Regulatory and institutional measures by the state to enhance the deployment of renewable energies:: German experiences

A decisive expansion of renewable energies’ share of the energy supply can presently be achieved only through political support measures. Because a variety of factors impede the renewables’ progress on the market, an effective assistance policy must be applied in many fields. These normally include research, development, demonstration, financial market incentives, information, consulting, education and advanced training, and international cooperation. For an effective assistance policy, the legal and institutional framework conditions are of great relevance. They are often given less attention when they do not include financial assistance by the state. This paper would like to give a contribution to the discussion on such options without financial assistance by the state. Legal and institutional factors can seriously hinder the use of renewable energies. On the other hand, they can also be used to promote such energy sources. Five examples from Germany are presented to illustrate concrete possibilities for policy action within the legal and institutional frameworks which may be of interest for other countries: (1) introduction of an Electricity Feed Law (in future Renewable-Energies-Law), (2) amendment of the Energy Industry Act and of anti-trust statutes, (3) amendment of the Federal Building Code, (4) changes in the schedule of fees for architects and engineers, (5) establishment of local and regional energy agencies and a federal center for energy-related information. The contents of these very different measures and their specific impacts will be outlined. Where the nature of the measures does not allow an exact quantitative analysis of the impacts at the moment, they are described in general terms.