“Gambling with tax money”

German utility EnBW’s planned windpark in the North Sea reckons with rising electricity prices and cheaper technology for wind parks, but it is not clear whether these assumptions will hold true, according to an article by Angela Hennersdorf in German weekly Wirtschaftswoche. The company, which is majority held by the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, was the first company to win a bid to build an offshore wind park with no state support, writes Hennersdorf. Citing Tobias Voigt from the consultancy Carneades Project, Hennersdorf writes that the play is both clever and risky – one that could pay off, but could also lead to taxpayers footing the bill if it went awry.

For more background, read a CLEW article about the zero-support bid in the recent auction to build wind parks.