Conditions for renewable power generation were very good on Easter Monday, thanks to bright sunshine across all of Germany and a light breeze in many parts of the country.
German think-tank Agora Energiewende revealed that solar and wind almost completely covered the country’s power demand for several hours. At noon, the power delivered by solar was 33 GW, while onshore wind turbines contributed 12.5 GW. In addition, a good 11 GW came from biomass, offshore wind energy and hydropower. This combined capacity of roughly 56 GW met almost all the country's power consumption needs, which stood at just over 61 GW. At 3 p.m. CEST, about 51 GW came from renewable energy, with consumption at almost 56 GW.
Operators of conventional power plants reacted by adjusting production. At noon, nuclear power plants supplied 3.8 GW of capacity, while lignite-fired power stations delivered 4.7 GW. Coal-fired power plants were almost completely withdrawn from the market, contributing only 1.8 GW. Gas-fired power plants, meanwhile, provided 6.7 GW of capacity. The price on the power exchange fell to minus €62.08/MWh. At 2 p.m. CEST, it reached a daily low of minus €83.01/MWh.
The high proportion of renewable energy in total power generation ensured that the CO2 emission factor of the power mix between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. CEST fluctuated between 160 and 170 grams per kilowatt-hour. That corresponds to about one-third of the annual average.
On Tuesday , renewable energy also accounted for the lion's share of electricity generation for many hours. According to Agora Energiewende, onshore wind turbines delivered about 26 GW at 1 p.m. CEST, while PV accounted for 27.5 GW. Total renewable energy generation reached 66.4 GW. Because of the working day, however, the consumption of almost 80 GW was significantly higher than on Easter Monday.
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