FAQ about wind power

Wind farms require a relatively small amount of land. A modern wind turbine needs just 0.5 hectares of land, including access roads, so a lot of land in Germany is being considered in principle for the construction of wind farms. Taking social and ecological aspects into consideration, we’re assuming a maximum possible land use of 2% across Germany. We’re continually on the look out for suitable sites, e.g. woodland, agricultural land and conversion sites.

No. There are areas all over Germany with wind conditions that are highly suitable for energy production and should therefore be used. But even in places with less wind, putting up wind turbines can make sense, e.g. near conurbations and large-scale consumers such as industry. There are special installations today that produce optimised energy yields even in light winds. If wind power is generated “onshore”, it doesn’t have to be transported from the coast all over the country, which means that losses can be reduced. Expansion nationwide also ensures that there is general security of supply because calm periods in one location can be balanced out by more wind in another place. Of course we still need to push ahead with expanding the network.

As woods are frequently topographically higher and the wind in these areas can often be very strong, they are generally well suited to wind turbines. To eliminate any risk of disturbance to forest animals and ecosystems, a detailed initial check needs to be carried out. If the results are positive, then land used for forestry is preferable because existing access roads can be used. Previous damage through wind blow or pest infestation can also make woodland suitable for the construction of wind farms because there is no need to clear these woodland areas. The same applies in cases where motorways or high-voltage power lines have been built or if technical transmitter masts are already located in woodland.

There is still plenty of scope to exploit wind energy here in Germany. In 2019 the total output of installed wind farms was 53.9 gigawatts. Taking social and ecological aspects and a maximum land use of 2 % into account, according to an analysis of potential by the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems (IWES), this means that there is potential for a total output of 200 gigawatts, which could cover almost two thirds of Germany’s entire electricity consumption. The replacement of old wind turbines with modern ones (“repowering”) also provides great potential for the further expansion of wind power.

Although there is still huge potential for developing wind power, in 2015 it already supplied over 10 % of the electricity consumed in Germany. Around 25,000 wind farms in Germany were already producing more than half the output of the six German nuclear reactors still in operation back then. Since the early 1990s the output of wind farms has increased more than tenfold. Together with photovoltaics, on peak days wind power delivers over 80% of the country’s entire power supply

The generation of wind power is weather dependent, specifically on when and how strongly the wind blows. The solution to this challenge is rooted in three basic ideas: combining, distributing and storing. Bottlenecks can be avoided when wind power is combined with flexible gas power stations and other renewable energy sources. For example, it’s often the case that either the sun shines or the wind blows, so that on almost every day of the year either wind farms or photovoltaic installations are providing plenty of energy. It’s also important to continue investing in expanding the network because a more efficient network can collect more electricity and distribute it more effectively. This will avoid the situation on very windy days of being unable to feed wind power into the network, as frequently still happens. Technologies must also continue to be developed in order to efficiently store the wind power generated. Modern power-to-gas installations are already using wind power now to produce CO₂-neutral hydrogen or methane. The gas produced can then be fed into the natural gas network, for example, or used to power cars and ships. See also: New technologies.

In Germany wind turbines are often switched off at the very time when they could be working very efficiently. This is because the network has still not been sufficiently expanded and is getting clogged up with electricity generated from lignite. In future Germany’s electricity grid will be more efficient and dirty electricity from lignite will no longer be used – when that happens the turbine blades will also go round much more frequently. Of course wind turbines still have to be temporarily switched off during maintenance or repair work, to protect birds and bats during breeding and when they leave their nests, or to protect residents. But this makes up only a fraction of the time when they supply valuable renewable energy.

The replacement of old wind turbines with modern ones has huge potential for further development to save land and be compatible with the landscape. This is known as “repowering”. The general rule that applies here is that triple the amount of electricity can be provided on the same amount of land by less than half the number of old wind turbines.

Wind turbines can be almost fully recycled. A wind turbine consists of around 60 to 65 % concrete, 30-35 % steel, 2-3 % composite materials such as glass fibre and carbon-fibre reinforced plastic, and less than 1% copper, aluminium, electrical parts, PVC and operating liquids. Depending on the type of installation, after being stripped down, up to 90 % of all wind turbine parts can be recycled.

When building wind farms, statutory ambient air quality standards and minimum spacings are taken into account, thus preventing any detrimental impact on quality of life or property prices in the surrounding area. It has been shown that wind farms do not bring down property prices. In rural areas lacking in infrastructure, wind farms can even increase property values. Several studies have shown that properties close to wind energy plants experience a positive trend in prices.

