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Closely after the USA, Germany is the world's second largest user of [[wind power]] with an installed capacity of 23,903 MW by the end of 2008,<ref>[http://www.dewi.de/dewi/fileadmin/pdf/publications/Statistics%20Pressemitteilungen/31.12.08/Presse_2008%20.pdf Data for the year 2008 by the German wind energy institute]</ref> ahead of Spain which had an installed capacity of 16,740 MW.<ref>[http://www.ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/statistics/European_Wind_Map_2008.pdf European Wind Map 2008 by EWEI]</ref> 20,301 [[wind turbines]] are located in the German federal area and the country has plans to build more wind turbines.<ref name="Wind energy in Germany -- overview">[http://www.wind-energie.de/en/wind-energy-in-germany/overview/ Wind energy in Germany -- overview]</ref>
Closely after the USA, Germany is the world's second largest user of [[wind power]] with an installed capacity of 23,903 MW by the end of 2008,<ref>[http://www.dewi.de/dewi/fileadmin/pdf/publications/Statistics%20Pressemitteilungen/31.12.08/Presse_2008%20.pdf Data for the year 2008 by the German wind energy institute]</ref> ahead of Spain which had an installed capacity of 16,740 MW.<ref>[http://www.ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/statistics/European_Wind_Map_2008.pdf European Wind Map 2008 by EWEI]</ref> 20,301 [[wind turbines]] are located in the German federal area and the country has plans to build more wind turbines.<ref name="Wind energy in Germany -- overview">[http://www.wind-energie.de/en/wind-energy-in-germany/overview/ Wind energy in Germany -- overview]</ref>


In 2009, 6.5% of Germany's total electricity consumption was satisfied by wind power. 867 wind power plants were constructed in 2008, and 952 more in 2009. At the end of 2009, Germany possessed 21,614 wind power plants. Their installed electricity production capacity was 25,777 MW.<ref>[http://www.erneuerbare-energien.de/files/pdfs/allgemein/application/pdf/ee_hintergrund_2009_bf.pdf Entwicklung der erneuerbaren Energian in Deutschland im Jahr 2009], p.7. Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz and Reaktorsicherheit. March 2010.{{Dead link|date=May 2011}}</ref> However this is a theoretical maximum, the actual output is vastly smaller.{{Citation needed|date=May 2011}}
In 2009, 6.5% of Germany's total electricity consumption was satisfied by wind power. 867 wind power plants were constructed in 2008, and 952 more in 2009. At the end of 2009, Germany possessed 21,614 wind power plants. Their installed electricity production capacity was 25,777 MW.<ref>[http://www.erneuerbare-energien.de/files/pdfs/allgemein/application/pdf/ee_hintergrund_2009_bf.pdf Entwicklung der erneuerbaren Energian in Deutschland im Jahr 2009], p.7. Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz and Reaktorsicherheit. March 2010.{{Dead link|date=May 2011}}</ref>


Wind power currently produces about seven percent of Germany's total power and it is said{{by whom|date=January 2011}} that no other country has more technological know-how in this area. Wind power in Germany provides over 70,000 people with jobs and German wind energy systems are also exported.<ref name="Wind energy in Germany -- overview"/> However, the economics of wind power in Germany are under close scrutiny<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4944046.stm Germany's wind farms challenged]</ref> and there are other issues which deserve consideration. These include the effect of wind turbines on the landscape, the effect on the bird population, and the effect on the tourist industry.<ref name="Wind energy in Germany -- overview"/>
Wind power currently produces about seven percent of Germany's total power and it is said{{by whom|date=January 2011}} that no other country has more technological know-how in this area. Wind power in Germany provides over 70,000 people with jobs and German wind energy systems are also exported.<ref name="Wind energy in Germany -- overview"/> However, the economics of wind power in Germany are under close scrutiny<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4944046.stm Germany's wind farms challenged]</ref> and there are other issues which deserve consideration. These include the effect of wind turbines on the landscape, the effect on the bird population, and the effect on the tourist industry.<ref name="Wind energy in Germany -- overview"/>
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Nearly 800,000 people work in the German environment technology sector; an estimated 214,000 people work with renewables in Germany, up from 157,000 in 2004, an increase of 36 percent.<ref name="Green energy boom in Germany"/>
Nearly 800,000 people work in the German environment technology sector; an estimated 214,000 people work with renewables in Germany, up from 157,000 in 2004, an increase of 36 percent.<ref name="Green energy boom in Germany"/>

