Germany Votes To Abandon Most Green Energy Subsidies

[Weatherman2020]

All is proceeding as foreseen.

Germany Votes To Abandon Most Green Energy Subsidies.

“The amount of money flowing into European green energy from governments and the private sector collapsed from $132 billion in 2011 to $58 billion last year, according to a May report by a British auditing firm. Green energy’s failure to meet reliability and cost goals were the primary reasons for declining investment. Europe has poured $1.2 trillion into the green energy industry to fight global warming, but its CO2 emissions and power bills just keep rising.”

Meanwhile, thanks to fracking, U.S. energy bills — and carbon emissions — have fallen.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Warmers on USMB keep claiming that "green energy" is the cheapest energy out there.

If that were the case, we could start taxing it, instead of subsidizing it.
I'm sure this German change won't slow their new "green energy" growth.

 

[boedicca]

All is proceeding as foreseen.

Germany Votes To Abandon Most Green Energy Subsidies.

“The amount of money flowing into European green energy from governments and the private sector collapsed from $132 billion in 2011 to $58 billion last year, according to a May report by a British auditing firm. Green energy’s failure to meet reliability and cost goals were the primary reasons for declining investment. Europe has poured $1.2 trillion into the green energy industry to fight global warming, but its CO2 emissions and power bills just keep rising.”

Meanwhile, thanks to fracking, U.S. energy bills — and carbon emissions — have fallen.

Dang you! I was just about to post a very Schadenfreudey new thread based on the linked article.

I do believe we have achieved Peak Green Energy Subsidies. All such programs have done EVERYWHERE is to make all energy more expensive, and sometime scarcer (cf. the rolling brown outs in So Cal now that coal and nuclear are banned).

 

[boedicca]

Warmers on USMB keep claiming that "green energy" is the cheapest energy out there.

If that were the case, we could start taxing it, instead of subsidizing it.
I'm sure this German change won't slow their new "green energy" growth.

It's not cheap at all! The total energy and $$$ equation for an electric car (with subsidies) is higher than that of a fuel efficient IC-engine one.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Warmers on USMB keep claiming that "green energy" is the cheapest energy out there.

If that were the case, we could start taxing it, instead of subsidizing it.
I'm sure this German change won't slow their new "green energy" growth.

It's not cheap at all! The total energy and $$$ equation for an electric car (with subsidies) is higher than a fuel efficient IC-engine one.

It's not cheap at all!

So the greenies were lying?

 

[william the wie]

Ground based green energy has always been a bad joke

 

[boedicca]

Warmers on USMB keep claiming that "green energy" is the cheapest energy out there.

If that were the case, we could start taxing it, instead of subsidizing it.
I'm sure this German change won't slow their new "green energy" growth.

It's not cheap at all! The total energy and $$$ equation for an electric car (with subsidies) is higher than a fuel efficient IC-engine one.

It's not cheap at all!

So the greenies were lying?

Yep, they most certainly were.

 

[william the wie]

Believe it or don't Iceland has developed an effective turbine with a very wide speed range that is cheap to run and build. Current wind and water turbines are low cost only if you ignore downtime, maintenance and mechanical failure. Replacing the current "green" crap would cost literal trillions and it is uncertain that efficiency is high enough to make replacement profitable.

 

[Crick]

From the OP's article

The German government plans to cap the total amount of wind energy at 40 to 45 percent of national capacity,according to a report published earlier this month by the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung. Germany will get rid of 6,000 megawatts of wind power by 2019.

...

The massive amount of money Germany poured into green energy is a direct result of the government’s decision to abandon nuclear energy after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan galvanized political opposition.

Nuclear power made up 29.5 percent of Germany’s energy in 2000. The share dropped down to 17 percent in 2015, and by 2022 the country intends to have every one of its nuclear plants shutdown. This shift caused Germany’s CO2 emissions to actually rise by 28 million tons each year after Germany’s nuclear policy changed.
************************************************************************************

Capped at 45% of national capacity. Yeah... that's the end of wind in Germany.

