As previously mentioned renewable energy makes up 4.6% of total primary supply in Germany during 2005. In terms of gross electrical consumption the figure was quiet high at 10.2% , the fuel supply for road traffic saw it’s figure climb to 3.4% and the market share for heat production was 4.6%. These are quiet respectable figures, but still a long way off from other countries which have set much higher goalposts in each of these fields individually. For fuel markets the classic example would be Brazil, while Lativa represents one of the countries with the highest production of power from renewable sources. Iceland would be the classic case study in how heat can be captured and converted into a useful form from a renewable source. But again it must be noted that each of these countries enjoys a unique advantage, whether it be Brazil’s vast agriculture areas or Iceland’s huge geothermal resources. In terms of the total final energy being consumed by all applications in Germany, 6.4% is made up by renewable energy.
There are two particular acts in the past which have moved Germany’s renewable energy markets in particular; the Renewable Energy Sources Act and the Market Stimulation Programme. This has meant that domestic companies and foreign companies have been attracted to invest in projects in Germany to develop renewable energy potential. The German government must be credited with quiet a bit of this move helping to move the country from the back of the field to some would argue the worldwide leader in renewable energy in 10 years. Part of this has been guaranteed long term support over this time period, with the government looking to further that support over the coming 20-30 years.
Amongst the big winners is the solar industry, while Germany be no means receives a great deal of solar radiation in comparison with its southern neighbors it has managed to is still Europe’s largest solar market. In terms of photovoltaic cells it is only second to Japan in the world. There have been nearly one million solar plants installed in Germany. That means that nearly three million people use solar power each day, in 2005 alone 175,000 solar plants were installed.
In 2004 for the first time wind power surpassed hydro power in Germany as the largest form of renewable energy. About 21.5 billion kWH or 3.5% of gross electricity consumed came from hydro power in 2005. This amounts to the power need to supply six million households. There are about 7,500 plants installed across Germany with 4,650 MW in 2005. Another 2,000 MW could still be developed commercially, with over 80% of this destined for export it remains to be seen whether this can become a reality some day.
Germany still leads the international wind power tables at the top with many more projects coming online. Espically the north of Germany has seen a great deal of development of wind power. With over 37% of worldwide wind power being generated in Germany, this figure is larger then total for nations 3-10. Over 18,600 MW are currently installed.
Germany has also seen a rapid adoption of biofuels in the domestic market. With a strong agricultural production machine in place which more then meets domestic food requirements farmers have long been turning crops such as rapeseed into biofuel. The variant of biofuels which enjoys the greatest success in Germany is biodiesel. In 2001 already 163,2 million litres were produced. This amount represents an amount roughly equal to filling 3 million average automobile tanks. In 2006 which is the last year in which figures were available for 538,7 million litres were produced which is off the peak of 589,3 million litres produced the year before. In total over 1900 filling stations in the country offer this fuel. One of the reasons for the success of biodiesel can surely be traced back to the fact that diesel engines enjoy like in many other European countries resounding sales in Germany. Since 2004 up to a 5% addition of biodiesel to normal diesel has been allowed, while continuing to market the end product as diesel.
The main crop which is used to produce biofuels in Germany is rapeseed, this is not uncommon in the European Union (EU) . The EU has this also started to enact a subsidy on the crop allowing for production to boom. In Germany about 1,3 million Hectors are planted each year with this crop. Germany also is the world wide leader in rapeseed oil production. A unique quandary however exists , unlike in other markets where biofuels are subsidized in Germany biofuels are taxed. In mid 2006 the government decided to tax biodiesel and plant oil as a fuel. As of 2012 the same taxes as for normal fuels will apply, from August 2006 onwards 9 Euro cents per litre of biodiesel was put on top of prices. From 2008 till 2011 6 more Euro cents per litre will be added on top of this , until in 2012 45 Euro cents per litre will be included in the price of biodiesel.
In tomorrow’s special we will more closely examine the companies producing renewable energy products in Germany…
