Living in Germany has suddenly become more appealing and wait till you’ve read this article – you’ll want to move there too, if only for a little while! Why? Because thanks to a major increase in the usage of solar power, electricity bills have run a lot lower in 2011.
More precisely, the country’s alternative power sources released 18 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, which would otherwise be enough for 50% of Australian homes. A figure of 5.1 million households is quite a success if you to think how sunny Australia is when compared to Germany.
What made Germans turn towards solar power? Did they have an epiphany? Not necessarily – they just saw their gas and oil prices soar up, while solar components plunged continuously ever since 2007, helped by the competitive imports of solar panels and inverters. Even though solar discounts didn’t do too well either, the trend allowed for 3% of the German electricity consumption to be solar.
You now probably understand why Germany is looking ahead towards its energy future, with an increase of 10% by 2020. Although, we must say, the industry needs continuous support and incentives ever since the country’s government decided on a cut from nuclear power last year. Imports benefited the consumer and created a healthy competition, but it also led to the bankruptcy of some manufacturers and the possibility to cut off incentives.
In any case, 2011 was a good year for the German solar industry, which deserves a big thumbs-up from us all!
[via EnergyMatters]
