Solar power

Solar power is the colloquial term converted from solar energy electrical energy. This form of energy is a renewable energy because it is the day on earth available daily, and representing the sun, considered by human standards, a virtually inexhaustible source of energy. The consumption of resources on the sun can be neglected in relation to the human era, because the sun has an approximate burn time of still about five billion years. Solar power is primarily used in land plants and in space, but also on commercial vessels, solar power is now used.

On some factors in the sunlight, the person has

• No influence (such as season, time of day, weather conditions (eg ambient temperature, clouds, air clouding ) )
• Influence ( shading from structures, trees, flagpoles and the like (see shading analysis ) can be removed and the location select different)
• Some influence, for example, on the site (for example, latitude ).

Solar power can be generated by photovoltaic systems or solar thermal power plants ( "Solar Thermal Technology "). The main types of power plants are solar farm power plants, solar power towers, dish-Stirling engine systems and thermal power plants.

Solar power in Germany

→ For details on the current promotion see Renewable Energies Act (EEG )

Solar power is in Germany (apart from research facilities ) only produced with photovoltaic systems. In 2007, solar power systems installed with a minimum capacity of 1,150 megawatts in Germany. 2008, the annex was at least 1,933 megawatts. The total installed capacity at the end of 2009 at about 9,760 MW. So then about 1.5 percent of German electricity consumption were covered. In 2011 this proportion was 3.5%.

Germany was in 2009 with a newly installed capacity of 3,800 MW, well the world's largest market for photovoltaic systems. In 2008 was, according to preliminary figures, Spain is the country with the largest annex. The installation is likely to have amounted to 2700-3200 MW.

Since the Spanish Government, the funding was too expensive, she allowed only one subsidized photovoltaic construction of around 500 MW per year from 2009. The annex to 2008 was carried out in Spain for photovoltaic plants will attract compensation payments amounting to around 40 billion euro by itself. In Spain, the government and for taxpayers to subsidize the price of electricity in Germany however, the current buyer. The above 40 billion euros must be supplied by the Spanish government within the next 20 years.

In Germany 2008 solar cells with a capacity of 1,460 MW were produced in the year. Thus Germany came in second place behind China, where solar cells were produced with a capacity of 2,589 MW. Germany and Japan lost 2008 world market share in cell manufacturing; contrast, China, Taiwan and other Asian countries in particular could significantly gain world market share. 2008 came around every third sold worldwide solar cell from China; Germany produced around 19 percent of world production.

Germany was - as well as 2006 and 2007 - in 2008 net importer of solar modules, as the domestic production volume of solar modules by far not sufficient to cover the demand. In 2008, solar panels were manufactured in Germany with a capacity of 1,207 MW, but the domestic installation was at least 1,933 MW. Since approximately 50 percent of solar modules produced in Germany were exported, remained around 600 MW of German domestic production. Were thus at a total installation of at least 1,933 MW installed two of three in Germany in 2008 solar panels imported from abroad.

Grid-connected photovoltaic systems work in Germany not competitive economically. The generation of solar power is therefore funded by the Renewable Energy Sources Act. Owners of photovoltaic systems currently receive (4/ 2012) a feed-in tariff of about 14-58 cents per kilowatt hour, depending on the start-up date, size and type of plant. The cost for solar electricity generation are allocated to almost all electricity consumers, but large electricity consumers are exempt from levy.

The EEG apportionment increased from 19 million euros in 1998 to 1,597 million euros in 2007.

In the " normal case" solar power is compensated by the reduction in subsidies in April 2012, still with about four times the amount of the price at the power exchange. Only a few hours in the peak in mid-summer increases the price of electricity on the power exchange on the solar feed-in tariffs. From the perspective of energy it will take until the competitiveness of solar power until it can be bought cheaper from the power company when solar plant operators and on the electricity market, what the solar power industry denies.

The situation is different, however, from the view of the private electricity consumers, which covers its own energy needs with solar power. This is also called self-consumption of solar power. Here enters competitiveness when solar power is produced cheaper on your own roof than can be obtained from the current provider. In Germany, as in other countries, grid parity in 2012 has already been reached. The cost of development is regularly monitored. Regular cuts and special cuts of feed-in tariffs according to the EEG of the expansion will be regulated.

Most private solar power systems be installed on the roofs in Germany. The solar energy potential of a roof depends on their shape and size, slope, aspect and shading. Instead of calculating this data only for a single building project individually, the detection and evaluation of the solar energy potential of each roof area of an entire city or an entire district at once. In a pilot project at FH Osnabrück this happened 2006-2007 by high-resolution view of buildings geometries by laser scanner recording from the plane, automatic algorithmic analysis of the data and connection with the automated property map. The results can be made ​​available through web access is interested. The pilot project SUN -AREA was awarded the 2008 " GIS Best Practice Award ".

Gross electricity generation from solar energy in Germany

The end of 2012 the installed capacity in Germany to photovoltaic plants was about 32.6 gigawatts were generated 28.0 TWh of electricity. The Annual growth rates since 2006 over 60 percent.

Should the annex still achieve high single-digit and possibly even two-digit numbers gigawatts annually in the coming years, solar power could be in a few years be able to meet on very sunny days, a large part of German electricity consumption. On a summer peak load in Germany is around 70 gigawatts. There is a system of input supply various types of power plants, which requires the development of easily controllable power plant types and the development of control concepts. The annual average solar power will continue to provide only a low double-digit contribution to the German electricity supply at this time. The following table shows that the share of solar electricity has increased tenfold every 6 years in the past in gross electricity consumption.

Due to the phase out nuclear power in Germany after the Fukushima nuclear disaster in March 2011, interest has grown in renewable energies in Germany. Low interest rates for deposits and loans, generally rising electricity prices and the rise in oil prices make investment more attractive than in the past in energy saving measures and / or renewable energy.