General Framework
The reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases is an important goal of environmental
policies in Germany. The Federal Government explicitly formulated the target of
doubling the share of renewable energies in gross energy consumption from 2000
until 2010. Accordingly, for the electricity production an increase from 6,3 %
(2000) to 12,5 % (2010) is expected. For 2020 a share of 20 % is envisaged. The
monitoring of measures taken shows good progress. In 2003 a share of roughly 8
% in electricity production was reached. For the first six months of 2004, already
10 % could be projected.
Photovoltaic (PV) contributes to this development. With currently a 0,8 % share of the renewable power generated one can expected an
increasing importance of PV in the long term. Therefore, research and development as well as market introduction of PV are supported
from several sides, especially the Federal Government, the Federal
States, local authorities and utilities.
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National Programme
The responsibility for renewable energies within the German Federal Government is with the Federal Ministry of Environment (BMU).
Research and Development (R&D) is conducted under the 4th
Programme on Energy Research and Energy Technology. The main
parts of this programme are managed by the Project Management
Organisation PTJ. In addition to this initiative, there are other
sources for the support of R&D: The Federal Ministry of Education
and Research (BMBF) conducts a programme aiming for the support
of renewable energies related networks. Moreover, the funding of
renewable energies at national institutes is partly covered by their institutional funding provided by the Federal Government and the Federal States. Finally, some of the Federal States carry out their own R&D programmes.
From January 1999 until end of 2003 the so called, “100 000
Rooftops Solar Electricity Programme,” provided soft loans for the
installation of grid connected PV systems. Designed for the support of 300 MW, it turned out that at the end of 2003, approximately
65 700 systems with a total capacity of 345,5 MW were granted.
Overall, this marks a clear success of the programme.
With the termination of the “100 000 Rooftops Solar Electricity
Programme” the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) guaranteeing
a favourable feed in tariff was adjusted accordingly. From 2004 on, there is a basic tariff of 0,457 EUR per kWh. On top of this, there are boni for small systems and building integration. The rates are guaranteed for an operation period of 20 years. As before, they will decease by 5 % annually for newly installed systems.
The amended EEG provides now reasonable feed in tariffs for
ground mounted systems in the MW class. Consequently, there
is a movement towards large PV power stations. For example
in September 2004, two large systems went into operation. In Merseburg, a 4 MW system was built at the site a former oil
company. Another plant of 5 MW was erected near Leipzig on an old
coal dust deposit (Fig 1).
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Research, Development and Demonstration
- Overview
With the start of the 4th Federal Programme on Energy Research
and Energy Technology in 1996 the so-called, "Way Paving
Programme Photovoltaic 2005," was formulated. In early 2004 it
seemed to be necessary to reformulate this sub programme taking
the development of the recent years into consideration. As a result, in June 2004, the concept “Photovoltaic Research 2004-2008” was
published.
It puts emphasis on:
- the consequent utilization of R&D results in the production,
- a further reduction of costs for PV-cells, modules and systems by decreasing production costs and by increasing the overall system efficiency and
- the consideration of environmental issues related to the
production and usage of PV systems.
Together with this new research concept an additional kind of
cooperative research, so-called “Cluster Projects”, was launched.
Cluster Projects start from a common technology oriented problem
formulated by two or more PV related companies. These companies
agree to solve this problem together with research groups and share the results among each other. The transformation of the scientific results into products will take place in individual processes of the companies after the Cluster Project is terminated.
In 2004, federal support for R&D projects on PV amounted to about 24,4 MEUR
shared by 121 projects in total. The distribution of the budget shows that
on the one hand funding still supports wafer based silicon technologies
with 41% of the resources. Meanwhile, 49 % of the budget is spent for innovative
concepts like thin film technology (Fig. 2).
- Research and Development
In 2004 22 new projects could be started. The grants for these
project amount to 29,5 MEUR in total. Typically they run over a
period of 3 years and are mostly cooperative R&D projects where
industry and research institutes collaborate. The following describe selected topics of important R&D-activities which were started in 2004.
In October 2004 the PVPS Task 2 “Performance, Reliability and Analysis of PV Systems” entered its third phase. Germany again took over the lead of this group. Dealing with technical questions of the integration of decentralized small power systems into the grid the cooperate research project DINAR (Decentral renewable energy systems: Technical and economical integration into the operation of grids and adjustments of relevant frameworks) was launched (www.projektdinar.de).
While thin film technologies have the potential for a cost-effective large area production, their market share is still low.
Supporting projects which address critical process steps could help to overcome technical bottlenecks. Important projects set out in 2004, deal with the deposition of microcrystalline Silicon layers for different kinds of silicon based solar cells. Concerning the CIS technology, ways for a homogeneous deposition on large areas will be examined as well as the cost reduction by the utilization of cheaper precursor materials.
Crystalline silicon is still the most important material for manufacturing solar cells. While projects on efficient manufacturing techniques continued in 2004, two Cluster Projects were initiated to address the reliability and long term stability of silicon PV modules. Together with major German module manufacturers, it is planned to describe and predict the ageing of PV modules.
