aream Press release

It is only a minor regulatory change, but it has the potential to significantly transform the market for green electricity and battery storage in Germany. “To maintain the stability of the electricity grid, grid operators pay power stations and storage facilities to keep reserve capacity available at short notice. “Until now, anyone wishing to offer this reserve had to guarantee it for at least four hours at a time”, says Markus W. Voigt, Executive Chairman of the aream Group. “From autumn 2026, there will also be the option of guaranteeing it for just 15 minutes.” A minor technical change in the German balancing energy market is thus opening up a new business model for operators of solar parks with battery storage.

In the face of geopolitical crises, Europe needs secure and cost-effective energy solutions, and some regard nuclear power as a climate-friendly alternative. Yet examples from France and the UK prove the opposite. “Nuclear power is too expensive, too slow and not as reliable as is often assumed,” comments Patrick Lemcke-Braselmann, CEO of the aream Group. “The consistent expansion of renewable energies remains the only path that is not only sustainable but also delivers a return on investment much more quickly.”

aream Group SE, a leading European investment and asset manager focused on sustainable infrastructure, has completed the sale of two regulated, fully operational solar photovoltaic (PV) plants located in the province of Badajoz, Spain, to a fund managed by Merus Capital. The assets were held through investment vehicles managed by aream Group. aream was advised by PwC as M&A advisor and Jones Day as legal advisor.

A heatwave, rising demand for cooling, peak load: according to conventional market logic, the price of electricity in Germany should have risen sharply in the current situation. Gas-fired power stations are on standby in such situations – at prices of 600 to 800 euros per megawatt-hour. “But the market told a different story”, says Patrick Lemcke-Braselmann, CEO of the aream Group. “During the day, the day-ahead price remained well below 100 euros.” The reason: solar power took on a large share of the load before the gas-fired power stations were even needed.