Dear Madam, Dear Sir,

Thank you for your interest in German renewable energy technologies and welcome to the second edition of the "renewables -  Made in Germany" newsletter in 2010. This service is brought to you by the Deutsche Energie-Agentur GmbH (dena) – the German Energy Agency, supported by the German Ministry of Economy and Technology.

Today's issue features articles on the following topics:

• Current developments in the field of renewable energy around the world
• Interesting projects and applications in renewable energy
• State-of-the-art German technologies and services for the use of renewable energy sources
• Opportunities and events in the field of renewable energy

We hope you enjoy reading this issue.

The Renewable Energies Division of dena.

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• 1. Member countries agree on IRENA budget
• 2. Germany is the first European country with a certification system for biomass
• 3. The EU will reach its ecological energy goals
• 4. Germany fulfils its climate protection obligations
• 5. Japan doubles its photovoltaic market
• 6. German institutes found PV test centre in Singapore
• 7. Solar world module winner of a module test
• 8. “renewables - Made in Germany” - Products and Services
• 9. Get in Touch - "renewables- Made in Germany" Business Trips
• 10. The German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology Takes "Renewable Energy Technologies" Abroad
• 11. dena Subsidy Overview: EU-27 Photovoltaic and REN Heat
• 12. Renewable Energy Industry and Export Forum
• 13. Conference on large solar projects in the MENA Region
• 14. Service and editorial information

At a meeting in Abu Dhabi, the member countries of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) agreed on a work programme and a budget for 2010. The organisation, which was founded last year with the aim of supporting the global use of renewable energies by providing analysis and consulting services, can start working. The initial steps will include setting up the office in Abu Dhabi and the innovation centre in Bonn. IRENA has been allocated a budget of 13 million US dollars for 2010. The German government is supporting the innovation centre with a further three million US dollars.

In January 2009, 75 states got together to found IRENA as a contact and information body for renewable energies. In February 2010, Mozambique was the 143rd country to sign the IRENA declaration. In future, these countries will be able to use IRENA to help them set up successful guidelines for supporting bioenergy, solar energy and wind energy or technology-specific training programmes. With the current budget the interim General Director Hélène Pelosse will be creating a network of international experts for renewable energy sources and an extensive database on state support programmes.

With locations in Abu Dhabi and Bonn, IRENA is based in two countries that just in the past year have intensified their economic contacts through the newly founded German-Emirates Chamber of Industry and Commerce. 800 German companies have branch offices in the Arab Emirates, including many companies in the renewable energy industry. For these companies it is becoming more and more attractive to be located in a country with one of the world’s highest levels of solar irradiation. And the region is profiting from this as well. According to a report of the consulting firm AT Kearney, renewable energy could be responsible for up to 100,000 new jobs in the Middle East in the coming ten years.

In future, liquid biofuels will only be allowed to receive public support or count towards reaching defined energy goals in the European Union if they come from sustainable biomass production. Germany is the first EU member state to introduce a certification system that proves the sustainability of the biomass source. The guidelines were published in February by the Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food. The publication is written both for the certification institutes that control the sustainability criteria as well as for the biomass producers, traders and systems operators who have to implement the sustainability criteria. Starting on 1 July, 2010 they have to certify that the biomass used by them does not bring about the destruction of ecologically valuable areas and that the use of the biomass significantly reduces the emission of greenhouse gases.

International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC), with its headquarters in Cologne, has received provisional approval for its certification system. The system functions as follows: dealers or cooperatives, oil mills and refineries that prepare the biomass for its use in production, are controlled. The company that carries out the final production step issues a sustainability certificate for the biofuel and liquid biomass that it has delivered. With this certificate the operators of power generation systems using liquid biomass for example, can validate their claims against the grid operators for compensation as determined in the Renewable Energy Sources Act.

Twenty per cent of the total energy consumption within the EU is to come from renewable energy sources by the year 2020: that is the goal that the European Union has set itself. According to a country-by-country analysis carried out by the European Wind Energy Association this target will be met. The analysis states that 13 member-states will meet their national goals and eight countries will exceed them. Those countries that will exceed their aims for renewable energy in 2020 include Germany, Estonia, Greece, Ireland, Poland, Slovakia and Sweden. Spain, with an expected renewable energy share of 22.7 per cent is expected to surpass its goals by almost three percent. In Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Luxemburg and Malta, renewable energy sources will play a lesser role than that which was originally envisaged. It is expected that the poorest results will be attained in Italy, which will have to import power from renewable sources in order to reach its targets.

Germany is and remains an international forerunner in climate protection. According to a report by the Federal Environment Agency, the country fulfilled its climate protection goals in 2008 and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 22.2 per cent with respect to 1990. With the signing of the Kyoto protocol, Germany pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions between 2008 and 2012 to a level of 21 per cent below that of 1990. “The repeated achievement of meeting the obligations we agreed to in Kyoto is a good sign. But we should not rejoice too soon because we have by no means yet reached our mid-term climate protection goals. We want to reduce our emission of greenhouse gases by 40 per cent by the year 2020 compared to the levels of 1990”, says the German Federal Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen.

Animated by state subsidies, the installation of photovoltaic systems in Japan has more than doubled in the past year, growing from 230 to 484 megawatts. Japanese manufacturers exported a further 904 megawatts of generation capacity. This meant that the Japanese photovoltaic industry had its strongest growth since 1981. Experts expect the Japanese photovoltaic market to continue with its positive development. The reason is the new feed-in tariffs: since November 2009 Japanese utilities companies are required to pay more for electricity from photovoltaic production systems. For solar power from private house owners, the companies have to pay 0.39 euros per kilowatt-hour, twice as much as they paid before the new rules came into effect. Operators of commercial systems are paid 0.20 euros.