 

[Wyatt earp]

All is proceeding as foreseen.

Germany Votes To Abandon Most Green Energy Subsidies.

“The amount of money flowing into European green energy from governments and the private sector collapsed from $132 billion in 2011 to $58 billion last year, according to a May report by a British auditing firm. Green energy’s failure to meet reliability and cost goals were the primary reasons for declining investment. Europe has poured $1.2 trillion into the green energy industry to fight global warming, but its CO2 emissions and power bills just keep rising.”

Meanwhile, thanks to fracking, U.S. energy bills — and carbon emissions — have fallen.

I see Germany getting out of the EU real soon if this is the case.

Time magazine had a feature piece on Germans commitment to green energy

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

From the OP's article

The German government plans to cap the total amount of wind energy at 40 to 45 percent of national capacity,according to a report published earlier this month by the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung. Germany will get rid of 6,000 megawatts of wind power by 2019.

...

The massive amount of money Germany poured into green energy is a direct result of the government’s decision to abandon nuclear energy after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan galvanized political opposition.

Nuclear power made up 29.5 percent of Germany’s energy in 2000. The share dropped down to 17 percent in 2015, and by 2022 the country intends to have every one of its nuclear plants shutdown. This shift caused Germany’s CO2 emissions to actually rise by 28 million tons each year after Germany’s nuclear policy changed.
************************************************************************************

Capped at 45% of national capacity. Yeah... that's the end of wind in Germany.

45%? Wow! With all that cheap "green energy", their electricity rates must be a fraction of ours


The average German pays 39 cents per kilowatt-hour for electricity due to intense fiscal support for green energy. The average American only spends 10.4 cents per kilowatt-hour.

Derp.

 

[Crick]

The high cost of German wind power is not from any inherent high cost to wind power. It results from the cost of rushing to replace their nuclear power segment on short notice. A slower pace would have required less subsidization and cost less to accomplish.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

The high cost of German wind power is not from any inherent high cost to wind power. It results from the cost of rushing to replace their nuclear power segment on short notice. A slower pace would have required less subsidization and cost less to accomplish.

I've heard the claim from some greens here that solar is very cheap and nuclear very expensive.
If that were the case, shouldn't their rates be lower?

 

[skookerasbil]

The high cost of German wind power is not from any inherent high cost to wind power. It results from the cost of rushing to replace their nuclear power segment on short notice. A slower pace would have required less subsidization and cost less to accomplish.

lol.........total crap @www.whatthefuck?.com


The Hidden Costs of Wind Power - IER

 

[skookerasbil]

As Ive been saying for several years............the science isn't mattering. And the k00ks know it too!!

 

[Old Rocks]

3. Does PV already contribute significantly to the power supply? Yes. According to estimates, PV-generated power amounted to 38.5 TWh [AGEB5] and covered approximately 7.5 percent of Germany’s net electricity consumption (final energy, see section 21.8) in 2015. Renewable energy as a whole (RE) accounted for ca. 38 percent of net electricity consumption, while the fraction of PV and total RE in Germany’s gross electricity consumption stood at ca. 6.4 percent and 32.5 percent respectively. On sunny weekdays, PV power can cover 35 percent of the momentary electricity demand. On weekends and holidays the coverage rate of PV can reach 50 percent. At the end of 2015, the total nominal PV power installed in Germany was ca. 40 GW, distributed over 1.5 million power plants [BSW]. With this figure, the installed PV capcity exceeds that of all other types of power plants in Germany.

Figure 1: Percentage renewable energy in net electricity consumption (final energy) for Germany 2005-2015; data from [BMWi1], [AGEB5] The strong momentum in PV seen between 2010 and 2012 is due to the fact that the minimum targets set down by the German government for RE are realistic (Figure 2). As a result, PV is not only making a significant contribution to Germany’s power supply, but is also supporting the energy transformation. However, the installation of offshore wind and its power transmission to the mainland as well as the installation of new longdistance power lines within Germany are behind schedule. The EEG-Novelle 2014 reduced the 2020 installation target for off-shore wind from its original target of 10 GW down to 6.5 GW.

https://ise.fraunhofer.de/en/public...cent-facts-about-photovoltaics-in-germany.pdf

Looks like solar in Germany is already making a significant contribution.

