Source: Energy & Management Powernews,March 10, 2022
The federal government wants to reserve 2% of the area of a federal state for wind power. Bavaria gets by with much less, says the state energy association VBEW.
The Association of the Bavarian Energy and Water Industry (VBEW) is drumming for more wind power in Bavaria and backs up its advertising with figures from a study. "With 2,000 new wind turbines to be built, only 0.01% of the state's area is consumed in the classic sense," said VBEW managing director Detlef Fischer. He refers to the Research Center for Energy Economics (FFE).
It is known that Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) wants to legally stipulate that 2% of a federal state's area be set aside for wind energy. This is intended to achieve the German expansion targets for onshore wind power. The FFE has now investigated the extent to which 2% of the state's land area can serve as a suitable measure for wind power expansion in Bavaria.
The result: "In general, the two-percent target appears more than sufficient to be able to implement the required wind power expansion in Bavaria," Fischer said of the study's findings. Since the geometry and nature of the areas on which the wind turbines are erected also play a role, more turbines could also be located on the said area. If wind priority areas were additionally designated in such a way that they were narrow but long, it would even be possible to have significantly more power on 2% of the state's land area, Fischer said. As the VBEW points out, the aforementioned area "is needed almost exclusively to ensure the distances between individual turbines." The actual sealed ground area due to the foundation of a wind turbine and due to required access roads is vanishingly small, he said. Therefore, he said, there is no land competition with other uses such as agriculture. On the contrary: "A surface country like Bavaria with traditionally strong agriculture offers itself straight for the wind power development , so Fischer.
The suggestion of the Bavarian federal state government to designate strengthened surfaces in the Bavarian national forest for wind power, evaluates the federation however reserved. The wind yield in forested areas is lower and thus also affects the economic viability of projects. Fischer: "In order for the Bavarian energy turnaround to remain affordable, priority must be given to using the most economical areas for wind power expansion, and there are still many of these in Bavaria."
Author: Stefan Sagmeister