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No more nuclear power, but plenty of wind and sun: Current data on the electricity mix in Germany show how far the energy transition has come.
Although 2023 was a record year for wind and solar energy, Germany had to import more electricity than usual. Calls for a return to nuclear power are already being heard: Recently, the CDU and CSU parties demanded that the nuclear power plants that were shut down last year be put back into operation, even though their dismantling had already begun.
However, data analyzed year after year by experts at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) show that there is no correlation between the phase-out of nuclear power and increased electricity imports.
The "Energy Charts" regularly present the most important data about the electricity market in Germany and Europe. Handelsblatt has examined the four biggest electricity myths and checked their accuracy based on the charts.
That's correct. In 2023, Germany produced almost ten percent less electricity and became a net electricity importer for the first time since 2002. However, this was not due to a shortage of electricity but because it was sometimes simpler to purchase electricity from European neighboring countries than to produce it themselves.
"We generally export electricity in the winter because prices are very high and demand is very high. In the summer, it's the opposite – electricity prices are low in a European context because demand is also low," explains electricity market expert Bruno Burger from Fraunhofer-ISE in the Handelsblatt Green & Energy podcast. Most of the electricity Germany imports comes from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.
In terms of Germany's total net electricity generation, imports accounted for only a very small percentage. In 2023, only 8.6 terawatt-hours (TWh) were imported, while renewable energies in Germany contributed almost 261 TWh of electricity during the same period.
As of April 15, 2023, the last nuclear power plants in Germany went offline. They still accounted for over six percent of the total electricity consumption with almost seven TWh. Critics argue that Germany's exit from nuclear power was unnecessary because nuclear energy comes into the country through the European electricity grid.
Jens Spahn uses data from Agora Energiewende on German electricity imports from January to September 2023 as evidence for his claim. According to this data, Germany mainly imports 12.6 terawatt-hours of electricity from abroad, including nuclear power.
However, by November, the balance was balanced again, according to Burger, so there was no surplus of nuclear power. "And for every imported kilowatt-hour of nuclear power, we also saved imports of fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas," said the main author of the Energy Charts.
No, Germany's electricity mix is cleaner than ever. According to figures from the Federal Network Agency, the share of renewables in 2023 was 55 percent.
While it wasn't a good year for solar power due to fewer sunny hours, wind power generation remained at the same level as the previous year despite the significant expansion of new installations. Burger expects a significant improvement after the poor solar year in 2024. However, wind power might see a decline this year: "In 2023, production was strong, but this year could be somewhat weaker."
Overall, the increasing use of renewables is pushing coal and lignite further back. Fossil power plants generated more electricity than usual in the energy crisis year of 2022 due to the shutdown of many French nuclear reactors and high gas prices. In 2023, the situation in the electricity market improved, leading to a significant reduction in coal power generation.
Coal power generation from lignite decreased by 27 percent, and from hard coal by 35 percent. "Looking at these two sources, the least amount of coal was burned since 1959. This means that we are on a very good path with coal phase-out," Burger is convinced.
This is not correct. Electricity prices have actually decreased over the course of the year. In January 2023, a megawatt-hour on the electricity exchange cost 150 euros, but in mid-January 2024, it was just over 80 euros. However, they are still significantly higher than in previous years, where a megawatt-hour cost around 50 euros.
Nevertheless, "electricity was only cheaper in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark," says Burger, referring to the average electricity prices on the exchange. Regarding consumer prices, Germany is in the upper third tier. After record prices following the Ukraine war, tariffs have now stabilized. For new customers, the offers average well below 30 cents, reaching pre-war levels again.
However, due to increasing network fees, electricity prices could rise slightly this year. The Essen-based energy provider Eon has already prepared its customers for this change.