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In an interview with the newspaper »Frankfurter Rundschau« Altmeier said on Friday, his estimated €1 billion ($1.3 billion) were correct. »And that""s more likely too low than too high, he added.

According to Altmaier the German government will have to invest that amount up until 2040 if the system with feed-in tariffs stays the same and the number of new solar and wind installations will rise steadily. The calculation also assumes that the prices at the energy exchange market remain at €0.045 ($0.058) per kWh on average.

Additional costs for back-up power plants, energy storage and network expansion have not been taken into account yet. The Association for Renewable Energies (Bundesverband Erneuerbare Energien; BEE) accused Altmaier of being alarmistic.

Green energy is a victim of its own success and a flawed system, BEE Director Falk Herrmann said. Renewables seemed artificially expensive since they lower the prices at the energy exchange significantly. Avoided costs were not part of Altmaiers calculation either, Herrmann stressed.