[[Siemens]] chief executive, Peter Löscher believes that Germany’s target of generating 35 per cent of its energy from renewables by 2020 is achievable – and, most probably, profitable for Europe’s largest engineering company. Its “environmental solutions” portfolio, which is firmly focused on renewables, is “already generating more than €27 billion a year, 35 per cent of Siemens’ total revenue, and the plan is to grow this to €40 billion by 2015”. Ending its involvement in nuclear industry will boost the credibility of Siemens as a purveyor of “green technology”.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2011/0923/1224304576194.html |title= Nuclear sunset? |author= |date= September 23, 2011|work=The Irish Times }}</ref>


Germany's main competitors in solar electricity are Japan, the US and China. In the wind industry it is Denmark, Spain and the US.
Germany's main competitors in solar electricity are Japan, the US and China. In the wind industry it is Denmark, Spain and the US.

Revision as of 00:54, 24 September 2011

Biogas fermenter, wind turbine and photovoltaics on a farm in Horstedt, Schleswig-Holstein
Renewable electric power produced in 2009 by energy source

The share of electricity produced from renewable energy in Germany has increased from 6.3 percent of the national total in 2000 to about 17 percent in 2010. In 2010, investments totaling 26 billion euros were made in Germany’s renewable energies sector. According to official figures, some 370,000 people in Germany were employed in the renewable energy sector in 2010, especially in small and medium sized companies. This is an increase of around 8 percent compared to 2009 (around 339,500 jobs), and well over twice the number of jobs in 2004 (160,500). About two-thirds of these jobs are attributed to the Renewable Energy Sources Act[1][2] Germany is the world's first major renewable-energy economy.[3] In 2010 nearly 17% (more than 100 TWH) of Germany's electricity supply (603 TWH) was produced from renewable energy sources, more than the 2010 contribution of gas fired power plants.[4]

Renewable electricity in 2010 was 101.7 TWh including wind power 36.5 TWh, biomass and biowaste 33.5 TWh, hydropower 19.7 TWh and photovoltage solar power 12.0 TWh.[5]

Renewable energy targets

Since the passage of the Directive on Electricity Production from Renewable Energy Sources in 1997, Germany and the other states of the European Union have been working towards a target of 12% renewable electricity by 2010. Germany passed this target early in 2007 when the renewable energy share in electricity consumption in Germany reached 14%.[6] In September 2010 the German government announced the following new aggressive energy targets:[7]

  • Renewable electricity - 35% by 2020 and 80% by 2050
  • Renewable energy - 18% by 2020, 30% by 2030, and 60% by 2050
  • Energy efficiency - Cutting the national electrical consumption 50% below 2008 levels by 2050

The German Government reports that in 2010 renewable energy (mainly wind turbines and biomass plants) generated more than 100 TWh (billion kilowatt-hours) of electricity, providing nearly 17% of the 600 TWh of electricity supplied.[4]

Wind power

Wind farm in Bernburg
See main article: Wind power in Germany

Closely after the USA, Germany is the world's second largest user of wind power with an installed capacity of 23,903 MW by the end of 2008,[8] ahead of Spain which had an installed capacity of 16,740 MW.[9] 20,301 wind turbines are located in the German federal area and the country has plans to build more wind turbines.[10]

In 2009, 6.5% of Germany's total electricity consumption was satisfied by wind power. 867 wind power plants were constructed in 2008, and 952 more in 2009. At the end of 2009, Germany possessed 21,614 wind power plants. Their installed electricity production capacity was 25,777 MW.[11]

