Comparing Germany and France’s Transitions to Renewable Energy

Summary

Germany and France’s transitions to renewable energy have been vastly different over the past few decades. To understand why this has been the case, I first clarify their dramatic similarities in GDP, electricity cost and usage, and household size, to illuminate their similar needs in infrastructure and electricity. Then, I refute three possible explanations for the difference in their energy transition, regarding their access to renewable resources, nuclear energy technology, and fossil fuel imports. I conclude by arguing that such a difference in their transitions is likely external to the above variables.

Introduction

France and Germany share a strikingly high number of similarities. Their GDPs per capita are about the same, with Germany and France at $42,177 and $38,178, respectively, in 2016 (Countryeconomy.com). Germany does maintain slightly higher electricity costs: So far, in 2017, for household consumers, each KWh costs an average of €0.305 in Germany and €0.169 in France, while non-household consumers pay only €0.152 per KWh in Germany and €0.099 in France (Eurostat). Despite the price disparity, their electricity consumption per capita is nearly the same: In 2014, Germany consumed 7,035 KWh per capita, while France consumed 6,938 (OECD & IEA). Furthermore, in both nations, household size is almost identical, and it has been lowering at nearly the same rate since 2006 (Eurostat). Most importantly, I’ll later demonstrate that their natural resources are also quite similar. Given all this, one would expect their transitions to renewable energy to mirror each other.

And yet, they have been strikingly different: Germany has defined its ongoing Energiewende as an energy transition away from both nuclear energy and fossil fuels—such as petroleum, natural gas, and coal—and toward renewable resources—including solar, wind, and hydro energy (Jarausch 64). In contrast, France has taken to its energy transition by massively increasing its capacity for nuclear energy production, through installing many more nuclear reactors and recycling most of its nuclear waste, for continued electricity production (“Nuclear Power”). I contend that such a disparity in each nation’s energy transition is largely a function of cultural and societal differences, as opposed to natural resource availability or technological efficiency. If my hypothesis holds true, it questions the very postulate behind transitioning to renewable energy: Is the proper primary goal of an energy transition to diminish a nation’s carbon emissions, in order to mitigate some of the long-term effects of anthropogenic climate change (ACC), as we see in France? Or, is it to pursue energy production that is, on the whole—including the short-term risks and uncertainties associated with nuclear energy production and the potential breakdowns that may ensue—safer and less likely to jeopardize the security of a nation and of the world, in the short- and long-term, as we see in Germany? Hopefully, my look into this issue will shed some light onto these two particular nations’ response to the above question, and what the larger ramifications of their responses may be.

Research Approach

Most of the data I’ve acquired is from various institutes and agencies across the world that correspond to national and international energy policy, as well as particular policies regarding wind, hydro, solar, and nuclear energy. I’ve leveraged their analyses of both nations’ electricity generation and usage, with several of their visuals depicting natural resource accessibility and usage. Other sources are primarily scholarly sources, regarding German history, the anti-nuclear movement, and modern renewable energy. While I’ve been greatly informed by texts on social movements throughout Europe, these sources take the back-seat in my paper here, since I intend to demonstrate their verity through primarily scientific analysis. I highly encourage readers to explore other, forthcoming works of mine about the social movements behind the Energiewende.

Findings

Similar Access to Renewable Energy in Germany and France

Generally, Germany and France’s natural resources for electricity generation are quite similar, so Germany has few environmental advantages over France in greening its energy. Firstly, one can notice in Figure 1 that the average wind velocity in France is quite similar to that of Germany, with the slowest winds stemming from the Alps region, while the rest of each country generally has higher wind speeds. By the coasts and offshore, each nation can capitalize on speedier winds, and both nations have nearby cities to leverage that electricity (e.g. Nantes, Rennes, and Lille in France, and Hamburg in Germany). Figure 2 demonstrates that wind energy by the coasts is also the least expensive in each nation, rendering it even more accessible. Figure 3 demonstrates that each nation can likely capitalize on similar amounts of hydro energy, as well. The primary difference among major sources of renewable energy for the two nations is in each nation’s exposure to global horizontal irradiation: On the whole, it is much stronger in France than Germany, since it is further south. And yet, France generates only two percent of its energy from solar, much less than Germany (See Figures 7-8). Given the starkly similar availability of natural resources in France and Germany, the great disparity in the two nations’ energy transitions is likely not a function of what renewable resources are available to them.

