Germany produced nearly 52 percent of its domestic electricity consumption with renewable power in the first three months of 2020, marking the first full quarter in which renewables covered more than half the country’s power needs, utilities association BDEW and the Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Württemberg (ZSW) reported April 1. That’s up from about 44 percent in the first quarter of 2019. The numbers were driven by record wind power production in February, unusually high solar production in March, and a dip in overall energy use tied to the coronavirus crisis.
But utilities warned that the record high numbers shouldn’t obscure the fact that the renewables industry currently faces major obstacles. The expansion of onshore wind farms has slowed to a crawl, while the solar industry faces a cap on government subsidies that it could reach within months. BDEW head Andreae warned the renewables gridlock must be resolved if Germany is to meet future climate targets.
Original story at Clean Energy Wire.