Comments on: 1.8 GW of Midsize German Solar Installations Due to Feed-in Tariffs

By: Germany: Talk of the Cleantech Town this Week – CleanTechnica: Cleantech innovation news and views

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 11:45:16 +0000

[…] 1.8 GW of Midsize German Solar Installations Due to Feed-in Tariffs […]

By: Susan Kraemer

Susan Kraemer — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 02:33:00 +0000

Woops. Fixed!

By: James A. Burt

James A. Burt — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:25:21 +0000

We need to implement FITs to ramp solar up at a rate of 100% per year until solar production reaches 1 Terawatt per year.

By: Antoine

Antoine — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:09:17 +0000

And to keep it in perspective, 7.4 GW is an impressive number. Germany has a lot of solar power, and their total capacity is about 17 GW and 2% of total electricity production. Effectively they almost doubled their capacity in 2010.

I live in Alberta. Total nameplate capacity here is about 12 GW. There are almost 4 million people here. Over 70% of our electricity comes from coal.

By: Antoine Palmer

Antoine Palmer — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:56:40 +0000

Hi Susan,

I think you mean 1.8 GW? From Paul’s article http://bit.ly/gN0RrV, the total solar installed in 2010 was 7.4 GW. And from the graph you posted, 1.8 GW was installed in the 10-30kW range.

By: Calentadores Solares Siesol

Calentadores Solares Siesol — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 06:11:41 +0000

This is espectacular wow!

By: Christof

Christof — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 03:22:44 +0000

Ok, so Germany’s solar numbers are way cool — but not to be trite, wow, what a cool looking solar-powered house. I want one!

By: Susan Kraemer

Susan Kraemer — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 19:46:13 +0000

How long will your parents’ car take to pay for itself? How about their fridge? Their big tv? Sometimes we put greater expectations on solar than it should be required to meet. We know solar has a lifespan of 30-40 yrs (so far), because the original ones built in the 70s are still producing. Does their car?

The fact is that even if it takes ten years to “pay for itself”, the next ten years they’ll have free electricity, and another ten years after that of free electricity – and very possibly another ten after that even… when your parents are reaaally going to appreciate that free electricity. It could well make the difference financially between being able to afford to live in their home or not, when they get old.

So, don’t just look critically at the first ten years. Look at the whole life of a solar installation.

By: Bryan

Bryan — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 19:13:18 +0000

My parents just told me yesterday that they are getting solar installed on their roof. Problem is, even with the tax credits, and reduced electric bill, and the renewable energy credits, the investment is still going to take at best about 10 years to pay for itself. This operates on the assumption that these energy credits that they’re getting paid for, which they say are worth about 225/MW generated stay around the whole time. Still seems like a risky investment, at least here in Pennsylvania.

By: Susan Kraemer

Susan Kraemer — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 22:47:23 +0000

Trouble is that 10 or 15 years is going to be too late to catch up, after China and Europe have built theirs and have electricity. Peak oil is going to make it harder to build anything requiring heavy fossil fuel use, so 400 ft steel turbines are going to be very expensive to build by then.

By: DIY Solar

DIY Solar — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 20:17:38 +0000

Leave it to the Europeans to lead the way in alternative energy production. As usual the United States is far behind and will maybe catch up in 10 or 15 years.