Germany’s energy transition requires grid expansion, even with decentralised solutions – study

A study by the Öko-Institut for the Renewables Grid Initiative (RGI) and Germanwatch says Germany has little chance of generating electricity close enough to consumers to make planned grid expansion unnecessary. In a meta-study comparing the conclusions of 10 studies on grids and decentralisation, the Öko-Institut found that to reduce the need for new power lines, a massive increase in onshore wind power generation would be required in the south and west of the country, which it says is unrealistic due to public resistance to wind farms near residential and protected areas. “We’re seeing in the studies that expanding renewables considerably in the south and west could maybe reduce grid expansion up to 2030, but if we’re looking at a world with 85 percent renewables after 2030, we would need the power lines anyway,” the study’s author, Felix Matthes, said.