Fraunhofer ISE chief Eicke Weber will run for Germany’s Free Democratic Party (FDP) in regional elections.
A statement released by the FDP unveils Weber as a candidate in the regional Baden-Württemberg elections.
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Karin Schneider, head of communications at Fraunhofer ISE told PV Tech that Weber hit retirement age in Germany last year but agreed to continue on as director until a replacement was appointed. His decision to run as the candidate for the FDP will not impact his tenure at the institute.
The FDP was in coalition government during a period of rapid cuts to support schemes for solar.
The party called Weber a “sensational” candidate and highlighted his compatibility with their Blue Growth agenda.
In 2010, Weber said that proposed government policies to cut the feed-in tariff by 15% were putting the industry at risk.
“The proposals of the Environment are far above and would jeopardise the massive solar production industry in Germany,” he said in 2010.