- Demonstration
Today, the EEG is a powerful driving force for the development of the German PV market. Consequently, in 2004, demonstration projects were not granted within the current R&D-programme.
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Implementation
In recent years, Germany has executed important programmes in
the field of PV which have triggered remarkable results in market
development and technology progress. Complementary to the R&D programme, the following measures in the area of market
introduction have been established:
- The "Electricity Feed Law" introduced in 1991 was replaced by
the “Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG)” in April 2000. The
EEG rules the input and favourable payment of electricity from
renewable energies by the utilities. In 2004, the feed law was
amended and the feed in tariffs were adjusted mainly according
to changes in supporting market introduction programmes.
This results in a tariff increase for PV. After a feed in tariff of 0,46 EUR per kWh fed into the grid for systems built in 2003,
a tariff of at least 0,54 EUR per kWh for systems on rooftops
was guaranteed in 2004.
- From January 1999 until the end of 2003 the “100 000 Rooftops
Solar Electricity Programme” was executed. With a total granted
capacity of 345,5 MW and 65 700 systems built, this soft loan
programme is a real success story. After the termination of this programme the support of PV systems by soft loans is maintained by other programmes of the KfW Promotional Bank, from 2005 on by the new programme “Solar Power Production.”
- Moreover, together with other renewable energies like solarthermal, heat pumps, hydropower, geothermal energy and biomass the PV initiative, “Sun at School,” is part of a federally marked
introduction programme. Using a simple application process,
schools get a fixed grant of 3 000 EUR for each single PV system.
- Some of the Federal States (Länder) have defined their own
programmes, mainly to support the application of renewable
energy and energy conservation.
- The Federal German Environmental Foundation (DBU) supports
development and demonstration in the fields of renewable energy
sources and energy conservation.
- A number of utilities have launched initiatives to build
PV-demonstration and pilot systems or to provide advice and
information. In many cases financial support for the rational use
of energy and for renewable energies is provided.
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Industry Status
Based on the EEG, the German PV-Industry and the German market
experienced a period of strong growth over the last 4 years. A market size of roughly 280 MW is expected in 2004. For the first time, the German market arrived at the same level as the Japanese market, which was number one during the last years.
The range of companies dealing with PV is expanding along the whole value chain. During the last years, equipment and production companies became the most experienced ones worldwide and are heading for new markets e.g. in Taiwan, China and Korea. Thus, the EEG strongly influenced and gave new impact to suppliers of silicon feedstock, silicon wafers, solar cell- and module producers as well as manufacturers of production equipment and other PV components or systems.
The crystalline silicon technology still dominates the market and there are good reasons for a continuation over the next couple of years. Thin film technologies such as Copper-Indium-Diselenide (CIS), Cadmium Telluride and amorphous silicon currently fill niches disposing less than 5% market share.
The key figures and players in the field of crystalline PV business in Germany are:
- Feedstock Silicon: Wacker the second largest supplier of silicon in the world for the semiconductor and PV industry. In 2004 Wacker proved its commitment to the solar industry, not only by keeping up the solar supply in a very short silicon market. By adding 800 t/a capacity, Wacker was the first company worldwide to expand explicitly for the solar market. And this expansion will maintain. A supply of additional 1 500 t annually is planned over the next two years. Moreover, the successful start of the pilot production of granular polysilicon in October 2004 was a big leap forward towards a large scale production of solar silicon in the future. In total, the silicon sold to the PV market
has grown to 2 800 t.
Apart from Wacker, there is a joint-venture between Degussa and
SolarWorld which is looking for better technology for silane
decomposition, to reduce the cost of solar grade feedstock and
increase capacities. In 2004, the joint-venture designed and ordered a pilot scale reactor for the decomposition of silane that will be installed during 2005, in Rheinfelden, a Degussa site.
- Wafer Production: In 2004 the wafer production capacities were
increased to 260 MW (end of the year). With a production of 187 MW
mono- and multicrystalline wafers and 15 MW of EFG-Si-ribbon
produced by RWE Schott Solar, Germany's wafer production amounts
to 202 MW. This is more than 20 % of the worldwide market.
The largest stake in the worldwide production is held by Deutsche
Solar AG in Freiberg (Saxony). The company itself produced and sold 120 MW on mono- and multicrystalline wafers to customers around
the world and still is the largest company with a global market share of about 15 %. In 2005, Deutsche Solar AG plans an extension to 150 MW.
Besides Deutsche Solar there are two further wafer manufacturers:
PV Silicon at Erfurt and ASI at Arnstadt. As PV Silicon does not disclose any figures about their production, a slicing capacity of 75 MW is estimated - see also Photon magazine, January 2005. ASI, a newcomer in this field, is producing monocrystalline material (12 MW in 2004, capacity of 18 MW for 2005).
