Smart Grid 2.0: Building the Internet of Energy Supply
The electricity industry is spending billions on building new, transnational power lines to harness electricity from renewable energy sources. The intelligent grid is designed to make distribution more...
View ArticleDeveloping Desertec: European Dream of Desert Energy Takes Shape
Can the Sahara Desert really meet Europe's voracious appetite for energy? The Desertec solar power project aims to do just that, but a host of obstacles remain. Overly optimistic expectations are now...
View ArticleSolar Flight Pioneer Bertrand Piccard: 'We Have the Technology to End Our...
Bertrand Piccard has been working on a solar-powered plane for almost a decade and hopes to fly it around the world in 2013. He spoke to SPIEGEL ONLINE about ending the world's addiction to fossil...
View ArticleGreen Visions: Merkel's Masterplan for a German Energy Revolution
Giant windparks, insulated buildings, electric cars and a European supergrid: the German government on Monday unveiled an ambitious but vague blueprint to launch a new era of green energy for Europe's...
View ArticleThe Expensive Dream of Clean Energy: Will High Costs Kill Merkel's Green...
Chancellor Angela Merkel's vision of completing Germany's conversion to renewable energy by 2050 is bold and ambitious. But she has remained silent about the risks and the tremendous costs the green...
View ArticlePitfalls of Green Energy Revolution: Public Resistance Grows to New 'Monster'...
Germany's dream of converting to renewable power generation requires the construction of unsightly new overland power lines carried by masts 80 meters tall. Citizens' groups and local authorities are...
View ArticleOettinger on the Energy Summit: EU Commissioner Wants to Fund Super Grid with...
EU leaders meeting in Brussels are discussing the conditions for expanding Europe's internal electricity market. In an interview, European Energy Commissioner Günther Oettinger of Germany discusses his...
View ArticleA Green Future for Europe's Biggest Economy: What Germany Must Learn from...
Germany must speed up its transition to renewable energy in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear accident, writes Norbert Röttgen, the German environment minister, in an opinion piece. He says Germany can...
View ArticleDesertec and Democracy: Arab Spring Boosts Dream of Desert Power
Desertec is a multi-billion-dollar energy initiative that hopes to meet Europe's energy needs with solar power from the Sahara. The recent upheavals in North Africa have put the project in question....
View ArticleThe Latte Fallacy: German Switch to Renewables Likely to Be Expensive
Chancellor Angela Merkel's government insists that electricity bills will only grow modestly as a result of the nuclear energy phase-out. Experts, however, disagree, with many pointing to Berlin's...
View ArticleRenewables in the City: A Nazi-Era Bunker Joins the Battle against Climate...
Normally, renewable energy is produced far from city centers. Some, though, would like to see that change. In Hamburg, an ambitious green makeover is underway -- including the transformation of a...
View ArticleCrossing the 20 Percent Mark: Green Energy Use Jumps in Germany
During the first half of 2011, the share of renewable energy sources used by Germans in their total energy mix grew to one-fifth -- a hefty boost over 2010. It's a small step toward Germany's ambition...
View ArticleThe Sun Rises in the East: German Solar Firms Eclipsed by Chinese Rivals
Green energy used to be Germany's great hope for its economic future. But now the German solar industry is in trouble amid huge losses, job cuts and the threat of bankruptcies. Chinese firms are...
View Article'Key Driving Sector': Greece Turns to Energy as its Economic Savior
Greece's economy is in ruins, crushed by the country's vast debt load. But government officials say that energy may offer a way out of the mess. And the country isn't picky. Athens is looking to...
View ArticleSolar Subsidy Sinkhole: Re-Evaluating Germany's Blind Faith in the Sun
The costs of subsidizing solar electricity have exceeded the 100-billion-euro mark in Germany, but poor results are jeopardizing the country's transition to renewable energy. The government is...
View ArticleSPIEGEL Interview with Michael Fuchs: Solar Subsidy 'Insanity' Will Cost...
In a SPIEGEL interview, deputy parliamentary floor leader for the conservative Christian Democrats, Michael Fuchs, discusses the mistakes made in Germany's subsidy policy for solar energy.
View ArticleThe World from Berlin: Solar Energy Row Is an 'Undignified Spectacle'
The future of solar subsidies has pitted members of Chancellor Merkel's cabinet against each other. But instead of politicizing the issue, German commentators on Friday urge the country's leaders to...
View ArticleInflated Incentive: Environment Minister Retreats on Solar Subsidies
German Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen has said he wants to cut subsidies on installing solar panels sooner than planned as the number of people taking advantage of the incentives continues to...
View ArticleA Capital Error?: Germany Created Own Threat with Chinese Solar Aid
Germany long aimed to be a front runner in the solar energy industry, but waning subsidies and rising competition from China have clouded its outlook. To add insult to injury, the Chinese boom has been...
View ArticleCompanies Prepare for Post-Oil Future
Drivers may hate rising gas prices, but some companies are delighted as they watch the oil price soar. Firms like BMW and Airbus which are leaders in fuel efficiency actually benefit from expensive...
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