Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
the irst 12 years and €0.035 per kWh for a subsequent eight-year period.
Moreover, ofshore turbines that are commissioned by the end of 2015 will
receive an additional €0.02 per kWh.
119
Regarding onshore development, two challenges stand out. First, there are
concerns that higher levels of installed capacity will threaten the technological
integrity of Germany's electricity grid. As a response, the government ofers
an additional €0.005 per kWh for all turbines equipped with advanced grid
integration technology. Second, although Germans are still largely supportive
of wind power capacity expansion, NIMBY opposition is occasionally evident,
particularly in states that currently host high amounts of wind power capac-
ity, such as Saxony and Brandenburg. For example, in January 2011, the state
parliament building in Pottstown, the regional capital of Brandenburg, was
besieged by citizen protest over the mass construction of wind turbines in the
state.”
120
As one team of researchers have observed, “some fear that the zeal to
install wind turbines mirrors the drive in the 1960s to build motorways” link-
ing towns in West Germany. he initiative “was regarded as ultra modern at
the time, but it created massive, irreversible eyesores.”
121
To an extent, the NIMBY opposition to wind power is fueling investment
in solar PV as an alternative technology for advancing Germany toward its
2020 goal of generating 38.6% its electricity through renewable energy.
hanks to generous feed-in tarifs, as of 2012, 5.3% of the net electricity
produced in Germany was produced by solar PV. he consequence of this
burgeoning market is that the cost of solar PV decreased considerably over
the past decade. However, the threat posed to wind power by solar is still a
distant threat that will require signiicant advances in solar PV technology.
In 2013, the feed-in tarif for solar PV was set at €0.39 per kWh (compared
to the current feed-in tarif for wind power of €0.091 per kWh).
122
In the
interim, the solar PV capacity that does exist has been proven to be a com-
plement to wind capacity in attenuating power luctuations.
123
Regarding ofshore development, the most serious challenge appears to be
economic. he decision to construct ofshore wind parks far ofshore signii-
cantly inlates the cost of connecting these projects to the electricity grid.
124
According to the Global Wind Energy Council, the inancial responsibility
associated with connecting ofshore wind farms to the mainland grid cur-
rently rests with the transmission system operators. Although three 400 MW
HDVC light lines have already been completed, infrastructure development to
date has only scratched the surface in comparison to what is needed.
125
Heavy investment will be required for transmission lines to deliver of-
shore wind power from Baltic and North Sea sites to demand centers in the
South and in the West.
126
Germany's power transmission companies have
put forth plans to build electricity autobahns for this purpose. he cost of
