After budget-stricken Spain eliminated subsidies for new
renewable energy this year, Germany is now following the example
by making significant cuts to its solar subsidy program.
Incentives for solar units pushed capacity past government
targets, prompting Merkel to cut subsidies even as she seeks to
wean Germany off nuclear power and expand alternative-energy
sources for Europe’s largest economy. The government argues that
subsidies have driven up electricity prices for German consumers
while propping up solar-panel prices for domestic manufacturers.
Germany is, by far, not the ideal place for a costly solar
energy experiment. The country is well known for its gloomy
skies. This past August, I found myself vacationing in my home
country under grey and overcast conditions, driving past endless
acres of ground-mounted solar panels and thousands of solar-
covered roofs that were waiting for a dose of sunshine to create
energy. The irony couldn’t be greater that the world’s largest
solar power station is in Bavar