Germany has adjusted the price cap for its 2026 rooftop solar PV system tenders to €0.10/kWh (approximately US$0.117/kWh).
This cap is slightly lower than the €0.104/kWh cap set for 2025 rooftop solar PV tenders, but still higher than the average price in this year's tenders.
The average price of tenders held in the first quarter of 2025 was €0.091/kWh, with a winning capacity of 315MW; the average winning price of tenders held in July was €0.0922/kWh, with a winning capacity of 255MW.
According to the German Federal Network Agency, which is responsible for solar PV tenders, the 2026 price cap is slightly lower than that of 2025 because it takes into account the expected downward trend in the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) and the results of recent rounds of tenders.
Klaus Müller, Chairman of the Federal Network Agency, stated, "The new price cap will provide a framework for a large number of bidders to participate in the bidding process. This cap is lower than the 2025 level due to the expected decline in the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) and the intense competition in the recent bidding market." On the other hand, the price caps for ground-mounted solar power plant tenders and "innovative tenders" (i.e., renewable energy projects with integrated energy storage) remain unchanged and will continue to follow the standards set by the Renewable Energy Sources Act.
The Federal Network Agency pointed out that the price caps for each batch of ground-mounted solar power plant tenders will be determined based on the results of the previous three rounds of tenders. In early 2025, the average price of ground-mounted solar power tenders reached its lowest level since 2019, at €0.0476/kWh. All ground-mounted solar power tenders held in 2025 were oversubscribed, fully demonstrating the strong market interest in this type of tender. Specifically, the average price in April 2025 was €0.0466/kWh, and in August it was €0.0484/kWh.
Regarding innovation tenders, the agency stated that a price cap of €0.0713/kWh will be implemented in 2026. This level is significantly higher than the average price of the two most recent tenders in 2025: €0.0531/kWh in October and €0.0615/kWh in July.
All winning bids in the July innovation tender were for solar-storage projects, while the two rounds of innovation tenders held in 2025, despite a tender capacity of less than 500MW, received over 2GW of bids.
Strong market interest in tenders with integrated energy storage system has also driven a significant decline in the average winning bid price since last year. The average capacity-weighted price of the October 2024 innovation tender was €0.0709/kWh, which is closer to the price cap set by the Federal Network Agency for such tenders in 2026.
