Green electricity generation increases by 4 percent

Source: E & M powernews

According to the Federal Environment Agency, the share of renewable energies in gross electricity consumption will reach 54% this year. Consumption of biodiesel is falling sharply.

More green electricity, a little more green heat, less biodiesel: the Federal Environment Agency has presented figures on the development of renewable energies in the current year. According to these figures, gross electricity generation from renewable sources has risen by a good 4 percent compared to the previous year to 285 billion kWh. The share of green electricity in gross electricity consumption - which is increasing again - is therefore around 54 percent, according to the "Working Group on Renewable Energy Statistics" (AGEE-Stat). Last year, the share of renewables was 52.5 percent, in 2022 it was 46.3 percent.

According to the survey, wind energy contributed 141 billion kWh. The newly installed capacity amounts to 3,000 MW, with total capacity now standing at 72,000 MW. Photovoltaics are expected to supply 74 billion kWh of electricity by the end of the year, which is 16% more than in 2023. The total installed capacity will increase to 98,000 MW.

Together, more than three quarters of the green electricity generated comes from wind power and photovoltaic systems. Biomass, hydropower and geothermal plants contribute a quarter. Electricity generation is around 2 percent higher than in the previous year.

"Despite a positive trend in electricity generation, we still need to do more overall," commented UBA President Dirk Messner on the latest figures. This primarily refers to the heating and transport sectors. According to the authority, renewable energies increased by less than one percent in the heating sector. In the transport sector, the new requirements in the Federal Immission Control Ordinance (BimSchV) for meeting the greenhouse gas reduction quota (GHG quota) are leaving their mark.

24 percent less biodiesel

The UBA expects biodiesel consumption to fall by 24 percent. According to the amendment, mineral oil companies can only have their emissions saved in the course of overfulfilling the greenhouse gas reduction quota in previous years credited in 2024 or only again from 2027. The authority expects a significant increase in the consumption of biofuels in 2025 and 2026. The UBA expects bioethanol consumption to increase by an estimated 4 percent in 2024.

The decline in biofuels will not be fully offset by the increasing use of renewable electricity in rail and road transport, it says. 14 percent more green electricity will flow into the sector, which is calculated to be around 9 billion kWh - around 3 percent of electricity from renewable sources.

In March next year, AGEE-Stat will publish its background paper "Renewable energies in Germany - data on development in 2024" with the final data.

Author: Manfred Fischer