Similar Access to Nuclear Energy in Germany and France

Given the nature of nuclear energy production, it generally does not merit specific environmental requirements, as producing wind, hydro, and solar energy inevitably do. This is because the process behind nuclear energy can happen pretty much anywhere with the right technology. Electricity developed by fossil fuels requires “boiling water into steam” to spin a turbine and generate electricity; nuclear energy is nearly the same, but it provides that energy by splitting uranium atoms (Nuclear Energy Institute). Uranium also harnesses 200,000 times more energy than coal of the same weight (Jenkins), so as long as the technology to pursue nuclear energy is available, the environment doesn’t pose grandiose problems. Both nuclear energy’s efficiency and lack of major geographic limitations render it, on the whole, just as accessible in either nation. And yet, France produces dramatically nuclear energy than Germany, as Figures 5-8 demonstrate, while Germany is phasing out all nuclear electricity generation by 2022 (“Germany 2013” 21). This is likely symptomatic of neither environmental nor technological differences between the two countries.

Similar Access to Fossil Fuels in Germany and France

As Figures 7-8 demonstrate, both Germany and France get most of their energy from petroleum and natural gas, both of which are mostly imported. The clear difference in the two nations’ fossil fuel usage is that Germany produces much more energy from its coal reserves, but that energy, like France’s nuclear, is largely exported. This means that German coal and French nuclear energy are probably more for profit in the international energy market, rather than national energy autonomy, since both nations are so well connected to other nations’ electricity grids. Furthermore, because both nations already export much of their generated electricity, it’s reasonable to believe that the imported petroleum and natural gas are not used for even more electricity. As follows, both nations likely use petroleum and natural gas for other functions, such as for transportation and heating. Even though the two nations may depend on imported fossil fuels for other sectors, this likely plays a minimal role in their transition to renewable electricity generation.

Figure 1. Average wind velocity across Europe (Courtesy of European Energy Agency).

Figure 2. Average wind energy generation costs across Europe (Courtesy of European Energy Agency).

Figure 3. Theoretical hydro energy potential by nation across Europe (Courtesy of World Energy Council).

Figure 4. Global Horizontal Irradiation across Europe (Courtesy of GeoModel Solar).

Figure 5. German energy production, 1973-2011 (Courtesy of International Energy Agency).

Figure 6. French energy production, 1973-2015 (Courtesy of International Energy Agency).

Figure 7. Percentage breakdown of resources for electricity generation, energy-related resource imports, and total energy usage by resource and sector, in Germany, 2016.

Figure 8. Percentage breakdown of resources for electricity generation, energy-related resource imports, and total energy usage by resource and sector, in France, 2016.

Conclusion

Throughout this paper, I’ve refuted three potential reasons for the dramatic difference in Germany and France’s transitions to renewable energy—that it could be rooted in a disparity in available natural resources, accessibility to nuclear power, or fossil fuel imports. The force driving such different energy transitions is very likely external to these potential reasons. I contend that each nation’s unique strategies toward greening their electricity may be rooted in different societal priorities: Whereas France has prioritized minimizing carbon emissions by advancing nuclear energy, Germany has produced sustainable energy through a variety of renewable resources, while avoiding nuclear for the dangerous uncertainties that come with it. As follows, I believe that it is important to reconsider any standards for what a renewable energy transition needs to look like. Instead, it is critical to contemplate the societal and cultural ramifications of certain energy sources, before determining what path is best for each nation. Ecological electricity needs not be a one-size-fits-all decision. It is inextricably interlaced with regional and national identities, and these should not be ignored when considering potential avenues for future energy transitions.

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