Germany requested support for the construction of 12 gigawatts of gas-fired power plants and Brussels validated the mechanism.
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The 12 GW figure refers to new dispatchable capacity that must be hydrogen-ready (a share, around 500 MW–10 GW depending on the design, with hydrogen obligations), not to unabated fossil gas capacity in the long run.
The formal State aid green light of 2 September 2026 covered the market-wide capacity mechanism available from 2031 (estimated cost up to €35 billion); the 12 GW tender design was agreed with the Commission in an 'agreement in principle' earlier in 2026, and earlier German planning documents had referred to roughly 10 GW.
The Commission approval is limited in time (mechanism running to 2045) and subject to conditions, so 'validated the mechanism' is accurate as to the aid approval but does not mean the plants are built or the tender awarded.
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