The installed capacity of renewable energy in Germany has increased by 17 GW to an overall capacity of around 170 GW in 2023.
As per the statistics from the federal network agency, this goes on to represent a rise of 12% as compared to 2022.
Apparently, the solar capacity additions last year hit 14.1 GW, double that added in 2022, largely pushed due to private investments. Most of the solar capacity got installed in Bavaria in 2023, with 3.5 GW.
At the end of 2023, the overall installed capacity in Germany was around 81.7 GW, which means that 19 GW will have to be added every year in the future so as to attain the expansion target of 215 GW for solar by the decade end.
It is well to be noted that Germany also went on to add 2.9 GW of onshore wind in 2023, which apparently happens to be more than the previous year. The installed capacity overall at the end of 2023 happened to be 60.9 GW.
Significantly, by 2030, the installed capacity is anticipated to surge to 115 GW. So as to achieve this objective, 7.7 GW has to be added in Germany each year.
It is worth noting that last year, apparently, most of the wind turbines in Schleswig-Holstein, which were 1.1 GW, went into operation.
2023 also saw 80% more permits being issued for onshore wind turbines than in 2022. These happened to be announced for almost 8 GW and are anticipated to be realized in the years to come.
Apart from this, the Arcadis Ost I offshore wind farm, which is located in the Baltic Sea got added 300 MW of capacity, which means that almost the same amount of wind power had got added at sea in 2023 as in the year before that.
Overall, 8.5 GW of power has been installed in the Baltic and North Seas.
The president of the Federal Network Agency, Klaus Muller, says that they have taken a big step forward, specifically when it comes to adding photovoltaic systems. The expansion output has gone on to almost double as compared to the previous year. He added that all these investments are further advancing the energy shift. Last year, for the first time, Germany got to generate more than half of its electricity from renewable energies.
In terms of onshore wind, Klaus said that they are not yet where they would like to be; however, what makes him optimistic is that prominently more permits will go on to be issued in 2023, which will pay off in surging numbers when it comes to new additions.
