Scholz promises construction of “four to five wind turbines per day” to reach 2030 target

In a bid to achieve the high renewable power expansion targets for the end of the decade, German chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to make the buildout a priority and hold talks with the 16 states every month to assess and improve expansion speed. The envisaged pace until 2030 would equal “four to five wind turbines per day”, Scholz told tabloid Bild in an interview. The government is currently drawing up a plan for the required capacity to achieve the target of a share of 80 percent renewables in the power production mix. “Whatever is not achieved on time will then have to be made up for,” Scholz said. “We will use the momentum of the past months, the ‘Germany speed’ to really make progress regarding the buildout of wind and solar energy and become less dependent on fossil gas, coal and oil.” The chancellor said faster implementation of infrastructure projects would be an indispensable reform effort for Germany in order to remain competitive and counter fears of a looming deindustrialisation due to the energy crisis.

The expansion of renewable power sources, especially of onshore wind, must pick up rapidly for Germany to come close to its targets at the end of the decade. The country set itself a target of 115 gigawatts (GW) onshore wind capacity by 2030. Administrative hurdles and long licensing procedures have been identified as the main obstacles to faster wind power expansion, which the government has sought to address in recent months with several reforms at the national and the EU level that should make obtaining construction permits easier. The federal government has repeatedly stated that the country’s states (Länder) need to implement the faster buildout, after the government laid the legal groundwork.