The Fraunhofer-Institute for Solar Systems (ISE) and the VDE Testing and Certification Institute, working together with the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS), have opened up the first Testing and Certification Centre for Solar Modules in South-East Asia. “Together with our partners, we now offer the photovoltaic industry in South-Eastern Asia the possibility to have their photovoltaic modules tested and certified according to international standards at a location close to their production sites”, says Hans-Martin Henning, deputy head of Fraunhofer ISE. The newly founded joint venture VDE-ISE Pte. Ltd. carries out safety checks and certification and the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore is responsible for performance testing.

The German company Solar World AG was the winner of the Module Test 2009 realised by the industry magazine Photon. The magazine carried out measurements on 16 module types during the year 2009. The highest yield per kilowatt was delivered by the polycrystalline module Sunmodule Plus SW 210 poly by Solar World. Second and third place were taken by the thin-film module FS-265 made by the American company First Solar Inc. and the polycrystalline sun catcher PW 1650-175 W made by the French manufacturer Photowatt International SA.

German renewable energy technologies have an excellent reputation both at home and abroad. Many years of experience and countless references around the world make "renewables - Made in Germany" a reliable source to meet your project needs. The website www.renewables-made-in-germany.com provides information about German renewable energy industries, companies and products.

Are you looking for contacts with experienced German companies in the renewable energy sector, or more information about renewable energy technology from Germany? If so, the German Chamber of Commerce (AHK) in your country may be able to help. As part of the “renewables - Made in Germany” programme, delegations of German business representatives from the renewable energy sector travel to all parts of the world to showcase their expertise and products and to explore possibilities for future cooperation.

Each event includes a one-day seminar where you receive information about current developments in renewable energy technology and the products of the German companies that are represented. If you would like to get in touch with individual companies, the German Chamber of Commerce Abroad in your country has the ability to act as a liaison.

The following table shows all the dates and countries that are part of the trade mission for the beginning of 2010.

If you are interested in attending one of these events or require more information, please contact the relevant German Chamber of Commerce Abroad: www.ahk.de.

For more information please contact: renewables@dena.de

More information: http://www.renewables-made-in-germany.com/index.php?id=664&L=1

Another opportunity to make contact with German companies in the renewable energy technology sector is to participate at  the trade fairs attended by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. Visit the German community booth to speak directly with German companies and receive information about the latest technologies!

The dena Subsidy Overview EU-27 – Photovoltaic and the dena Subsidy overview EU-27 - REN Heat provide information about existing subsidy programmes for photovoltaic use and renewable heat-generating technologies in the EU-Member States. Each overview provides readers with detailed, valuable information about policy design possibilities and regulatory framework conditions for each subsidy programme.

dena Subsidy Overview-EU27 - Photovoltaic

The February issue of dena subsidy Overview-EU-27 - Photovoltaic (“PV Radar”) focuses on new feed-in tariff regulations and terms of tender in the EU member states. While the Czech Republic, Germany and Italy have set new tariff rates for 2010, France and Slovakia have introduced a whole new tariff regime. All changes are described in the latest issue of PV Radar.

In Austria, the tariff rates have changed due to an amendment to the feed-in tariff regulations. Moreover, from 2010 onwards the tariff will only apply to systems with a capacity of more than 5 kWp as a consequence of this amendment. The United Kingdom has introduced a feed-in tariff to incentivise the installation of small-scale PV systems. The feed-in tariff scheme will start in April 2010. Only systems with a capacity of up to 5 MW will be eligible.

Further information on the above-mentioned amendments and changes is available in the latest issue of PV Radar. The February 2010 issue of dena subsidy Overview-EU-27 - Photovoltaic also provides information on incentive schemes in Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and Slovenia.

More Information: www.dena.de/en/infos/publications/publikation/eu-27-photovoltaic

dena Subsidy Overview EU-27 REN Heat

In Germany, the terms and conditions of grants under the Market Incentive Programme have been changed. This issue will give you a comprehensive overview of these changes.

In early March, Denmark introduced an oil burner replacement grant for the replacement of oil burners with heat pumps or solar heating systems.

For further information on all changes please see the current issue of dena Subsidy Overview. The March issue of “dena Subsidy Overview EU-27 REN Heat” also provides information on amendments and changes in Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxemburg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia and Spain.

More Information: www.dena.de/en/infos/publications/publikation/eu-27-renewable-heat

International visitors are welcome to join this year’s “Renewable Energy Industry and Export Forum” which is set to take place from the 20th to the 23rd of April on the Hannover Messe fair ground in Germany. The event offers information on the attractiveness of markets for renewable energy abroad and current market trends. The event is coordinated by the German Energy Agency (dena) in cooperation with Deutsche Messe AG and eclareon GmbH.
Location: Hall 27, Stand K36; participation is free/no registration required
More Information: www.dena.de/en/infos/events/new-events/veranstaltung/hanover-fair-2010/

On 22 April, the 2010 conference “SOLAR XXL - Solar solutions to power the Middle East and North Africa” will take place at the Hannover Messe. The conference will look at and discuss the status, technological estimates and business and financing models for large solar project in the Mena-Region.

More information: www.solar-xxl.com

Thank you for subscribing to the “renewables - Made in Germany” newsletter.

For more information about German technologies and manufacturers in the renewable energy industry, see our website http://www.renewables-made-in-germany.com/.

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