On April 30, Germany established a new national record for
renewable energy use. On that day and throughout the long May 1 weekend, 85% of
all the electricity consumed in Germany was produced from renewables such as
wind, solar, biomass, and hydroelectric power. Patrick Graichen of Agora
Energiewende Initiative says a combination of breezy and sunny weather in the
north and warm weather in the south saw Germany’s May 1 holiday weekend powered
almost exclusively by renewable resources.
“Most
of Germany’s coal-fired power stations were not even operating on Sunday, April
30th, with renewable sources accounting for 85 per cent of electricity across
the country,” he said. “Nuclear power sources, which are planned to be
completely phased out by 2022, were also severely reduced.”
Graichen says days like April 30 will become “completely
normal” by 2030, as the federal government’s Energiewende, or energy
revolution, begins to really reap the benefits of the investments made in
renewable energy resources since 2010. German energy policies have been the
subject of frequent attacks in the media, mostly from fossil fuel interests who
would be only too happy to see it fail. However, chancellor Angela Merkel is a
staunch supporter of the initiative and the German public is firmly behind it
as well.
Just a few weeks ago, an energy auction for the rights to
produce electricity from wind turbines off the coast of Germany startled most
observers when it resulted in record low prices despite the fact that no
energy subsidies were involved in the tender. Critics of renewables
like to harp on the fact that many renewable energy projects are partially
funded by government incentives, conveniently forgetting that those same
governments have been giving away taxpayer money to fossil fuel companies for a
century. This most recent auction gives the lie to assertions that renewables
cannot survive without government assistance.
As it turns out, wind
and solar energy are often cheaper than fossil fuels and nuclear energy these
days, even ignoring the many
negative effects fossil fuels create for society.
The new renewable record in Germany continues a trend. So
far in 2017, renewable energy has consistently been a significant source
of electrical power in Germany. In March of this year, over
40% of all electricity consumed in the country was provided by
renewable sources.
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