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Germany sets new solar power record, institute says
One of the reasons Germany will be successful in phasing out nuclear power in favor of renewable energy is that they are actually trying. They are putting their minds, and their money, to the task and investing in the future. In this, they will not only ensure their success, they ensure that success will be profitable. Renewable energy technology and expertise is the capital of the future. Why not make money saving the planet instead of destroying it?
Erik Kirschbaum l Reuters 28 May, 2012
(Reuters) - German solar power plants produced a world record 22 gigawatts of electricity - equal to 20 nuclear power stations at full capacity - through the midday hours on Friday and Saturday, the head of a renewable energy think tank said.
The German government decided to abandon nuclear power after the Fukushima nuclear disaster last year, closing eight plants immediately and shutting down the remaining nine by 2022.
They will be replaced by renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and bio-mass.
Norbert Allnoch, director of the Institute of the Renewable Energy Industry (IWR) in Muenster, said the 22 gigawatts o f solar power fed into the national grid on Saturday met nearly 50 percent of the nation's midday electricity needs.
"Never before anywhere has a country produced as much photovoltaic electricity," Allnoch told Reuters. "Germany came close to the 20 gigawatt (GW) mark a few times in recent weeks. But this was the first time we made it over."
The record-breaking amount of solar power shows one of the world's leading industrial nations was able to meet a third of its electricity needs on a work day...