Feed in Tariffs
Germany’s generous feed-in-tariffs on solar and wind energy has stimulated a 47% increase in electric power produced by solar panels and wind farms over the last four years. But much more renewable energy will be needed to replace the nuclear power that is being phased out.
Because much of the renewable power that is generated is not near the markets served by the nuclear power plants, the power grids needed to move this power have yet to be built and many that are under construction are well behind schedule.
Further, an increase reliance on solar and wind power will require development of bulk electricity storage and this technology is still in its infancy. There is no way for Germany to meet its power requirements in the near or mid-term, without having sufficient conventional power capacity available as a back up.
This glut of renewable power has already caused the spot price of electricity to fall, making it uneconomic to generate electricity from modern, clean natural gas plants. This is having unintentional consequences, as it is keeping ageing dirty brown-coal power stations in operation, as they are the only ones that can produce power at a low variable cost.
As a consequence, Germany has experienced an increase overall CO2 emissions over the last year, while residential electricity rates in Germany have risen by 25% over the last three years, and this costly excess power Germany now generates has to be sold to the European Grid at a loss. All of this is unintended.
Use your ← → (arrow) keys to browse
