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While the EEG 2017 still provided that the permits according to the BImSchG for wind farms participating in the tendering procedure had to be submitted to the Federal Network Agency two weeks before the bid date, the deadline under the EEG 2021 is now four weeks. For the bid date 1st of februray the deadline will be already expired on 4th February. The reason for these extended examination periods is the new § 28 para. 6 EEG 2021. This provision is intended to discourage the signing of tender rounds and therefore provides for a reduction in the volume of tenders in the case of a threat of signing. It is true that the bidding rounds for onshore wind turbines have been regularly signed in recent years. However, a reduction in the volume of tenders is unlikely to do justice to the timely expansion of wind energy and thus to the achievement of climate targets.

The National Hydrogen Strategy (NWS) has identified as a measure to promote the production of green hydrogen, in particular, the increased designation of areas suitable for the offshore production of hydrogen or PtX can be used, the necessary infrastructure and possibilities for additional tenders for renewable energy generation are defined. On the 4th. The Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) published the draft of the Area Development Plan 2020 and the drafts of the environmental reports (North Sea and Baltic Sea) within the framework of the Strategic Environmental Assessment on 1 September 2020. This update includes "other energy production areas" as defined in § 5 para. 2a WindSeeG.

On 29 June, the Commission adopted a proposal for a Directive on the planning safeguards law, which came into force in May 2020, introduced the tool of online consultation, initially limited to the duration of the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In connection with the amendments to the WindSeeG adopted by the Federal Government today, the formal consultation of the authorities to be involved has been replaced by the publication of the relevant planning documents on the Internet (§ 6 para. 10, § 12 para. 2a, para. 4 sentences 2 and 3, § 47 para. 6 WindSeeG). A further step towards bringing administrative procedures into the digital age. And unlike the Planning Security Act, the tool of this online consultation is no longer tied to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

By decision of 11. 02. 2020 the BGH specifies the requirements for a citizen energy company according to § 3 No. 15 EEG, which participates in an invitation to tender, in the sense that the majority of voting rights for district-based members must also be accompanied by a corresponding actual possibility of exerting influence on the company and participating in decisions of the general meeting. However, the requirements for a public energy company are not fulfilled if the social contract does not provide for majority decisions or if the social contract of a limited partnership withdraws fundamental transactions from the decision of the shareholders and assigns them exclusively to a company of the complementary company. ( BGH, Dec. from 11. 02. 2020 - Az. : EnVR 101/18)

In a decision of 11 March 2020, the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court (OLG) commented on whether the Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) is obliged to examine the legality of the licensing authority's immission-related decision in the context of the tender to determine the financial support for onshore wind energy plants. The court came to the conclusion that in the case of § 36f para. 2 p. 1 EEG 2017, it depends solely on the actual approval situation, i. e. depends on whether the competent licensing authority has granted a modification permit under immission control law. This applies accordingly to the existence of an approval for modification. For this reason, in the specific case, the contract was to be rejected in the invitation to tender, as a modification permit already existed and it was irrelevant to the BNetzA whether a new BImSch permit should have been issued by the permitting authority ( OLG Düsseldorf, Declaration of 11. 03. 2020 - Ref: 3 Kart …

The Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) is reacting to the effects of the corona virus and is adapting the mechanism for the tendering of renewable energies and CHP plants. The dates of the call for tenders and the implementation of the call for tenders will not be adjusted in the process. However, the successful bidders will not already be awarded the contract, but will first receive an assurance, so that the deadlines associated with the award will not yet begin to run. In addition, the BNetzA announces that for bids for #Wind energy on land and biomass that have already been awarded the implementation deadlines would be granted unbureaucratically by informal application.