20. ↑ EUWID (EUWID Neue Energien), April 8, 2013, direct marketing: Reported output exceeds 30 GW , last accessed in April 2013