German solar power plants set a generation record in July

German solar power plants recorded a record month for electricity generation. They produced more than 10 TWh of electricity in July, Minister Robert Habeck reported.  

Solar power in Germany reached record generation in July, even though there was less sunshine than in the previous year. Of the 23.6 TWh of electricity generated from renewable sources last month, solar power accounted for 10.1 TWh, or about 43%, according to data from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).

“The data show that the measures we have adopted are working and that there is more and more solar power in the grid,” said Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action Robert Habeck.

However, as the amount of electricity from renewable sources increases, so do the costs of expanding distribution grids, which will run to hundreds of billions of euros. The cost of stabilizing the transmission system is also an issue, although Germany managed to reduce it in 2023 compared with the previous year. The number of periods with negative prices on the wholesale electricity market increased, pointing to the need for more storage capacity or flexible demand.

Germany met its target of reaching 88 GW of installed solar capacity by 2024. From January to July, installed capacity additions were 12% higher than in the same period of 2023. According to the Ministry for Economic Affairs, Germany now has more than 90 GW of installed solar capacity.

By 2030, the government aims to reach 215 GW of solar capacity and cover 80% of its gross final electricity consumption with renewable sources. In the first half of 2024, renewables covered approximately 57% of Germany's gross final electricity consumption.

In Czechia, in July, according to the Monthly Assessment of the Operation of the Czech Republic's Power System and Transmission System Services, 550 GWh of electricity from PV plants was generated and delivered to the transmission system. This represents an increase of 33.5% compared with July 2023. Average monthly generation from PV plants reached 739.5 MW, with sunshine at 105% of normal.