Angela Merkel strikes deal with German states to put brakes on green energy

Pact addresses concerns that burgeoning output from renewables is putting strain on electricity grid and pushing up prices

The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, has hammered out a deal with state premiers on the latest reform to Germany's renewable energy law aimed at curbing the costs and controlling the speed of the roll-out of green power sources.

After a meeting with the leaders of Germany's 16 states that stretched into the early hours of Wednesday, the government agreed to cap the expansion of onshore wind power at 2.8 gigawatts in capacity per year.