Wind power currently produces about seven percent of Germany's total power and it is said[by whom?] that no other country has more technological know-how in this area. Wind power in Germany provides over 70,000 people with jobs and German wind energy systems are also exported.[10] However, the economics of wind power in Germany are under close scrutiny[12] and there are other issues which deserve consideration. These include the effect of wind turbines on the landscape, the effect on the bird population, and the effect on the tourist industry.[10]

Following the 2011 Japanese nuclear accidents, Germany's federal government is working on a new plan for increasing energy efficiency and renewable energy commercialization, with a particular focus on offshore wind farms. Under the plan large wind turbines will be erected far away from the coastlines, where the wind blows more consistently than it does on land, and where the enormous turbines won't bother the inhabitants. The plan aims to decrease Germany's dependence on energy derived from coal and nuclear power plants.[13]

Photovoltaic solar power

Erlasee Solar Park
See also: Solar power in Germany

At the end of 2007 Germany had an installed capacity of 3,830 MWp. By the end of 2009, capacity had increased to 9,800 MWp.[14] The first 9 months of 2010 added about 5,400 MWp in new solar capacity.[15] In 2006, the European Commission anticipated that Germany may have installed around 4,500 MWp by 2010.[16] For 2009, the German government calculated that the PV industry provided 64,700 jobs in production, distribution and installation.[17] Over 90% of solar PV installations are in grid-tied applications in Germany.

Completed in 2006, the 12 MW Solarpark Gut Erlasee photovoltaic system, near Arnstein in Bavaria, was, at the time of construction, the world's largest PV system.[18] The Waldpolenz Solar Park, which is the world’s largest thin-film photovoltaic (PV) power system, became fully operational by the end of 2008. The power plant is a 40 MW solar power system using state-of-the-art thin film technology. [19]

Geothermal power

See main article: Geothermal power in Germany

The installed capacity for geothermal energy in Germany was of 8.4 MW in 2007.[20]

Hydroelectricity

The total installed capacity in Germany at the end of 2006 was 4.7 GW. Hydropower meets 3.5% of the electricity demand. Latest estimates show that in Germany in 2007 approx. 9,400 people were employed in the hydropower sector which generated a total turnover of €1.23 billion.[21]

Renewable energy industry

Germany's renewable energy sector is among the most innovative and successful worldwide. Nordex, Repower, Fuhrländer and Enercon are wind power companies based in Germany. SolarWorld, Q-Cells and Conergy are solar power companies based in Germany. These companies dominate the world market. Every third solar panel and every second wind rotor is made in Germany, and German turbines and generators used in hydro energy generation are among the most popular worldwide.[22]

Nearly 800,000 people work in the German environment technology sector; an estimated 214,000 people work with renewables in Germany, up from 157,000 in 2004, an increase of 36 percent.[22]

Siemens chief executive, Peter Löscher believes that Germany’s target of generating 35 per cent of its energy from renewables by 2020 is achievable – and, most probably, profitable for Europe’s largest engineering company. Its “environmental solutions” portfolio, which is firmly focused on renewables, is “already generating more than €27 billion a year, 35 per cent of Siemens’ total revenue, and the plan is to grow this to €40 billion by 2015”. Ending its involvement in nuclear industry will boost the credibility of Siemens as a purveyor of “green technology”.[23]

Germany's main competitors in solar electricity are Japan, the US and China. In the wind industry it is Denmark, Spain and the US.

Government policy

The renewable energy sector benefited when the Alliance '90/The Greens party joined the Federal Government between 1998 and 2005. The renewable energy sector was aided especially by the Renewable Energy Sources Act that promotes renewable energy mainly by stipulating feed-in tariffs that grid operators must pay for renewable energy fed into the power grid. People who produce renewable energy can sell their 'product' at fixed prices for a period of 20 or 15 years. This has created a surge in the production of renewable energy.[24]

For the 2005–2010 period the Federal Government set aside nearly 800 million euros for scientific research in the country. That research will be earmarked for policies of long-term development. Additionally, in 2001 a law was passed requiring the closing of all nuclear power plants within a period of 32 years. The shutdown time was extended to 2040 by a new government in 2010. After the Fukushima incident, the law was abrogated and the end of nuclear energy was set to 2022.

