Recall all the nukies saying solar is dead in Germany? Germany installed 4.8GW Jan-Aug 2010

[kristopher]

German PV Market steaming ahead with 4.8GW installed in first eight months

The latest figures for the German Bundesnetzagentur show that registered installations in Germany in the first eight months of 2010 reached 4.8GW, a massive 327% higher than the same period in 2009. According to IMS Research, Germany accounted for 48% of global demand in the first three quarters of 2010 – up from 40% for the same period in 2009.

The market research firm said that small commercial systems up to 100kW in size have led demand in Germany. This market has reached over 2.6GW, an increase of 280% compared to the same period in 2009. Residential installations are estimated by IMS Research to have grown year-on-year by 140% and large commercial systems by almost 500%.

“High demand has been seen from almost every part of the German market and these results up to August solidify our prediction that the German market could reach up to 8GW in 2010, and the global market more than 16GW,” commented Ash Sharma, PV research director at IMS Research.

Like the report from iSuppli, IMS Research expects a fall in demand in the first quarter of 2011 and a period of overcapacity that will lead to rapid price declines.

“A large FIT* cut is inevitable in Germany in 2012...

http://www.pv-tech.org/news/_a/german_pv_market_steaming_ahead_with_4.8gw_installed_in_first_8_months/

*FIT = Feed in tariff, a vary effective policy to encourage the development of generating technologies.

[NNadir]

1. Nobody said that solar is DEAD. However, we note, as usual, that it is useless, as these claims...

...show.

As usual, the gas owned "solar will save us" attempts to substitute PEAK watts for energy.

As it has been for many decades, the approach is fraudulent.

Under german weather and lighting conditions, a typical capacity utilization for solar PV energy is roughly 10%. (I can cite a Swiss paper out of the Paul Scherrer Institute from the scientific literature on this point, if pressed.) Thus, 4.8 GWe (peak) of solar energy translates into the equivalent of a 480MWe plant operating at 100% capacity utilization.

(Capacity utilization in nuclear plants, by contrast, is typically around 90%.)

In the context of a major industrial nation like Germany - which has declared itself a subsidiary of Gazprom - this is trivial, and the need for spinning reserve almost certainly negates any real result.

Billions upon billions of Euros down the rabbit hole for this meager result.

Have a great day.

[Tesha]

10. Happily, your claim of "useless" may soon be dead. Here's just one reason why:

http://www.generalcompression.com/

Tesha

[NNadir]

11. Um, you do realize that in 1976, Amory Lovins handed out this same line of wishful thinking.

You may also be aware that more than 5 years ago, wind day dreamer wrote a long and rather meaningless argument in Environ. Sci. Tech, that would be this paper, http://www.inference.phy.cam.ac.uk/sustainable/refs/storage/es049946p.pdf">Environ. Sci. Technol. 2005, 39, 1903-1911 saying how compressed air would be great for burning dangerous natural gas in so "wind" could be only 4 times worse than nuclear for carbon dioxide emissions.

"Only?"

Since Denholm's paper was written, more than 120 billion tons of dangerous fossil fuel waste were dumped into Earth's atmosphere without restricition.


We won't even talk about the multiples of one hundred million metric tons of carbon dioxide while the world has sat around playing pretend.

There haven't been any CAES plants built since 2005, nor, for that matter, since 1976.

But let's bet the entire future of humanity on this scheme. Why? Because it sounds just great and if it sounds great, why then it is great. Just ask Bernie Madoff.

Tell it to someone a little more gullible, OK? Someone who is blissfully unaware of the laws of thermodynamics. We certainly have plenty of people here in that set.

Have a nice evening. Do some denial for me, OK?

[Tesha]

13. You didn't even read the link, did you?

It discusses how they plan to use utility-scale compressed
air energy storage so that wind power can be dispatched just
like any other power plant, whether peaking or base-load.

They have enough venture capital to go ahead with their pilot
plant. And if it works, it will make you obsolete.

Tesha

[OnlinePoker]

14. I read the link and went through their site

Their plan is to compress air on the surface and then pump it below ground into salt domes for recovery later. It says it can also use "other geological formations". How many salt domes or formations are there that could be accessed? I seem to recall reading that these formations are used by the Natural Gas industry for storage and I would think they would get their panties in a twist if competing energy concerns started muscling in on "their" territory. The company says they will begin construction of a facility in the fall of 2011, but don't say where this will be located at.

[Tesha]

15. So you figure becaus they didn't tell you the site it doesn't exist?

Maybe they'd just rather not disclose it?

Tesha

[OnlinePoker]

16. Did I say that?

I just commented that they didn't say where the site was located. Christ, talk about getting your panties in a twist. Lighten up!

[OnlinePoker]

2. It will be interesting to see how much installation occurs from now on...

...given that Germany eliminated the FIT for field installations and cut the FIT for rooftop installation on July 1st. People knew this was going to happen so perhaps the reason for the jump was economics rather than concern for the environment.

[kristopher]

3. They are only cutting it in line with declining solar panel costs.

[FBaggins]

5. Field installations are now free? n/t

[FBaggins]

4. Why no... I don't. But I do remember the anti-nukes saying that nuclear power was dead there.

Which now appears not to be the case.

[kristopher]

6. We will see. Merkel can't get the support to change the law

All she can do is give the nuclear industry thugs her administrative word; and that is only good as long as her government is in power.

[Dead_Parrot]

7. Do you have a link for anyone saying it is dead?

Or is your headline pulled from thin air?

[Confusious]

8. Guess.

Nobody even said it. I think he's made out of straw, he pulls a lot of them out of his ass.

[Dead_Parrot]

9. Well, there's always a chance I missed a thread

Of course, if "all the nukies" made the claim, presumably anyone who didn't is a seasoned veteran of energy policy who offers sage advice that should be heeded.

Cool.

[Dead_Parrot]

12. Kick for kris...

...as I'm sure he'd love to provide a link, so we can fully appreciate his view.