ᐅ Solar / Photovoltaics from an Economic Perspective

f-pNo schrieb:
By the way, I just received a letter from Westnetz GmbH asking me to report our self-consumption.
Reason: Calculation of the Renewable Energy Act surcharge on self-consumption (of self-produced electricity).

I was aware that self-consumption is subject to sales tax, but now that the Renewable Energy Act surcharge is also being applied, I find that quite... .
The only consolation—as far as I understand—is that a reduced Renewable Energy Act surcharge is being charged.
Soon, we’ll probably have to pay sales tax even on vegetables grown in our own garden.

How large is your system?

nordanney schrieb:
How large is your system?

5.36 kWp

f-pNo schrieb:
5.36 kWp

The renewable energy surcharge on your self-consumption is zero. You are exempt from this due to the system size.

nordanney schrieb:
Then the Renewable Energy Act surcharge on your own consumption is 0. You are exempt from this due to the system size.

I hope you are right.

However, I wonder why I am being contacted at all, since the system was registered with Westnetz GmbH and the system size is therefore known. According to the letter, this apparently applies to systems that were connected to the grid after July 31, 2014 (ours was only installed at the end of the third week of August 2014 due to delays caused by the scaffolding company). We will have to report the feed-in and own consumption from August 1, 2014 to December 31, 2015 early next year. For this, we only have to pay a reduced Renewable Energy Act surcharge of 30% instead of 100%.

Up to 9.9 kWp, in my opinion, you are exempt from the surcharge.

You should look it up online; it was widely reported in the media at the time.

oleda222 schrieb:
In my opinion, systems up to 9.9 kWp are exempt from the surcharge.

You should look it up online; it was widely reported in the media back then.

I had that in mind as well. The discussion at the time was the reason we decided to install the photovoltaic system right from the start when building the house (originally, it was planned for about three years down the line).
However, it’s always possible to miss some regulation—for example, if the parliament passes something during the World Cup celebrations when no one is paying attention.

Well – next week I have some time off work. Let’s see if I can find time between doing the tax return and building the playhouse to give Westnetz a call. I’ll keep you updated.