WIND + SUN = POWER: Trends and Developments in the Electricity Sector
- Renewables expansion stable, storage growing, market conditions remain challenging.
- More battery storage, volatile electricity prices, and high competitive pressure.
- Renewables continue to grow, storage gains importance.
- PV, wind, and storage drive the energy transition despite market risks.
The update shows: Renewables expansion remains stable, the battery storage market is growing, and highly fluctuating market values as well as numerous negative electricity price hours characterize the marketing reality. First, the expansion paths of PV, onshore wind, and battery storage are presented, followed by the developments in market values and negative electricity price hours. This is followed by a classification of the latest PV auction results and an overview of current political developments.1
Development of RE Expansion / Battery Storage
Public net electricity generation in Germany in the current quarter (cut-off date June 10, 2026) is 80.4 TWh. 68.7% of this comes from renewable energies. Photovoltaics remains the strongest single contributor with a share of 29.7% of public net electricity generation.2
The installed PV‑capacity (solar DC) reached 123.9 GW at the end of May. Net additions in April and May averaged 1.15 GW, on par with the previous year. With a weaker first quarter, expansion in the current year is below the previous year’s level.
The installed capacity of onshore wind was 69.69 at the end of May GW. Net additions in April and May averaged 0.315 GW and also corresponded to the previous year’s value. The pace of expansion thus remains stable, but still below the politically targeted level.
A slight increase compared to 2025 can be observed in battery storage expansion. In April and May, 0.69 GW / 1.21 GWh were newly installed, an increase compared to the same period in 2025 (0.59 GW / 0.91 GWh). Overall, battery storage reached an installed capacity of 18.69 GW and a capacity of 28.65 GWh at the end of May. This confirms the trend towards increasing flexibility of the energy system and the growing role of battery storage as a central flexibility component. 3
Developments in the Electricity Market
The solar market value reached an exceptionally low level in April. At 1.317 ct/kWh, it was as low as it has not been since April 2020 (then: 0.89 ct/kWh), marking the second lowest value since the introduction of market values. Accordingly, April was significantly below the 2025 level (3.041 ct/kWh). In May, a clear counter-movement was observed: The market value rose to 3.163 ct/kWh, which was above the 2025 value (1.997 ct/kWh).
The onshore wind market value in April was 5.718 ct/kWh, also below the previous year’s value (7.314 ct/kWh). In May, it rose again to 9.534 ct/kWh, which was above the 2025 level (6.171 ct/kWh). 4
With the change in weather in spring, the number of hours on the day-ahead market with negative electricity prices increased significantly compared to the first quarter (46 hours). In April, 123 hours were registered, and in May, 78.75 hours. In total, this amounts to 201.75 hours, almost the same level as in the same period last year (204 hours), although the distribution between April and May was different.5 As detrimental as negative electricity price hours and low market values are for project profitability, the positive development at a global level is equally remarkable: For the first time in April, more electricity was generated worldwide in one month from PV and wind than from gas-fired power plants. PV and wind reached a share of 22% of global electricity generation, while gas-fired power plants accounted for 20%.6
The following graphic shows the period from January to May of 2025 and 2026. The bars represent the marketed volumes of electricity from PV and onshore wind, while the lines mark the development of negative electricity price hours. The online projection from Netztransparenz, which is based on reference plants and indicates the theoretically possible generation in Germany, serves as the basis for calculating the marketed volumes. For the calculation, it is assumed that no feed-in occurs during negative electricity prices. The marketed volume thus results from the quotient of the amount of electricity that can be generated and the generation adjusted for negative price hours.7 In April, the marketed volume of solar power was only 50%.
For evaluating the profitability of new projects, it is essential to consider not only the generated quantity but, above all, the marketed quantity. Because only the portion of the generatable energy that can actually be placed on the market generates revenue.
Comparison of marketed volumes of solar and onshore wind and number of negative electricity price hours on the day-ahead market (Source: own representation based on data from Netztransparenz.de)⁵ ⁶
Overview: Federal Network Agency Tenders for Receiving EEG Subsidies
The auction for solar installations in the first segment on March 1, 2026, confirms the trend of oversubscription from the last auction round and thus contrasts with the auction in the second segment in February 2026. 8 Simply put, there is a clear trend towards ground-mounted PV and an increasing “saturation” in large rooftop PV systems. For project developers and investors, this indicates a continued high competitive situation in the ground-mounted segment, coupled with attractive economies of scale.
In the first segment (ground-mounted solar installations), 268 projects with a total capacity of approximately 2.3 GW were awarded. The permissible maximum value in this auction was reduced from 6.80 ct/kWh to 5.79 ct/kWh compared to the auctions in 2025. The award values ranged between 3.99 and 5.10 ct/kWh. The average, volume-weighted award value was 4.94 ct/kWh, which was 0.06 ct/kWh below the value of the last auction round in December 2025.9
This development underscores the ongoing price and competitive pressure in the market. For market participants, efficient project structuring and the exploitation of additional revenue sources, such as through co-location solutions with battery storage, are becoming increasingly important.
The auction was again significantly oversubscribed: Of the bid volume of over 4.6 GW (532 submitted bids), approximately half received no award. In total, 225 bids received no award, and another 39 were excluded from the process.9 This confirms the high project density in the market and the ongoing selection pressure on less competitive projects.
