Electricity generation from renewable energies grows by 9 percent
Windy winter months and the expansion of photovoltaics increased the share of renewables in electricity generation in the first half of the year.
Electricity pylons in Bremen
(Image: heise online / anw)
In the first half of 2024, 147 TWh of electricity was generated from renewable energies in Germany. This is around 9 percent more than the 135 TWh generated in the first half of 2023, according to the Federal Environment Agency (UBA). Windy winter months were decisive for the increase, and wind power capacity also grew by 10 percent. The UBA sees photovoltaics as another important factor. Despite warmer sunny conditions, the overall increase in output led to an increase of 13 percent.
Wind power generated 51 percent of electricity from renewables in the first half of the year, followed by photovoltaics (PV) at 24 percent, followed by electricity generation from biomass at around 15 percent and hydropower at around 8 percent. The capacity of PV electricity generation grew by 7.5 GW in the first half of the year, while onshore wind energy plants increased by 0.9 GW. The installed capacity of offshore wind turbines grew by 0.4 GW in the second quarter.
Photovoltaics above target
With a total installed capacity of over 88 GW, the PV expansion target under the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) of 84 GW for 2024 has already been reached six months early. The installed capacity of onshore wind energy plants is currently just under 62 GW, which means that the target of 69 GW set by the EEG for 2024 will probably not be reached.
As demand for electricity this year was roughly the same as in the previous year, the share of gross electricity consumption accounted for by renewable energies rose significantly in the first half of 2024. According to calculations by the Working Group on Renewable Energy Statistics (AGEE-Stat), the share was around 57%. However, it is not yet possible to extrapolate electricity generation for the year as a whole, as renewable electricity generation also depends on the weather and it is unclear how electricity consumption will develop over the rest of the year.
Slump in sales of heat pumps
Total heat generation from renewable sources amounted to 111 TWh in the first half of 2024, a decrease of 7 percent. According to the UBA, the main reason for this was warmer weather than in the same period of the previous year, which reduced the overall demand for heat.
Around 3.5 percent more heat was generated from near-surface geothermal energy and environmental heat compared to the same period last year. However, sales of heat pumps fell sharply by around 50 percent compared to the previous year, writes the UBA. To achieve the German government's target of 500,000 heat pumps installed per year, this trend must be reversed. Three quarters of renewable heat still comes from biomass, around 6 percent from biogenic waste and around 4 percent from solar thermal systems.
Slight increase in the transport sector
In the transport sector, 21.9 TWh from renewable sources were used in the first half of the year, an increase of 3 percent. The total amount of biofuels used was at the same level as in the first half of the previous year. The use of renewable electricity in the transport sector rose by 16%, as not only the renewable share in the electricity sector grew, but also the number of electricity-powered vehicles.
The amount of renewable electricity used in the transport sector corresponds to just under 3% of the green electricity used in Germany. Around 70 percent of this is used in rail transport and now around 30 percent in road transport.
(anw)