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Installations in Germany more than doubled last year compared to figures from 2011, according to data from the German federal grid regulator Bundesnetzagentur.
November’s figures are still down from the 611MW of new subsidised PV capacity in October.
From January until November 2012, solar installations rose by 62% to approximately 7GW, compared with about 4.5GW a year earlier.
However, due to the government’s installation cap of 3.5GW, the country’s feed-in tariff will now be further reduced by 2.5%.
According to Bloomberg, Environment Minister Peter Altmaier plans to propose changes to the renewables subsidy system in March to prevent a voter backlash against rising energy costs before an election in the autumn.
The government claims solar subsidies in 2013 will amount to about €20.4 billion (US$27 billion), paid for through consumers’ power bills.
With German installations falling, the rest of Europe will not be far behind, as noted by market research firm IHS’ report in December last year stating the European industry’s reliance on Germany.
Glenn Gu, senior analyst at IHS, said: “European demand for PV modules dropped off in October, primarily due to developments in the solar powerhouse of Germany.”
