The German Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur or BNetzA) has unveiled the results of the 200 MW joint wind-solar power tender, which was organized in February 2018. Bids were capped at €8.84c/kWh, a 750 kW minimum project capacity was set for both technologies and ground-mounted solar systems are capped at 20 MW.
The tender was nearly twice oversubscribed, with submissions for a total capacity of 395 MW. 32 bids for 210 MW of solar projects were selected, with an average volume-weighted aggregate value of €4.67c/kWh (higher than the €4.33c/kWh rate in the last purely solar tender). The lowest bid was €3.96c/kWh, while the highest one hit €5.76/kWh. No wind project qualified in the tender.
The auction was the first dual wind-solar joint auction. In the past, they were held separately because of their different cost structures. The German Solar Association (BSW) and the German Wind Energy Association (BWE) view this first joint auction as a failure and plead for separate auctions in the future to ensure a more balanced energy mix. The auction proves the excellent price-to-performance ratio of solar facility but not the suitability of joint tenders.