No. Lots of holidaymakers are actually very interested in the new technology. According to surveys, just 1% of tourists feel bothered by them. For many tourists, wind farms are indications of climate protection and ecological progress. Wind farm operators often receive enquiries from holidaymakers about visiting a wind turbine. For many holiday destinations, nearby wind farms provide a considerable image boost. When choosing a holiday destination, friendliness, prices and the variety of things to do in the area remain more important.

People don’t hear or notice the infrasound generated by wind farms due to the distances between wind farms and residential areas required by law. Numerous studies have shown that there is no need to worry about any health impacts. Harmful sound levels aren’t reached even right next to wind farms. Long-term studies by the environment ministries of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg show that from a distance of 250 metres, the infrasound generated by rotor blades cannot be heard or felt.

The greatest risk to birds and other airborne animals isn’t wind farms but climate change. Human intrusion into animals’ habitats by buildings, traffic and farming present a much greater danger to birds and bats than wind power. Germany has increasingly been focusing on renewable energy from wind farms since the 1990s. At the same time the population of sea eagles has grown significantly – just one example showing that wind power does not represent a significant threat to airborne animals.

We put up solar parks all over Germany on open land at least five hectares in size. That’s why we’re continually on the look out for suitable land, e.g. agricultural land, redevelopment sites or land alongside railway lines and motorways. For land lessors, operators and investors, solar parks are attractive because they supply climate-friendly electricity on a sustained basis for over 20 years. Photovoltaics are also of interest to municipalities and local authorities: they secure revenue and benefit from solar power’s positive image.

Yes. A study on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure estimates that 3,164 km² of useable open land without restrictions could potentially be developed for solar parks. Altogether this land has a technical potential of 226 GW_p. Agricultural land that combines solar power generation and crops (agrophotovoltaics) offers huge potential. For many crops there is hardly any loss in yield from reduced solar radiation – some even benefit from it. if solar parks were installed on all land in Germany growing suitable crops, the nominal power would be 1.7 terawatts.

The basic material of photovoltaic installations, silicon, is made from sand and there is practically an unlimited supply of this worldwide. Depending on the technology of the photovoltaic installation, in Germany it takes just one to two years for the energy input in its manufacture to be amortised. The cells then supply green electricity for up to 30 years. This means that a solar installation generates around ten times as much climate-neutral energy as the amount required for its manufacture. With conventional energy production, however, the life cycle assessment is always negative. Since this requires new exhaustible, fossil energy sources (coal, gas, oil, uranium) on a sustained basis, it cannot be amortised in energy terms.

After a lifetime of 20 to 30 years, the performance of a photovoltaic installation diminishes and therefore old modules are swapped for new ones. EU directive 2012/19/EU on the recycling of electronic scrap, also known as WEEE, expressly includes photovoltaic installations. This requires 85 % of all modules sold to be recovered and 80 % of the module overall to be recycled. There are various technologies continually being developed for this to be achievable, where silicon from the crystalline modules and semiconductor material from the thin-layer modules can be removed and recycled. The glass used can also be recycled.

A photovoltaic installation is composed of numerous individual solar modules, which means that faulty modules can be replaced quite easily at any time. After a lifetime of 20 to 30 years, it is also recommended that the modules are exchanged as they slowly lose their performance with increasing service life.

Although there is still huge development potential with photovoltaics, it is already responsible for over 7%   of gross electricity production in Germany, and in 2018 produced over 45 gigawatt peaks in all . Compared with 2000, photovoltaic installations today supply almost five hundred times as much energy.  Together with wind energy, on peak days photovoltaic installations deliver over 80% of the entire power supply.

The generation of energy by photovoltaic installations is weather dependent, specifically on when and how strongly the sun shines. The solution to this challenge is rooted in three basic ideas: combining, distributing and storing. Bottlenecks can be avoided when solar energy is combined with flexible gas power stations and other renewable energy sources. For example, it’s often the case that either the sun shines or the wind blows, so that on almost every day of the year either photovoltaic installations or wind farms are providing plenty of energy. It’s also important to continue investing in expanding the network because a more efficient network can collect more electricity and distribute it more effectively, particularly when the sun shines more frequently/strongly and thus supplies more energy than average. Technologies must also continue to be developed in order to efficiently store the generated solar energy. Modern power-to-gas installations are already using solar energy now to produce CO₂-neutral hydrogen or methane. The gas produced can then be fed into the natural gas network, for example, or used to power cars and ships. See also: New technologies.