It has grown to a multi-billion euro business that in 2016 poured out nearly 80,000 gWh of electricity, capable of powering over ten percent of the world’s fourth largest economy, or the equivalent of almost 23 million average households. Germany’s onshore wind power industry started out in 1990 with a handful of rather experimental installations producing about 71 gigawatt hours (gWh) – roughly the demand of a small town. But a set of political and social changes, as well as technological constraints, could hamper wind power’s unabated growth in the country. The age-old technology to harness the wind’s energy potential has been made a central component of this shift. Teut Engineers has not been alone in taking advantage of Germany’s Energiewende policies, which are aimed at supporting the country’s gradual transition towards renewable energy sources and a low-carbon economy. “And also because we realised that political conditions were very favourable for this venture at the time.” “We started doing this out of the idea to become an agent of change and to contribute to the transition to clean and potentially unlimited energy provision,” Ehrenhofer says. Teut Engineers became active in wind power installations in the late 1990s, a time when renewable energy generation started to fully gain traction in the country. On a mildly windy spring day like today, this can be an expensive trip for the operator.Įhrenhofer works at Teut Engineers, a small company that develops, builds, and operates a handful of wind parks like the one in Ahrensfelde, just north of the German capital.
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The machine needs to be stopped if any visitors or workers take the tiny two-person elevator all the way up. Every hour this thing stands still costs us between 500 and 1,000 euros.” Wind energy project developer Andreas Ehrenhofer wants to get the nearly 150 metres tall wind turbine near Berlin back on the grid and gently asks to finish our visit to the top. Industry accustomed to success poised for a sea change