Germany's Federal Network Agency, the Bundesnetzagentur, has published the results of its first-segment solar ground-mounted auction for the bidding deadline of July 1, 2026, awarding contracts to 261 bids covering a total capacity of 2,134,657 kilowatts across the tender round.

Auction Results and Price Range

The volume-weighted average award value across all successful bids came in at 5.55 US cents per kilowatt-hour, with the lowest accepted bid recorded at 5.07 US ct/kWh and the highest at 5.75 US ct/kWh.

The ceiling price set for the tender, known as the Höchstwert, stood at 6.83 US ct/kWh, meaning all winning bids came in well beneath the maximum permitted level.

The total auctioned volume was set at 2,134,567 kilowatts, closely matching the volume ultimately awarded through the 261 successful bids. Bids not appearing on the published awards list did not receive a contract, and the agency stated that unsuccessful bidders would be notified separately of the reasons for their exclusion.

Publication Timeline and Legal Effect

The Bundesnetzagentur published its award announcement on August 18, 2026, with the formal legal notification date set as August 25, 2026, one week later, in line with the agency's standard procedure under Section 35, Paragraph 1 of the Renewable Energy Sources Act, known in Germany as the EEG.

Successful and unsuccessful bidders alike have a one-month window from the date of notification to lodge a legal challenge. Any such complaint must be filed with the Higher Regional Court in Düsseldorf, located at Cecilienallee 3.

The complaint must be submitted in written form, signed by a qualified attorney, and accompanied by grounds for the challenge within a further one-month period from the date the complaint is lodged. The agency noted that filing a complaint does not carry suspensive effect under Section 76, Paragraph 1 of the Energy Industry Act.

Network Charge Clarification

In a separate notice appended to the award publication, the Bundesnetzagentur addressed questions raised by participants in the tender regarding capacity-based network charges.

The agency confirmed that participants in this auction are not yet subject to network charges with a financing function, referred to as Kapazitätsentgelte, as described in the agency's orientation points on feed-in operator participation issued on February 17, 2026.

All remaining questions on this matter are to be resolved through the ongoing regulatory process known as AgNes, which addresses the general network tariff framework.

EU State Aid Approval Pending for Solar Package Reforms

The results come against a backdrop of unresolved legal uncertainty surrounding several provisions introduced under Germany's Solar Package I legislation, formally titled the Act Amending the Renewable Energy Sources Act and Further Energy Industry Regulations to Increase the Expansion of Photovoltaic Energy Generation.

The Bundesnetzagentur stated that EU state aid approval from the European Commission remains outstanding for a number of these provisions, which consequently could not be applied to this tender round.

Three specific areas were affected. First, the Solar Package I provision raising the maximum bid volume per individual bid from 20 megawatts to 50 megawatts under Section 37, Paragraph 3 of the EEG 2023 was not applicable.

Because the required European Commission approval was not granted by June 30, 2026, the previous cap of 20 megawatts per bid remained in force for this tender.

Second, an enhanced ceiling price introduced under Solar Package I for special solar installations under Section 37b, Paragraph 2 of the EEG 2023 also could not be applied, as state aid clearance had not been received.

In its place, the surcharges on the reference value for certain special solar installations, specifically those classified as elevated agri-PV and bog or moorland PV, continued to apply under the version of the EEG in force as of May 15, 2024.

Third, the revised award procedure for first-segment solar tenders introduced by Solar Package I, which would have established priority allocation quotas for special solar installations under Section 37d of the EEG 2023, was likewise unavailable for this bidding round.

Instead, the general award procedure set out in Section 32 of the EEG 2023 was applied. The Bundesnetzagentur indicated it would publish updates on this page if the outstanding European Commission approvals were granted before any future bidding deadline.

Tender Framework and Eligibility

The auction covered solar installations in the first segment, which encompasses ground-mounted systems on open land. The tender announcement referenced specific provisions relating to bids on agriculturally used land and on arable and grassland areas located in disadvantaged zones, though detailed eligibility figures for those sub-categories were not disclosed in the published results.

Bids were required to be received at the agency's Bonn offices before the close of the July 1, 2026 deadline to be considered valid for the round.

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