Following negotiations between the two houses of the German parliament, the feed-in rate will be reduced by up to 13% as of July 1, followed by a further 3% cut in October. Actual rate reductions will depend on the size and type of installation. Under the original plan passed by the Bundestag this spring, the full 16% cut would have taken effect this month.

The German Solar Power Association immediately blasted the legislation, an amendment to the Renewable Energy Act (EEG). System manufacturers such as SolarWorld AG have complained that the rate reduction is greater than can be offset by declining production costs. The new regulations will also bar building of solar power plants on farmland, a move the Solar Association called “unacceptable”.

Representatives of the governing coalition countered that the amendment eliminates a burden that “bestows dream returns on investors and rising electricity prices on consumers.” They also noted that the rates in effect until now have favored foreign manufacturers, who supply 60% of all solar modules installed in Germany.

The legislation does include a few bright spots for solar advocates. Generation for the operator’s own use will be subsidized for the first time, although support will be less generous than proponents had hoped. The legislation also explicitly opens brownfield sites and strips alongside roads and railways to solar development and establishes a €100 million research and development fund.

Researchers from the Baden-Württemberg Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research and the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy and Energy System Technology have developed a process using electric power from renewables to first “crack” water to obtain hydrogen, then convert it to methane through a chemical reaction with carbon dioxide.

The methane can then be fed into the existing natural gas infrastructure, potentially eliminating the need for enormous investment in new facilities for hydrogen or other forms of energy storage.

Solar Fuel Technology of Austria has already completed a small demonstration plant in Stuttgart and is currently building a 10 MW pilot facility scheduled for completion in 2012.

The US Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Services has a simple nine-point Export Questionnaire (not just for ag businesses) that addresses your international marketing plan, available resources, and your existing knowledge of export processes. The result rates your company on a scale of 1–100 and provides comments and next-steps for each question.

The California Centers for International Trade Development offer a more detailed Export Readiness Assessment that covers your present operations, attitudes, and products. Like the USDA’s tool, the assessment gives you a readiness score, point-by-point diagnosis and suggested actions.

Ready to take the next step? Have a look at the US Department of Commerce’s vast Helping U.S. Companies Export site, or give us a call — we’re here to help.

Many small businesses fall into exporting “accidentally” when orders from overseas customers start to trickle in through their website. Maximize your company’s potential by managing it as a global business from day one. Your business is already global, whether you know it yet or not!