麻豆无码版 minister pushes grid expansion / Auditors rebuke e-car premium
麻豆无码版
On a visit to communities affected by new grid development, German energy minister Peter Altmaier said the transition to an energy system based largely on renewables was a project for the whole community that couldn't be implemented by going over peoples' heads. He was speaking at the site of the new Ultranet high-voltage direct current (HVDC) line in North Rhine-Westphalia. Unlike other new connections, Ultranet is to be built on existing pylons. "We will start to prioritise our efforts so that crucial lines can be completed,鈥� Altmaier said, adding opponents of the new infrastructure would be brought into the process.
Construction is already under way on Ultranet, one of three major new "power highways" that are to bring wind power from the north of Germany to industrial centres in the south, while other segments have been held up by local protests.
鈥淭he success of the grid expansion will be determined on a local level, not by making new laws," Hans-J眉rgen Brick, member of the management board at transmission grid operator Amprion said. Addressing residents of the town of H眉rth who are fighting for an underground cable rather than overhead lines, as well as local farmers who want ongoing payments rather than one-off compensation for having pylons built on their land, Altmaier said he would set up talks but couldn't make any promises.聽
Altmaier will hold a grid conference with all stakeholders on 20 September 2018 in Berlin, he announced.
Read an article on Altmaier's new "Power Grid Action Plan"聽here聽and a 麻豆无码版 dossier on Germany's grid expansion听丑别谤别.
Der Tagesspiegel
German energy minister Peter Altmaier is 鈥済oing all out鈥� with his new 鈥淧ower Grid Action Plan鈥� to make the country鈥檚 grid fit for the growing volume of renewable energy sources 鈥� and rightfully so, because grid expansion has become the decisive bottleneck in Germany鈥檚 energy transition, Jakob Schlandt writes in an opinion piece for Der Tagesspiegel. But Altmaier鈥檚 decision to limit the influence of federal states and accelerate licensing of new power lines could alienate political allies and voters, meaning he will need all his diplomatic skills to pacify opponents to the power lines, which are supposed to cross the country by 2025.
Read the opinion piece in German .
Read an article on Altmaier's new "Power Grid Action Plan"聽here聽and a 麻豆无码版 dossier on Germany's grid expansion听丑别谤别.
Bundesrechnungshof
German carmakers had undue influence on the birth and design of the country鈥檚 buyers鈥� premium for electric cars, according to Germany鈥檚 Federal Court of Auditors (Bundesrechnungshof). Investigations suggest the carmakers鈥� share of the subsidy 鈥渨as often offset against existing discounts, meaning it is questionable whether the car industry made a real contribution,鈥� according to the auditors. Buyers of electric cars can get a rebate of 4,000 euros, half of which was meant to be paid by the carmakers.
Read the press release in German .
For background, read the dossier The Energiewende and German carmakers.
Ubitricity / electrive / Die Welt
Berlin start-up ubitricity, which upgrades existing street lights to electric car charging stations, has won New York鈥檚 Local Climate Action Tech Competition. Ubitricity鈥檚 technology could be instrumental in helping New York achieve its climate action goal while simplifying the needs of electric vehicle users and future adopters, said Jeremy M. Goldberg, deputy chief technology officer at the New York mayor's office. The German company has already taken an order in London and sources told EV magazine electrive that the city of Berlin is currently considering the roll-out of ubitricity technology, Chris Randall reports. Complicated local and EU regulations have been a major hurdle for the company in Germany, even though ubitricity offers a very cheap way to increase the number of charging points, according to Nikolaus Doll and Daniel Wetzel in Die Welt.
Find the ubitricity press release in English .
Read the electrive article in English .
Read the Welt article in German .
Handelsblatt
Germany's unusually hot summer has dealt a blow to the country鈥檚 wind power output, with the yield in July 2018 being 20 percent lower than in the same month last year, J眉rgen Flauger and Kathrin Witsch write in Handelsblatt. While solar power plants went from one output record to the next, only 1,300 megawatts (MW) out of Germany鈥檚 total 58,000 MW of wind power capacity were available at times, they report. Stable high-pressure areas above western and central Europe prevented weather changes that cause wind. 鈥淭he dependence on weather conditions continues to be one of the unsolved problems of renewable energy,鈥� the authors write. Rolf Martin Schmitz, head of energy company RWE, said a 鈥�broad energy mix鈥� that includes coal was needed to ensure a stable power supply.