Overview: Politics
Interim status on the reform of the General Grid Fee System for Electricity (AgNes) – Implications for Battery Storage Projects
The Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) is currently developing a new grid fee system. The reasons are the expiry of the Electricity Grid Fee Ordinance on December 31, 2028, and the regulatory adjustment needs due to the ECJ ruling of September 2, 2021 (C-718/18) and the changed requirements of the energy transition. At the end of May, the BNetzA presented the current interim status on the framework determination of the General Grid Fee System for Electricity (AgNes). We reported on this on June 10, 2026. Particularly noteworthy is the stronger weighting of legitimate expectation protection for storage projects: Currently, these are exempt from grid fees for a period of 20 years, provided they become operational by August 4, 2029 (§ 118 para. 6 EnWG). Through the AgNes reform, storage facilities are also to be subject to a grid fee in the future (“capacity fee”). Until now, it was unclear when the new regulations would take effect. The BNetzA has now clarified this: The introduction of the capacity fee for storage is only to take place after the expiry of existing exemption provisions according to § 118 para. 6 EnWG. Therefore, all storage facilities enjoy legitimate expectation protection,
- that have been commissioned after August 4, 2011, within 18 years (i.e., by August 4, 2029) or
- for which a final investment decision was made before the AgNes determination came into force and whose commissioning takes place by August 4, 2029, at the latest.
According to the timetable presented by the BNetzA, the completion of the AgNes framework determination is planned for the end of 2026; however, changes until the draft determination in summer 2026 are explicitly not ruled out. According to the BNetzA, a final investment decision is considered to have been made “if binding orders for components covering approximately half of the investment volume have been placed and the contracts concluded for this purpose cannot be withdrawn without significant financial loss, and additionally a binding grid connection commitment is available”.10
However, the introduction of dynamic grid fees for storage, which according to the BNetzA is planned from 2030 at the earliest, would be excluded from legitimate expectation protection according to the BNetzA’s current opinion.11
The stronger weighting of legitimate expectation protection for storage projects by the BNetzA was welcomed by the industry and seen as an important signal for investment security.12 Nevertheless, the new explanations increase the time pressure regarding the investment decision for battery storage projects. Project developers should definitely consider the new timeframe if they want to benefit from legitimate expectation protection regarding grid fee exemption.
Apart from the developments around AgNes, the other regulatory framework conditions – especially in connection with the EEG reform, grid package, and the planned regulations on redispatch reservation and possible FCA models – have not yet been finalized since our last newsletter. Different positions still exist within the coalition, and the design is also being intensively discussed by industry associations. In key aspects, uncertainty therefore remains, which affects planning reliability and investment security. We continuously monitor developments and will inform you of relevant concretizations.
Conclusion
The overview shows that renewables expansion developed stably in spring 2026, while the battery storage market continues to gain importance and increasingly contributes to the flexibility of the electricity system. At the same time, highly fluctuating market values and numerous negative electricity price hours lead to challenging marketing conditions, where the actual marketed volume remains crucial for project profitability.
The results of the latest PV auction highlight the continuing competition in the ground-mounted segment. With the concretization of the AgNes reform, the Federal Network Agency also sends an important signal for the legitimate expectation protection of storage projects, even if central regulatory questions, for example in the context of the EEG reform and grid package, remain open. For market participants, close monitoring of political and market developments therefore remains essential.
The current market and regulatory situation remains uncertain and characterized by project-specific requirements. Blanket approaches are insufficient under these conditions; rather, individual analyses and careful structuring of each project are required. We support you in aligning projects reliably, economically, and future-oriented. We are always available for further questions.
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Sources and notes:
1 The series “WIND + SUN = ELECTRICITY” is updated in each issue of E|nEws. This article refers to events in the period from April 22, 2026, to June 12, 2026.
2 Electricity Generation Pie Charts | Energy-Charts (last accessed: 2026-06-11)
3 Installed Capacity | Energy-Charts (last accessed: 2026-06-11)
4 Netztransparenz: Market Value Overview (last accessed: 2026-06-11)
5 Netztransparenz: Negative Spot Market Price – Overview Tables (last accessed: 2026-06-11)
6 Photovoltaics and Wind Generated More Electricity Globally Than Gas Power Plants for the First Time in April – pv magazine Germany (last accessed: 2026-06-15)
7 Netztransparenz: Spot market price according to § 3 No. 42a EEG, Online projection of actual electricity generation from solar energy and from onshore wind energy (last accessed: 2026-06-11)
8 Federal Network Agency – Auctions (last accessed: 2026-06-15)
9 Federal Network Agency – Completed Auctions / Statistics (last accessed: 2026-06-15)
10 Source: cf. Presentation of Interim Status AgNes [GBK-25-01-1#3], Federal Network Agency (2026-05-27)
11 Source: Presentation of Interim Status AgNes [GBK-25-01-1#3], Federal Network Agency (2026-05-27)
12 Source: AgNeS Interim Report: Associations See Light and Shadow in Planned Grid Fee Reform – pv magazine Germany (last accessed: 2026-06-12)