Impressive figures: The number of permits and tenders for wind turbines in Germany has risen sharply in the last year, according to new data. But when it comes to the actual construction of wind turbines, the figures collapse. The reason is absurd.
The expansion of wind energy in Germany promises to increase sharply soon. In the first half of 2024, permits were issued for 847 new wind turbines with a total output of 4,772 megawatts – an increase of 32 percent compared to the same period last year. These are new figures presented on July 18 by the German Wind Energy Association (BWE) and the German Mechanical and Plant Engineering Association (VDMA). There was also a record number of tenders for new projects.
German wind power industry sees the reason for the rapid growth primarily in politics: The “traffic light” coalition of the SPD, the Greens and the FDP had decided to ease the expansion of wind energy. “We notice that the measures are having an effect,” said BWE President Bärbel Heidebroek. The length of the process for issuing permits has also fallen for the first time in years.
Closed motorway slows everything down
However, the actual expansion of wind turbines stalled somewhat in the first half of this year. According to the data, 250 new wind turbines with a total output of around 1.3 gigawatts were built nationwide – that was 19 percent less than in the same period last year. This can be explained, said Heidebroek: In April, for example, there were “incredibly strong winds”, hence cranes could not be set up on the construction sites, for example.
The closure of the A27 motorway near Cuxhaven also proved to be particularly relevant. Most of the rotor blades for wind turbines arrive via the port there and are then brought inland. A dilapidated pipe had caused parts of the road to sink – the closure meant that the rotor blades could no longer be transported.
Above all, however, the focus should be on the positive development, said Heidebroek. There is a lot of potential for expansion. However, further political efforts are needed to achieve this – such as further reduction of bureaucracy.
“The South must finally catch up”
Heidebroek went on to say that there is still a strong north-south divide in the expansion of onshore wind power. Most of the new plants were built in North Rhine-Westphalia in the first half of 2024, followed by Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein. In contrast, states such as Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria only contributed a small proportion to the expansion. “The south must finally catch up here,” said Heidebroek. “People always say it wants to catch up. But we don’t see that in the awards or the permits.”
At the end of the first half of 2024, a total of 28,611 wind turbines with a total output of 61.9 gigawatts have been installed across Germany. The federal government’s goal is a total output of 115 gigawatts by 2030. According to industry sources, in order to achieve this goal, approvals would have to be turned into implemented projects. Even if decisions by the federal government, for example to shorten planning and approval procedures, have an effect, further political measures are necessary.
“The industry had forecast an increase of 4 gigawatts for the whole of 2024. In order to achieve this, we need to step up our game”, said Dennis Rendschmidt, Managing Director of VDMA Power Systems. Looking at the figures for the first half of the year, he spoke of both light and shade.
Approval procedures for large-volume and heavy transports must be simplified and accelerated, said Rendschmidt. “In order to get the components of the wind turbines to the construction sites as smoothly as possible, uniform national rules are needed.”
Municipalities should benefit
There is to be a system change in the expansion of renewable energy from wind and solar. The federal government is planning to switch to investment cost subsidies, as stated in its “growth initiative”. So far, onshore wind power has been subject to tenders, with operators applying for a subsidy level – instead of receiving a legally defined feed-in tariff as before. Heidebroek said that a complete change in the subsidy system threatens to unsettle the industry and could lead to investments being held back.
According to the Renewable Energy Sources Act, operators of wind turbines are required to offer financial participation to the local communities. This is a voluntary arrangement. Communities can then benefit directly from the electricity generated by wind turbines in their immediate vicinity. As the Federal Association of Energy and Water Industries announced, wind farm operators, including EWE, EnBW and Enertrag, have committed to financial participation by local communities. Depending on the location, a sum of 20,000 to 30,000 euros per year per wind turbine can be expected, which will be paid out to the surrounding communities. The communities could invest this additional income in important local projects.
BDEW Managing Director Kerstin Andreae called this commitment an important step to strengthen sustainable development in rural areas in Germany and at the same time further promote acceptance and support for onshore wind energy projects.
