The Greens politician told the dpa: “I’m not dissatisfied with how the expansion of renewables is going. Not satisfied yet, it’s all still a delicate plant, and we’re really coming out of the vale of tears. But they’ve dried up and you dare to laugh again.”
This year has shown that real progress has been made, says Habeck. “We’re not done yet. But we’ve made big laws, made some big and small adjustments to simplify procedures, gradually get rid of bureaucracy and get faster. We’ve released the brakes everywhere.”
The federal government’s goal is to increase the share of electricity generated from renewable energies in electricity consumption to at least 80 percent by 2030. This year, according to the first industry calculations, it was around 47 percent. Germany has made extensive legislative changes for faster expansion. Two percent of the entire federal land area must be earmarked for wind turbines. The federal states must provide more space in the coming years. Different targets apply to the individual countries because different requirements are set for the expansion of wind energy.
The targets would be met this year, Habeck said. “They are not as high as the years after, but it is a good starting point for next year. And that after hardly any progress has been made in recent years. Next year it should be more, and then more. But the development points in the right direction.”
The wind energy industry expects growth of 2.3 to 2.4 gigawatts for the whole of 2022. According to Habeck, an increase of 10 gigawatts per year is required to achieve the climate goals. “Of course, ten gigawatts of growth per year is a very high number,” said the minister. “We’ve never done that in Germany, we’ve never been there – and that’s permanent.”
Anyone who wants to build wind or solar parks in Germany with state funding can apply for tenders. Maximum values now need to be significantly adjusted. “This significantly improves the profitability of the projects and gives even more impetus,” emphasizes Habeck. “And I hope that many applications will be submitted and approved. “Of course it is important that the countries come along and do their part to speed up the approval process.”
(SDA)