Wind power tops Germany's electricity mix as total power output shrinks in early 2023

Wind power has become Germany’s most important electricity source again in the first quarter of 2023, according to an analysis by the statistical office Destatis. Onshore and offshore turbines supplied nearly one third (32.2%) of the electricity produced between January and March, while total electricity production was 7.8 percent lower than in the year before. The last time wind power topped the electricity production mix had been in the second quarter of 2020. Coal plants provided 30 percent of electricity produced in the country in early 2023, while the total supply from conventional, fossil fuel-based power plants was more than 10 percent lower than in the year before. With a reduction of 5.5 billion kilowatt hours, coal power production was more than 12 percent lower, while nuclear power production was nearly 33 percent lower in the last quarter of nuclear power generation in Germany. On the other hand, gas-fired power production increased slightly by 2.5 percent to reach a share of 14.6 percent in the power production mix. Total renewable power production reached a share of 48.6 percent in the first quarter, even though production with solar PV installations decreased more than 27 percent to under 5 percent of the mix. While power imports rose over 15 percent between January and March, the country still had a power exports surplus of 9.2 billion kilowatt hours.

Germany is aiming for 80 percent renewable power in its electricity mix by 2030, with wind power as the most important renewable source. The increasing electrification of sectors that so far rely on other energy sources, especially heating and mobility, are likely to boost the total demand for electricity in the next years.