The German federal government has agreed to allow the country’s regional governments to decide on whether or not to impose a minimum one kilometre distance rule between new onshore wind farms and the nearest settlements.
Berlin also agreed to remove a cap on support for solar projects that stood at 52GW.
Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier said: “Today’s agreement is an excellent result for the energy transition and climate protection.
“And it is also a strong stimulus for the economy and employment, especially in these difficult times.
“Renewables are a technology of the future, and we will continue to accelerate planning, which is also part of today’s agreement, to make greater use of digital opportunities in planning and approval processes.
“And we keep our word on abolishing the photovoltaic cover – the cover is lifted before it is exhausted.”
German business organisation for the energy and water industry BDEW chair Kerstin Andreae said: “It is gratifying that the government factions have finally broken through the Gordian knot, especially with a view to the overdue removal of the PV cover.
“This is urgently necessary for the further successful expansion of renewable energies and thus for climate protection.
“It is now up to the federal states: they must actively support the expansion of wind power and therefore avoid area-limiting regulations by means of flat-rate intervals.”
German wind energy association BWE also welcomed the agreement.
BWE president Hermann Albers said: “Basically, it is good that there will be no minimum distances for wind energy on land regulated by federal law.
“The responsibility remains with the federal states. It is important that the federal states come up with manageable regulations that are tailored to their circumstances.
“It is important to clarify that the 1000 metres are defined as the maximum value.
“This further allows the federal states to provide at least 2% of the area for onshore wind energy.
“We can quadruple capacity by 2050 with a number of plants similar to today and deliver 770TWh of clean electricity for the energy transition.”