European Countries leading the way in renewable energy

[Extract from Grass Roots Aug/Sept 2007]

Some European counties have led the way in implementing renewable energy technologies and setting targets and there seems no practical reason why Australia cannot do likewise.

In 2006 Germany installed 960 Mw of photovoltaic power and this is expected to increase to over 2800 MW by 2010.
At the current rate of growth of solar electric installations, by 2010 Germany will be installing a million units per year on house roofs. The German photovoltaic industry is growing at over 30 percent per annum and employs in excess of 3000 people. In addition, between 2001 and 2005 Germany installed 12,000 MW of wind power and will have 30,000 MW by 2010; this is estimated to be the equivalent of 40 percent of Australia's yearly electricity needs.

The Danish Government plans to generate 75 percent of the countries electricity needs from wind power by 2025. Part of their renewable energy strategy is to reduce fossil fuel imports to zero. With a land area about one-fifth that of Victoria, Denmark has already installed 3200 MW of wind power capacity, with an industry that employs over 20,000 people.
The same density of wind energy facilities in Victoria would give that state 16,000 MW of wind power capacity, enough to power the whole state. Victoria currently has 134 MW of wind power capacity and Australia's capacity is 817 MW.

In Spain, wind power generation supplies 27 percent of the countries total power, surpassing that supplied by nuclear and coal power. Spain's wind power capacity is the second highest in the world at 11,615 MW, and set to increase to 20,000 MW by 2010.

Wind generation in India is booming, with 1430 MW being added in one year alone, to take the total capacity to about 4430 MW.

Worldwide, wind energy is the fastest growing industry. In late 2005 there was a worldwide wind energy capacity of 59,000 MW, more that Australia's total electricity generation capacity.

European leaders have agreed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2020 and the executive European Commission has proposed an EU-Wide binding target of 20 percent renewable energy capacity by 2020.