The cost of replacing Germany's nuclear power generation with renewable energy has been officially estimated by the German Ministry of Economics at about €0.01/kW·h (about €55 billion for the next decade), on top of the €13 billion per year already devoted to subsidizing renewables. However, unofficial estimates of the ministry, and of the Rhenish-Westphalian Institute for Economic Research (RWI), German Energy Agency (DENA), Federation of German Consumer Organizations (VZBV), and the government-owned development bank (KfW), put the cost several times higher, at about €250 billion ($340 B) over the next decade.[25][26]

The German energy policy is framed within the European Union, and the March 2007 European Council in Brussels approved a mandatory energy plan that requires a 20% reduction of carbon dioxide emissions before the year 2020 and the consumption of renewable energies to be 20% of total EU consumption (compared to 7% in 2006).[27] The accord indirectly acknowledged the role of nuclear energy — which is not renewable, but emissions-free — in the reduction of the emission of greenhouse gasses, allowing each member state to decide whether or not to use nuclear generated electricity.

Also a compromise was reached to achieve a minimum quota of 10% Biofuels in the total consumption of gasoline and diesel in transport in 2020.

Criticism

A 2009 study from RWI Essen of the effects of the Renewable Energy Sources Act concluded that:

  • using photovoltaics in emission reduction is 53 times more expensive than the European Union Emission Trading Scheme's market price, while wind power is 4 times more expensive, thereby discouraging other industries from finding more cost-effective methods of reducing emissions;
  • although renewable energy subsidies increase retail electricity rates by 3%, they reduce the profits of German electrical utilities by an average of 8%, making them less competitive with other European utilities;
  • despite lavish subsidies, Germany's photovoltaic industry is losing its market share to other countries, particularly China and Japan;
  • it stifles renewable energy innovation by arbitrarily awarding subsidies to different technologies, instead of according to their cost-effectiveness.[28]

Germany's Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety responded to the RWI Essen study, describing the criticisms as "well known and refuted a long time ago".[29]

Statistics

Increases in installed renewable electric power capacity and generation in recent years is shown in the table below:[30][31]

Year Installed
capacity
[MW] 		Hydropower
[GWh] 		Wind energy
[GWh] 		Biomass
[GWh] 		Biogenic share
of waste
[GWh] 		Photovoltaics
[GWh] 		Geothermal
energy
[GWh] 		Total electricity
generation
[GWh] 		Share of gross
electricity
consumption
[%]
1990 5,043 15,580 71 221 1,213 1 0 17,086 3.1
1991 5,149 15,402 100 260 1,211 2 0 16,974 3.1
1992 5,270 18,091 275 296 1,262 3 0 19,927 3.7
1993 5,483 18,526 600 433 1,203 6 0 20,768 3.9
1994 5,830 19,501 909 569 1,306 8 0 22,293 4.2
1995 6,415 20,747 1,500 665 1,348 11 0 24,271 4.5
1996 6,927 18,340 2,032 759 1,343 16 0 22,490 4.1
1997 7,521 18,453 2,966 880 1,397 26 0 23,722 4.3
1998 8,472 18,452 4,489 1,642 1,618 32 0 26,233 4.7
1999 10,040 20,686 5,528 1,849 1,740 42 0 29,845 5.4
2000 11,937 24,867 7,550 2,893 1,844 64 0 37,218 6.4
2001 14,817 23,241 10,509 3,348 1,859 76 0 39,033 6.7
2002 18,333 23,662 15,786 4,089 1,949 162 0 45,648 7.8
2003 21,617 17,722 18,713 6,086 2,161 313 0 44,995 7.5
2004 24,848 19,910 25,509 7,960 2,117 556 0.2 56,052 9.2
2005 28,300 19,576 27,229 10,978 3,047 1,282 0.2 62,112 10.1
2006 32,048 20,042 30,710 14,841 3,675 2,220 0.4 71,488 11.6
2007 35,851 21,249 39,713 19,760 4,130 3,075 0.4 87,927 14.2
2008 40,108 20,446 40,574 22,872 4,659 4,420 17.6 92,988 15.1
2009 46,377 19,059 38,639 25,989 4,352 6,578 18.8 94,636 16.3
2010 55,702 19,694 36,500 28,710 4,750 12,000 27.2 101,681 16.8
2010 Q1 4,370 10,900 6,840 1,160 1,460 24,900 17.1
2010 Q1+2 9,800 18,300 14,800 2,200 5,500 50,400 17.1
2011 Q1 5,270 11,560 7,170 1,320 2,780 28,100 19.2
2011 Q1+2 9,200 20,700 15,700 2,200 9,700 57,300 20.8

