Glossary beginning with M

(Marktprämie) See → EEG surcharge

(Merit-Order-Effekt) The merit order effect explains the lowering of power prices at the electricity exchange due to an increased supply of renewable power. The cheapest power contributes to the grid first. Renewable installations have close to zero marginal costs, therefore they lower the entrance price and push more expensive conventional producers down the ’merit order’.

(Stadtwerke) Many of Germany’s municipal utilities, or Stadtwerke, have become increasingly relevant as a result of the Energiewende. While the major utilities (see → The Big Four) have been slow to take up renewables, many Stadtwerke, which are often (though not always) wholly or partially publicly owned, have been more motivated to integrate climate protection into their activities and willing to invest in technology with lower returns, including renewable power and → CHP. Some, however, continue to rely on fossil fuel generation.