Germany’s programme to subsidise energy storage has been indefinitely postponed due to the collapse of European Union (EU) carbon credits.
The €50m ($65m) programme was to be funded through the sale of EU Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS) carbon credits through the federal Energy and Climate Fund. With prices of EU ETS allowances falling below €5/tonne, the programme has a significant funding shortfall.
Meanwhile, the German Energy Storage Association (BVES) has experienced a growth in membership in recent weeks demonstrating an increased interest in energy storage, the organisation claims.
The BVES, established in September last year, said that over 30 enterprises have been added to its list of members including companies and research institutes such as Fraunhofer IWS Dresden, NEC Europe, Gildemeister Energy Solutions, Hochtief Solutions AG, SMA Solar Technology AG, Clariant, GP Joule, Power One and Vattenfall.