Feed-in Tariff & the Challenges for a Balanced Supply and Demand
When trying to immerse myself more into the German culture and history, I learned about the policy “Feed-in Tariff” (FIT), which was implemented in the year 2000. Said policy offered generous subsidies to individuals and businesses who installed renewable energy systems — such as solar panels and wind turbines. The goal is to accelerate the usage of renewable energy and reduce the resilience of fossil fuels, which excess is very prejudicial for the environment. In other words, the ultimate goal of the “Feed-in Tariff” in Germany is to reduce the emission of greenhouse gasses.
When considering the success of this policy, it is important to highlight that FIT is responsible for increasing the market share of renewable energy. To illustrate, the production of electricity from renewable sources in Germany was only 6.2% in 2000 (the year in which the policy was implemented), increasing to 23.7% by the year of 2012, and reaching 28% in 2014. Some people believe that they will be able to say that by 2030 Germany will be using electricity coming 100% from renewable sources (isn’t this amazing?).
The amazing results bring not so good consequences as well, which brings us to wonder if there is something like “too much energy.” The answer — which was surprising to me — is yes! This was illustrated on December 31st, 2022: a sunny day with blustery weather, and the demand for energy was really low that day. The stormy weather resulted in the turbine’s rotors so hard that the grid became overloaded with more electricity and it can host.
At first, I thought that producing “too much energy” would not be a problem, but when trying to understand better what happened on said day, I can see a relationship of an unbalanced supply and demand, which shows how relying 100% on renewable energy might cause instability in people’s life. In other words, the power grid used to produce renewable energies has to be balanced — supplying meeting demand –, so the overproduction of energy can result in a system break down and a blackout. Additionally, it is also important to mention that on a cloudy or windless day, it will be harder for the production of renewable energy, so the supply might not meet the demand, and the citizens might suffer a shortage in electricity.
In conclusion, Germany’s “Feed-in Tariff” policy implemented in 2000 has undoubtedly empowered the production and usage of renewable energy but the discussion above highlights the complexities of supply and demand in this transition. While achieving impressive growth (from 6.2% in 2000 to 28% in 2014), the 2022 incident exemplifies the challenges of grid stability with fluctuating renewable energy sources. The quest for 100% renewable energy requires careful consideration of balancing supply and demand, ensuring reliability alongside environmental progress. Germany’s story serves as a valuable case study, reminding us that the path to sustainability demands innovative solutions and thoughtful navigation of potential trade-offs.
