Thousands demonstrate in Berlin against Economics Minister Reiche's energy policy

In Berlin on Friday, thousands of people demonstrated against the federal government's energy policy and for a consistent expansion of renewable energies. The organizer of the campaign, the Alliance for Renewable Energy (BEE), spoke of 8,000 people, the police counted 6,000 participants. The BEE includes companies and industrial associations as well as environmental and nature conservation organizations. Many of the protest participants work in the renewable energy sector.

Specifically, this means, among other things, the gradual elimination of state support for small solar systems in the EEG. In addition, operators of small solar systems will be able to market their own electricity in the future. Network areas with bottlenecks should be designated as “capacity limited”; the conditions for plant construction there would then be less favorable.

Critics believe that anyone who slows down solar energy is slowing down “Germany’s future”.

Critics fear that the rules will noticeably slow down the expansion of renewables. The draft laws “do not do justice to the claim of making the country’s energy supply cost-effective, secure and climate-neutral,” criticized the BEE. The industry is primarily calling for greater expansion of the power grid, more energy storage and digitalization of the energy system. In addition, the electricity tax should be reduced.