 

[Old Rocks]

As can be seen from the chart at the left (updated in June, 2016) the solar industry has seen remarkable growth. The red bars represent the "annual" amount of PV solar systems installed by manufacturers in giga-watts (1 GW = 1 billion watts). For reference purposes, one nuclear reactor produces about 1.3 GW of electricity per year.

The data for 2012 and 2013 is from the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA). The data for 2014 and 2015 is from Mercom Capital. The forecast for 2016 is from the author.

The 5 year average growth rate from 2012 (30.1 GW) to 2016 (68.0 GW) is about 22% per year - a nice growth rate.The growth in 2013 was 28% and 2014 was 17%, which averages out to be 22.5% for the two years (very close to the 5 year average). The growth in 2015 was also 28% and 2016 is projected to be 18% (slowing down somewhat as the numbers begin to get quite large). The 2013 and 2015 growth spurts of 28% were mainly due to increases in China, Japan and the US which have continued through out this period.

http://solarcellcentral.com/markets_page.html\

Looks like solar is doing well everywhere.

 

[Old Rocks]

Solar energy now same price as conventional power in Germany, Italy, Spain - report

Solar energy now costs the same as conventionally generated electricity in Germany, Italy and Spain, a report has revealed. The research has warned, however, that high installation costs are impeding other countries from achieving grid parity.
TagsEcology, Resources, Energy
An analysis by consulting firm Eclareon, carried out on behalf of an international group of sustainable energy interests has revealed the extent to which solar energy has integrated into the energy market. Gone are the days when electricity produced through solar panels cost significantly more that conventionally-generated power, as Italy, Spain and Germany have reached energy parity.

However, the study’s analysts said that poor regulation in Spain could hinder further progress. Madrid recently introduced regulations that make it illegal for people to consume the electricity they produce through their own solar panels.

“In countries such as Italy and Germany, both at grid parity and with proper regulation, PV systems (photovoltaic system) for self-consumption represent a viable, cost-effective, and sustainable power generation alternative,” said David Pérez, partner at Eclareon in charge of the study.

Solar energy now same price as conventional power in Germany, Italy, Spain - report

 

[Old Rocks]

US Solar Market Set to Grow 119% in 2016, Installations to Reach 16 GW

You are here
NEWS

Wednesday, March 9, 2016
BOSTON, MASS. and WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. solar market is set to grow a staggering 119 percent this year says GTM Research in its latest U.S. Solar Market Insight Report 2015 Year in Review, published in conjunction with the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).

Led by the utility-scale segment, GTM Research forecasts 16 gigawatts (GW) of solar will be installed in the U.S. in 2016, more than doubling the record-breaking 7.3 GW installed in 2015.

While utility-scale installations will represent 74 percent of the installations for the year, the residential and commercial markets will also experience strong growth in 2016. In fact, the U.S. is on the verge of the 1 millionth solar installation milestone.

“This is a new energy paradigm and the solar industry officially has a seat at the table with the largest energy producers,” said SEIA president and CEO Rhone Resch. “Because of the strong demand for solar energy nationwide, and smart public policies like the ITC and NEM, hundreds of thousands of well-paying solar jobs will be added in the next few years benefiting both America’s economy and the environment.”

FIGURE: U.S. PV Installation Forecast, 2010-2021E

US Solar Market Set to Grow 119% in 2016, Installations to Reach 16 GW

And in the meantime, where it matters to all of us, things are looking very up for solar here.

 

[Crick]

This tells me that we have neither achieved 45% of our national capacity from wind power nor are attempting to replace all our nuclear power plants overnight.