\t\t\t\tby Agence France-Presse <\/p>\n
BERLIN—Germany, the world’s biggest market for solar cells, is poised to slash its subsidies for solar power by as much as 17 percent, Economy Minister Rainer Bruederle said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
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“I envisage an order of magnitude of 16 to 17 percent,” Bruederle said at an energy conference in Berlin.<\/p>\n
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Electricity produced by solar power in Germany is sold at a minimum price guaranteed by the government to help producers compete with firms using fossil fuels and nuclear power that can produce power much more cheaply.<\/p>\n
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This guaranteed price has already been reduced gradually—the subsidy was already cut by 10 percent from January 1 this year—but pressure has grown on the government to accelerate the process.<\/p>\n
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Experts say the subsidy fails to spur competition in the industry, which represents less than one percent of the total electricity production in Germany, Europe’s top economy.<\/p>\n
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The solar sector itself has said it is prepared to accept a cut in the subsidy, but that anything above 10 percent would be intolerable.<\/p>\n
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After years of dazzling results, Germany’s solar industry has succumbed to the gloom enveloping the broader economy, with competition from Asia also taking the shine off the sector.<\/p>\n
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The world’s top solar cell maker, Q-Cells, saw its turnover plunge by over 40 percent in the first nine months of 2009.<\/p>\n
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