Oxford PV Supports Measures to Strengthen Solar Industry in Germany

Oxford PV welcomes efforts by the German government and several state governments to strengthen the solar industry in Germany and Europe and create a level playing field to compete with other regions of the world.

At a high-level solar summit hosted by the prime minister of Saxony on Sept. 29, to which Oxford PV was one of a handful of solar companies invited, a 10-point program was adopted that identifies appropriate opportunities for action by the European Union and the German government. Oxford PV strongly supports the program and the measures outlined therein.

“We are very pleased that we as Oxford PV were able to participate in the Solar Summit and contribute our assessments and recommendations for strengthening the solar industry in Germany,” says Frank Nowroth, managing director of Oxford PV Germany. “The high-caliber composition of the participants illustrates the high priority that the topic now has in the political arena.

“Following the German government’s announcement of its intention to provide financial support for the development of production capacities for solar cells and modules, the focus is now increasingly on demand-side instruments to enable products manufactured in Germany to achieve a fair price on the market and to reduce unfair competitive disadvantages compared to manufacturers from China, for example,” Nowroth added. “In our view, this is the right way to go.”

Specifically, the 10-point program envisages, among other things, the introduction of so-called non-financial criteria in the tenders for photovoltaic systems under the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG), for example in the form of quality and sustainability criteria such as recyclability, carbon footprint or working conditions.

In these points, solar products manufactured in Europe and Germany typically have clear advantages, which, however, have not been rewarded by the market so far due to the existing tender design. Another point is the promotion of innovative solar technology as a key differentiator of the German and European solar industry.

The 10-point program will now be forwarded to the German government and the European Commission. The German government had already announced in June that it wanted to provide financial support for certain lighthouse projects in the solar industry and launched a corresponding expression of interest procedure.

The solar industry in Europe and Germany is currently suffering from unfair competitive conditions, especially from the highly subsidized industry in China. Chinese suppliers sell their modules in Europe up to 50% below production costs, so that the cost gap to import competition cannot be closed at present.