The German wind power industry
The technology at a glance
Wind energy has been used in many regions of the world for centuries. In recent decades, it has become an important component of sustainable energy supplies. Germany is a pioneer developing the technology and raising capacity levels throughout the world.
Large wind energy systems have special material requirements. German manufacturers and developers are world leaders when it comes to realising and improving wind energy concepts and their applications. Particular emphasis is placed on simple maintenance procedures as well as the use of high quality, tested materials that can cope with the high demands placed on wind energy systems.
German manufacturers have developed two different units to efficiently convert wind energy into electricity: generators with gears and generators without gears.
The largest German turbines have a net output of 5 to 6 megawatts (MW). The world’s tallest wind energy system is located in Cottbus in Germany with a total height of 205 metres. In 2005, this wind turbine generated over 5,600,000 kWh of electricity. This was enough to provide some 1,600 German households with electricity.
At the moment, the majority of the world’s wind energy systems are located on land. Due to the constant wind characteristics and the higher average wind speeds, the German wind energy industry is also heavily involved in offshore systems. German manufacturers have been gathering valuable experience and successfully deploying their systems in over 20 offshore wind farm projects off the coasts of Denmark, Sweden, Great Britain, Ireland and the Netherlands.
Aside from anchoring the foundations to the sea bed, one particular challenge with offshore projects is maintenance. The sea air, with its high concentration of salt, also places considerable demands on the materials used.
Rapid growth in Germany and the world
In 2007, global wind energy output grew by some 20,000 MW. The largest markets were the USA with 5,244 MW, China with 3,449 MW, Spain with 3,552 MW, India with 1,730 MW and Germany with 1,667 MW.
Germany’s total wind energy output is more than 22,000 MW. This makes it the world’s No. 1 for wind energy. In the first quarter of 2008, the world’s total output broke the 100,000 MW barrier. Many of these wind turbines were built by German manufacturers or contained German components.
Currently in Europe, wind energy systems are mainly constructed on land and included as part of the grid network. In future however, a large market will emerge for offshore wind energy. Right now, multi-megawatt systems for offshore farms and their components are being developed and produced in Germany and tested in small production batches on land. This means the supply of top quality ’Made in Germany’ technology has been ensured for the world market.
The German wind industry enjoys the pole position on the world’s technology markets. Worldwide, German manufacturers produce the most wind energy systems and components; the most powerful systems with 6 MW are operated in Germany. German manufacturers are world leaders in complete drive systems, key components and condition monitoring systems (CMS). Systems and components are designed and produced in Germany and exported around the globe.
German experts possess extensive knowledge when it comes to planning and project design, measuring the wind and technical optimisation of wind energy systems. German suppliers are the foundation of the global wind industry. In 2006, they were responsible for some 40 % of global wind energy revenue from systems and components.
Essential conditions for wind energy applications
The economic viability of wind energy has been constantly increasing thanks to the industry’s cost-cutting measures through technological improvements and mass production techniques.
Government research, development and promotional measures, as well as favourable funding opportunities, accelerated progress in the development of German wind technology during the 1990s. Since April 2000, fixed feed-in tariffs specified by the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) have offered planning reliability for manufacturers and service providers. Producers of electricity from wind energy receive a guaranteed price per kWh. The amount of the feed-in tariff depends on the location of the wind turbine. The latest amendment to the EEG introduces incentives for improved network integration of wind energy systems, such as the so-called systems service bonus.
Over the next few years, countries where the basic conditions for the expansion of renewable energy are favourable will experience considerable growth in the numbers of wind turbines. Current growth markets include Spain, Portugal, Great Britain, France and Italy, as well as the USA, Canada, China and India.
Outlook
Onshore systems with connections to grid networks
In Germany, older wind turbines are now being replaced with a new generation of more powerful and quieter generators. Thanks to this so-called repowering, good wind energy locations can be more efficiently used.
The global market is expected to experience rapid growth in the future. By 2020, 12 % of the global electricity need could be covered by wind energy. General international growth will depend considerably on energy-related policies over the next few years. The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) estimates that wind energy can meet more than 34 % of the world’s electricity demand by 2050. Onshore and offshore wind farms will play an increasingly essential role in the international community’s efforts to curb the effects of climate change.
Yields from wind energy systems vary with the amount of available wind. Currently, Europe’s electrical systems are capable of taking up around 20 % of available wind energy without modification. In order to transport large quantities of electricity from wind energy on existing grid systems, improvements and modifications must be made. In Germany, measures are currently in place to expand electricity networks and improve the way in which these networks are used, i. e. temperature monitoring. These improvements are changing existing networks into smart grids. In order to convert the entire grid system into a smart grid, German scientists are conducting research into processes such as air pressure storage, which allows excess electricity generated from wind energy to be stored in underground salt caverns. The pressurised air stored in this process can be converted into electrical energy when the need arises. In the future, research and development will be heavily concentrated on virtual power stations. This allows renewable energy systems to be coupled together and be controlled in an economical and technically superior way.
The following pages contain a summary of German wind energy manufacturers and project developers.
