Live data from Hacker News

Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

ise.fraunhofer.de

31–40 of 430 posts

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#32
post #4

Actually Germany recently shut down all of it's nuclear plants and replaced them with the dirtiest fuel possible: lignite coal burning plants. Statistics are a peculiar thing.

And also by buying electricity from Sweden, which causes my bills to explode. (Because we've also shuttered half of our nuclear facilities.) So when Germany buys enough, we start our oil powerplants to cover :)

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#33
post #4

Actually Germany recently shut down all of it's nuclear plants and replaced them with the dirtiest fuel possible: lignite coal burning plants. Statistics are a peculiar thing.

Germany is second only to Russia in Europe for coal powered electricity. Followed by Poland.

No wonder this map usually has the worst air over those countries:

https://aqicn.org/map/europe/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/859266/number-of-coal-po...

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#34
Living in Germany is leaving any big city and seeing loads of wind turbines everywhere.

I know very little of its economics, like that it typically takes 7 years to pay it back and lasts 20-25 years, but looks like a good way to generate renewable energy and will likely soon take Germany to 100%.

It's a goal for the government and for many years it has been pushing forward. I dislike many things here, but I can't say I don't admire the country's ability to execute on this and other subjects.

I really don't get why the US and other strong countries don't invest as much on it.

There is some environmental impact(birds etc) and downsides, but overall looks like one of the best ways to generate energy until we have fusion energy. Also creates many jobs.

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#35

Right now, Germany appears to be 85% renewable [0], but is still pretty mediocre on CO2 emissions compared to many of its neighbours (Poland excepted!). That 8GW of coal still hurts, but the trend is pretty good. [0] https://app.electricitymaps.com/zone/DE

Because electricity is only one part of the overall energy usage. Heating is still ~75% fossil-based (oil, gas).

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#36
post #4

Actually Germany recently shut down all of it's nuclear plants and replaced them with the dirtiest fuel possible: lignite coal burning plants. Statistics are a peculiar thing.

Oh, we also started importing nuclear electricity from France at scale to bridge the gap. So, it’s not as bad as you put it. Nuclear waste is now somebody else’s problem…

You might not be serious, but, for others' benefit, nuclear waste is not a problem. One just has to not be a complete moron about it. And, most of the spent nuclear fuel will be reusable in the future.

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#37
post #11

The deindustrialization has begun.

What makes you say that?

We now have the highest electricity cost in the world. In my city the price currently is at 40 USD cents per kilowatt hour. The policy of the current government is radically anti climate change. Foreighn investments into Germany have plummeted in the last year.

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#38
post #4

Actually Germany recently shut down all of it's nuclear plants and replaced them with the dirtiest fuel possible: lignite coal burning plants. Statistics are a peculiar thing.

Not really. Coal was just a temporary replacement, and mostly not for nuclear plants.

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#39
post #8

Electricity, maybe. Energy? I wish. This headline would be more true if we had transportation fully electrified and all buildings heated with heat pumps, but last I heard the proposed law to require the latter transition to be started in 2024 was dropped again, and they're also still debating about starting to require transitioning the combustion engine fleets to electric by, what was it, 2030? I also still see stick…

[flagged]

Re: Germany Achieves Record 57.7% Renewable Energy Share for First Half of 2023

#40

I think renewable energy disruption is happening faster than many can fathom. A few breakthroughs in storage technology and things might actually turn into optimism from Climate fears in 1 or 2 decades. Hopefully entrenched interests do not let free market disrupt them this time.

In the past 2 decades Germany has blown hundreds of billions of dollars into renewable energy. Now we have the highest electricity price in the world. It is all socialism. Zero market :-(

> Now we have the highest electricity price in the world.

Imagine what that price would have been if the renewables hadn't been there and they bought only "green" gas plants instead.

Or "green" nuclear, but we don't talk about that in Germany anymore

Post reply on HN