Germany's huge lessons about solar energy

Climate Denier Crock of the Week has done a brilliant analysis on how solar is working in Germany. In summary:

1. Feed in tariffs work
2. Prices will get lower. Much lower
3. More streamlined permitting works
4. Feed in tariffs democratise the grid
5. Democratising the grid gets more citizens involved
6. The grid will not fall apart with 5% solar penetration, or 10% or 20%...
7. Solar power brings down the price of wholesale electricity
8. Even when solar power capacity is equal to 50% of electricity demand, utility execs, fossil fuel execs, and their allies in government and the media won’t stop fighting tt

Some extracts:

Feed In Tariffs Work

Well, maybe there are other things that could drive even stronger growth, but nothing else has done so to date. Germany leads the world in solar in many respects. As of the end of 2011, it had more solar power per capita than any other country, it has more solar power relative to electricity production than any country other than Italy (which has also used FiTs), and it has more solar power per GDP than any country other than the Czech Republic (which also followed Germany’s lead and implemented FiTs).

Democratizing the Grid Gets More Citizens Involved

Guess what happens when you democratize the electric grid. People become more interested in energy, more informed, more motivated to save energy and get involved in the politics of energy. As someone once noted (sorry that I can’t recall the source), Germany may be the only country in the world where the taxi drivers can talk to you at length about energy policy. The same goes for energy use, the cost of energy, etc.

Solar Power Brings down the Price of Wholesale Electricity

Electricity suppliers get their electricity on the grid through a bidding process. The suppliers that can sell their electricity to the grid for cheapest win. Because the costs of solar and wind power plants are essentially just in the process of building them (the fuel costs are $0 and the maintenance costs are negligible), they can outbid pretty much every other source of power. As a result, 1) they win the bids when they produce electricity; 2) they drive down the price of wholesale electricity.

Because solar power is often produced when electricity demand is the greatest (and electricity is, thus, the least available and most expensive), it brings down the price of electricity even more than wind.