- Solar cell production: The cell production in Germany shows a steady growth rate. Rising from 58 MW in 2002 to 100 MW in 2003, the production almost doubled again reaching 190 MW in 2004. The production is dominated by seven companies. For 2005, they
announced an increase in their activities to 390 MW i.e. another
doubling of their production. If they succeed the global market share of German cell producing companies will grow from 16,5 % in 2003 to 22,4 % in 2004 and more than 35 % in the year 2005 bringing Germany next to Japan, in the leading position. These seven
companies are:
- Deutsche Cell: Founded in 2001 the production started in 2002 in Freiberg (Saxony). In the year 2004, the production reached 28 MW and the sales were at more than 35 MW, resulting in a turnover of more than 60 MEUR. The number of employees is around 60. From
early 2005 on the capacity of the Deutsche Cell Ltd. will be
doubled to 60 MW.
- ErSol Solar Energy: In 2004 ErSol produced 16 MW and doubled
its cell production capacity to 25 MW annually. A further increase
is prepared for 2005 as an important step towards 100 MW
production capacity. The company employs 130 people.
- Q-Cells is one of the companies with the largest growth rate. The production reached 75 MW in 2004. Announced strong expansion
plans for the years 2005 and 2006 seem to be ambitious. The
number of employees exceeds 350.
- RWE Schott Solar: The facility at Alzenau (Bavaria) was expanded in 2004 and produced 50 MW solar cells. With additional
investments RWE Schott Solar is prepared to follow the growth
of the German market towards a production capacity of 100 MW.
For 2005 a cell production of 79 MW is planned as well as an
increase of the module production, which was supplemented by
a new facility in the Czech Republic.
- Shell Solar: The production of solar cells in Gelsenkirchen
(North Rhine Westfalia) reached 10 MW in 2004.
- Sunways produced 11 MW in 2004. Following the recent ground
laying ceremony at Arnstadt for a new cell plant with a capacity
of 30 MW the planned production for 2005 will nearly double
to 20 MW.
- Solland Solar Energy is a newcomer, who will start production
at the end of 2005. The production facility is located at the border between Germany and the Netherlands. For 2005, the production of 2,5 MW is planned.
- Solar Module Production: Because of the strong demand for modules and systems, the production grew much faster than expected by more than 150 % compared to 2003. After a production of 40 MW in 2002 and 80 MW in 2003 the output of modules from 25 companies in 2004 reached 205 MW which exceeds the cell production in Germany by nearly 10 %. It is not only the number of engaged companies that increased. There is also a strong expansion of capacities pushing the production to new records. Leading companies like RWE Schott Solar, S.M.D., Solar Fabrik, Solar Factory, Solarwatt Solar Systems and Solon increased their production by more than 70 %. Together, some of the other companies share 30 % of the market, are looking for niches and special products, e.g. for the automotive industry or architecture. The future looks bright for module producers because they are aiming for another production extension towards 350 MW in 2005.
In addition to these crystalline activities, thin-film technologies from Antec (CdTe) RWE Schott Solar (amorphous silicon) and Würth
Solar (CIS) reached a total volume of 11 MW. These activities were
on the same level as in 2003. And there is progress in technology
development. In 2004, Würth arrived at its maximum production capacity of 1,2 MW proving high productivity and quality. The numbers of employees increased to 60. According to Würth Solar, a scale up of the production capacity by an order of magnitude is highly probable for the near future.
In conclusion, the German industry is taking on the challenge to
develop technologies along the whole value chain. More and more
companies are entering into the business, strengthening the
competition. Meanwhile, the market arrived at an annual turnover
of 1,5 BEUR. The future growth will be carried out by a couple of
companies, which makes it easier to afford the amount of money
that is necessary for continuous rapid growth.
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Market Development incentives
The programmes described above have accelerated the installation of PV-systems
in Germany significantly. At the end of 2003, roughly 410 MW have been installed.
The German Solar Industry estimates a capacity of roughly 280 MW being installed
during 2004, resulting in a total grid connected capacity of approximately 700
MW at the end of 2004 (Fig. 3). In addition to the market of grid-connected systems,
there is a stable request for stand alone systems. As in previous years, another
3 MW were demanded for this kind of application in 2004.
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Future Outlook
For 2005 the course is set for an even stronger cooperation
between research and industry. At the Fraunhofer Institut für Solare Energiesysteme, Freiburg, the realization of a PV Technology Evaluation Centre (PV-TEC) is planned. PV-TEC will deal with the
development of new silicon solar cell concepts and is designed to
facilitate the transition between laboratory and production. While the BMU intends to support the initial set up of PV-TEC with roughly 11 MEUR, the operation of the centre will be financed by cooperative R&D projects of industry and research groups.
Ongoing high-level R&D together with the EEG and supporting soft
loan mechanisms feed the conviction that the sustainable growth of
the German PV market will continue.
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Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Mr. Peter Woditsch (Deutsche
Solar AG) for his support; especially concerning the section on
“Industry Status.”
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Further reading about Germany
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