The German Federal Court (BGH) confirmed grid-operators’ refunding claims of feed-in remuneration when an operator of a photovoltaic plant failed to register his photovoltaic plant with the Federal Network Agency
> October 2017

By judgement of 05 May 2017 (VIII. ZR 147/16), BGH confirmed that grid-operators can assert their right to refunding claims for feed-in remuneration unlawfully paid to operators of photovoltaic plants if the operators of photovoltaic plants failed to duly register with the Federal Network Agency. In the case to be decided by the BGH, an operator of photovoltaic plants stated that he registered his photovoltaic plant with the Federal Network Agency before starting the photovoltaic plant. This was not substantiated by facts. The grid-operator started to pay feed-in remunerations according to subsidies under the EEG to the operator of the photovoltaic plant for a period of about 2.5 years. When the grid-operator found out that the respective photovoltaic plant has not been registered with the Federal Network Agency, the grid-operator claimed refunding the excess amount from the photovoltaic plant’s operator. When the operator of the photovoltaic plant refused to pay, the grid-operator took legal actions.

BGH confirmed that the grid-operator was entitled to repayment in full for the feed-in remuneration the grid-operator paid to the operator of the photovoltaic plant. In this particular case there was to be considered that in the period from 2012 to 31 July 2014, when the EEG 2012 was applicable, the operator of the photovoltaic plant only was entitled to the actual monthly average specific to the energy source’s market value. For the period following the 01 August 2014, when EEG 2014 was applicable, a payment claim of the photovoltaic plant’s operator was reduced to zero.

Thus, the BHG concurrently decided that the EEG’s legal ruling regarding the conditions for refunding claims arising in similar cases is lawful. As of 2009, a registration of photovoltaic plants with the Federal Network Agency is prerequisite for claiming complete payment of feed-in remunerations.