See also

References

  1. ^ Renewable Energy Sources in Figures - National and International Development
  2. ^ Germany Leads Way on Renewables, Sets 45% Target by 2030
  3. ^ http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2009/04/germany-the-worlds-first-major-renewable-energy-economy?cmpid=WNL-Wednesday-April8-2009
  4. ^ a b Paul Gipe (25 March 2011). "New Record for German Renewable Energy in 2010". Renewable Energy World.
  5. ^ Renewable energy sources 2010 23 March 2011 Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety
  6. ^ Share in electricity supply has gone up to 14 per cent
  7. ^ Rhein, Eberhard (2010-09-13). "Germany defines sustainable energy policy up to 2050". Blogactiv.eu. Retrieved 2010-10-03.
  8. ^ Data for the year 2008 by the German wind energy institute
  9. ^ European Wind Map 2008 by EWEI
  10. ^ a b c Wind energy in Germany -- overview
  11. ^ Entwicklung der erneuerbaren Energian in Deutschland im Jahr 2009, p.7. Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz and Reaktorsicherheit. March 2010.[dead link]
  12. ^ Germany's wind farms challenged
  13. ^ Stefan Schultz (March 23, 2011). "Will Nuke Phase-Out Make Offshore Farms Attractive?". Spiegel Online.
  14. ^ Renewable Energy Sources in Figures
  15. ^ Federal Network Agency Publishes September PV Figures and 2011 Solar Feed-in Tariffs
  16. ^ Innovation and technological development in energy
  17. ^ Erneuerbar beschäftigt! Kurz- und langfristige Arbeitsplatzwirkungen des Ausbaus der erneuerbaren Energien in Deutschland
  18. ^ SunPower Announces the Opening of SOLON's Solarpark Gut Erlasse
  19. ^ World’s largest solar power plant being built in eastern Germany
  20. ^ http://geoheat.oit.edu/bulletin/bull28-3/art3.pdf World Geothermal Generation in 2007
  21. ^ http://www.erneuerbare-energien.de/inhalt/42608/
  22. ^ a b Green energy boom in Germany
  23. ^ "Nuclear sunset?". The Irish Times. September 23, 2011.
  24. ^ Renewable Energy Sources in Germany - key information 2009 at a glance
  25. ^ Neubacher, Alexander (27 July 2011). "The Latte Fallacy: German Switch to Renewables Likely to Be Expensive". Der Spiegel. Retrieved 22 September 2011. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  26. ^ Nicola, Stefan (19 September 2011). "KfW to Provide 100 Billion Euros to Aid German Energy Transition". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 22 September 2011. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  27. ^ EU2007.de - Historical agreement on climate protection
  28. ^ Frondel, Manuel; Ritter, Nolan; Vance, Colin (2009), Economic impacts from the promotion of renewable energies: The German experience (PDF) {{citation}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  29. ^ BMU response to renewed criticism of EEG by RWI: Well known and refuted a long time ago
  30. ^ Böhme, Dieter (23 March 2011). "Development of renewable energy sources in Germany 2010". Federal Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); |format= requires |url= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help); Text "http://www.bdew.de/internet.nsf/id/DE_20110829-PI-Erneuerbare-liefern-mehr-als-20-Prozent-des-Stroms/$file/110829_Tabelle_Strom_aus_Erneuerbaren_Energien_1_%20Halbjahr_2011.pdf" ignored (help)
  31. ^ "Müller: Investitionen müssen sich wieder lohnen (in German)". BDEW. 29 Aug 2011. Retrieved 29 Aug 2011.
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