The energy and climate policy spokesperson for the Union’s parliamentary group in the German Bundestag, Andreas Jung, has expressed reservations about his party’s potential approval of the solar peak law proposed by the federal government. “We will only approve the law if it ensures more energy security, not less” Jung told the Tagesspiegel (Monday edition).
Recently, the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) warned in the Welt am Sonntag that there is a significant risk of exploitation in the planned law, as it would allow foreign manufacturers to control inverters in solar installations. A majority of these devices come from Chinese manufacturers.
“If the BSI expresses concerns, we take them very seriously and are waiting to see the concrete critique of the law” Jung added. The federal government also sent out critical signals on Sunday. “I see a pressing need for action on this issue, and we must prevent external interference in critical infrastructure” said Nina Scheer, the energy policy spokesperson for the SPD parliamentary group, to the Tagesspiegel. “We must set guidelines for trade and installation that meet the security requirements, but do not slow down the development of renewable energy.”
Scheer also advocated for the promotion of local manufacturers: “The best way would be to support domestic and European production” she said.
Manuel Atug, the founder and spokesperson of the AG Kritis, shares this view: “The market for solar products is growing very quickly, and the threat is a realistic future scenario” Atug told the Tagesspiegel. “If a critical product is almost entirely in the hands of such an actor, the misuse is guaranteed.”
Meanwhile, the European politician Reinhard Bütikofer (Greens) criticized Germany’s handling of its critical infrastructure: “The vulnerabilities in our critical infrastructure have so far been largely overlooked in Germany. For example, the Hamburg port” said Bütikofer to the Tagesspiegel. He added, “If we were to take China, a strategic partner of Russia and our systemic rival, seriously, the next federal government would need to break with the previous naivety.