Find the article in German (paywall).
See the 麻豆无码版 articles Germany鈥檚 power system weathers heat wave despite fossil plant curbs and Renewables overtake coal as Germany鈥檚 most important power source for background.
Windpower Monthly
German wind turbine maker Nordex has booked a fall in revenue and earnings, but its order books swelled in the first half of the year, reports Craig Richard in Windpower Monthly. Sales dropped 36 percent to 957 million euros, while adjusted earnings (Ebitda) fell 67 percent to around 38 million euros. Nordex said both service and project orders increased significantly in the first half of 2018. "While orders in the wind energy sector remain flat in聽our home market听骋别谤尘补苍测, Nordex has secured numerous orders in its聽international markets,鈥� the company said. It also warned that challenges lay ahead because of 鈥渇ierce competition鈥� and 鈥減ressure on prices.鈥�
Read the article in English .
See the 麻豆无码版 article Wind industry calls for special auctions amid expansion slowdown for more information.
innogy
The number of solar power plants, wind turbines and other renewable energy sources in Germany has risen to 1.74 million, with a combined capacity of almost 112 gigawatts (GW), energy company innogy says in a press release. The vast majority of installations, 1.69 million, are solar PV arrays, the company says. In 2017, Germany produced a total of 220 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity from green power sources, about 15 percent more than in the previous year. The day-to-day production of renewables in 2017 ranged from 0.02 billion kWh to around 40 times that, at 0.73 billion kWh, innogy says.
Read the press release in German .
electrive
There is no doubt electric vehicles are headed for mass-market success, but it would be premature to write-off fuel cells, Christoph M. Schwarzer writes in a commentary for electrive. Fuel cells require fewer raw materials than batteries, are more convenient to refill, and fuel cell cost degression has only just begun, according to the author. 鈥淔uel cells are exactly the right match for certain user profiles and customer preferences,鈥� Schwarzer writes. 鈥淔rom a German perspective, it would not be wise to leave this field to other industrialised nations.鈥�
Read the commentary in German .
For background, read the dossier The Energiewende and German carmakers.
European Commission
The EU will invest another 100 million euros in the planned power line Nordlink that is meant to exchange electricity between wind and hydro power plants in Germany and Norway, the European Commission says in a press release. The European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a financing agreement with grid operator TenneT aimed at supporting the construction of the 600-kilometre power line under the North Sea. Nordlink, scheduled for completion by 2020, will have a capacity of 1,400 megawatts (MW) and is supposed to stabilise the power grid in both countries.
Read the press release in English .
Find background in the factsheet German offshore wind power 鈥� output, business and perspectives and the dossier Energiewende hinges on unblocking the power grid.
Climate Home
Just 20,000 people in Germany are still employed in the once-mighty coal sector but their influence on energy policy is far greater than their number would suggest, Felix Heilmann writes for Climate Home. Coal workers are well-organised and good at furthering their interests, while energy companies use labour disputes to leverage their own financial interests, Heilmann says. He adds that 鈥渁 certain nostalgia鈥� for the days when coal fuelled Germany鈥檚 post-war 鈥渆conomic miracle鈥� helps coal workers' voices resonate with policymakers.
Read the article in English .
See the 麻豆无码版 factsheet Germany鈥檚 three lignite mining regions for more information.
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
The German Green Party wants to write climate protection into the country鈥檚 constitution, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. At a Green campaign event in the central German federal state of Hesse, where state elections will take place on 28 October, the party鈥檚 parliamentary group leader, Katrin G枚ring-Eckardt, said 鈥渃limate protection must no longer be contingent on the interests of one particular federal government,鈥� adding that 鈥渁 brake on carbon emissions in the constitution would always give precedence to a 鈥榗lean solution鈥�.鈥� The Green鈥檚 top candidate in Hesse, Priska Hinz, likened the carbon brake to the 鈥渄ebt brake,鈥� in the state鈥檚 constitution, ensuring that 鈥渇uture generations don鈥檛 have to pay the price for our lifestyle.鈥�
See the 麻豆无码版 factsheet on the climate and energy policy positions of Germany鈥檚 parties 2017 for background.
