AG Energiebilanzen

In Germany macroeconomic energy efficiency has improved significantly. In 2018 the development – adjusted for temperature and inventory effects – registered an increase of 3.1 % compared with the previous year. In order to produce goods and services worth 1,000 €, in Germany only 4.5 GJ of primary energy is used, according to provisional estimates by the Working Group on Energy Balances (AG Energiebilanzen), Berlin and Bergheim. This is an exemplary value and corresponds to an improvement of over 40 % compared with 1990.

In 2018 efficiency gains in electricity generation, as well as in other sectors of energy conversion, had a significant influence on the development of macro-economic energy efficiency. In the area of electricity generation modern power plants with high efficiency, the departure from nuclear energy and the expansion of renewable energies, ensure significant energy improvements. Energy use per generated kilowatt hour of electricity fell from 7.30 MJ to 7.18 MJ, whereby the efficiency in electricity generation improved by 1.6 %. The average efficiency of all electricity generation plants exceeded the 50 % mark for the first time in 2018. For power consumption the efficiency was up 2 % compared with the previous year. The reasons are a falling number of electricity-intensive economic sectors, technical improvements to machines and systems, as well as the stock of durable consumer goods. The per capita electricity consumption fell by 0.8 % to 7,174 kWh compared with the previous year.

The energy efficiency of private households deteriorated by 1.6 % in 2018 taking into effect the weather conditions. Based on the living space, the fuel usage for the heat supply increased 1.8 % and electricity consumption rose by 0.8 %. In the industry/trade/services sector energy efficiency improved in 2018 by 7.5 %, whereby the mild weather had a significant impact here. In industry energy efficiency improved by 0.6 % compared with 2017.

Since 1990 macroeconomic energy efficiency in Germany has improved by over 40 %. On average over the last 28 years the efficiency gain is now 1.9 %/a. Since 1990 energy use has fallen by 9.8 MJ/kWh to approximately 7.2 MJ/kWh in electricity generation. Since 1990 the average efficiency of all electricity production plants has increased from 36.6 % to currently more than 50 %. Since 1991 energy efficiency in private households has improved by just under 29 % (temperature adjusted). However, the long-term average of a good 1 %/a is significantly behind the efficiency gains of other consumption sectors and indicates there is still efficiency potential in this sector. Since 1991 the industry/trade/services sector improved its energy efficiency by almost 2.5 %/a on average. In the entire sector energy use has dropped by almost half since 1991 for every 1,000 € value added. In the long-term average the industry records efficiency gains of just under 1.3 %/a compared to the initial value in 1991. The transport sector made efficiency improvements of roughly 1.5 %/a in the long-term average.

For the adjusted cross-sector final energy consumption – based on the real gross domestic product – there is an improvement of energy intensity of 1.9 % for 2018. From 1990 to 2018 an improvement of on average 1.6 %/a can be observed for this indicator. This development is well below the objective of the federal government, which aims at an improvement of energy productivity of 2.1 %/a for the period up to 2050.

The AG Energiebilanzen regularly calculates current macroeconomic and sector-based statistics on the energy efficiency trend in Germany. The systematic monitoring of energy efficiency is an important contribution to the monitoring of the energy revolution and is done on the basis of methods which have been developed on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy. (AGEB/Si.)

The German Working Group on Energy Balances (AG Energiebilanzen), Berlin/Germany, said farewell to Hans-Joachim Ziesing after many years on the board of executives and in the management team. Ziesing joined the working group shortly after it was founded in 1971 and has been a member of the association‘s management since 1994. Ziesing will be succeeded on the board of executives and in the management team by Hans Georg Buttermann, an economist working in Münster.

Energy consumption in Germany reached 6,771 PJ or 230.9 mt ce by the middle of 2018 (Figure 1), constituting a solid 1 % decrease on the previous year. Following the first three months, growth amounted to more than 5 % on account of the cool weather conditions in February and March.

According to preliminary calculations by the German Working Group on Energy Balances (AG Energiebilanzen), the use of both natural gas and renewable energy sources increased, whereas the consumption of mineral oil and coal and lignite decreased. Were it not for the cool weather, the energy consumption calculated for the entire half year would have increased by approximately 1.5 %. According to AG Energiebilanzen estimations, the increased use of natural gas and renewable energy sources as well as the decline in oil and coal will have reduced energy-related CO₂ emissions by around 3 %.

During the first six months of this year, mineral oil consumption sank by just under 3 % in total. With a 12 % slump in sales, consumption of light heating oil dropped the most significantly. The decline in the various fuels amounted to between 1 and 4 %. The main reason for this development may have been the increase in prices.

Natural gas consumption increased by just under 3 % in comparison to the first half of the previous year. As a result of the cooler temperatures, consumption increased significantly in February and March, whereas consumption in the second quarter was considerably lower than the previous year.

The consumption of coal decreased significantly and was more than 14 % lower than the previous year due to the fact that less coal was used in power stations to generate electricity and heat. The use of coke and coal in the steel industry also declined.

In the first six months of the year, lignite consumption also dropped by around 3 %, as it was used less frequently to generate electricity.

Nuclear energy was used to generate around 9 % more electricity in the first half of the year compared with the previous year. In 2017, a surge of revisions resulted in a significant reduction in electricity generation.

Renewable energies’ contribution to overall energy consumption in the first half of 2018 rose by more than 4 %. All types of renewable energy contributed to this development. Wind power increased by 15 % and biomass by 1 %. Solar energy also increased by 8 % and the contribution made by hydroelectric power rose by 9 %. (AG Energiebilanzen/Si.)

Energy consumption in Germany increased by 1.6 % in the first six months of this year compared with the same period the previous year. A total of 6,821 PJ or 232.6 mt of coal equivalent (SKE) were consumed in the first half of the year. The increase in consumption has been attributed to the cooler weather conditions at the beginning of the year, the 2016 leap day, continued economic growth and population increase. According to provisional calculations by the Working Group on Energy Balances (AG Energiebilanzen), the increase was attenuated by additional energy-efficient improvements. Increases in oil and natural gas consumption and in renewable energies were accompanied by a decline in coal, lignite and nuclear power consumption (Figure 1).

Mineral oil consumption increased by around 4 % in total in the first half of the year. Diesel fuel and petrol consumption were up by 8 % and just under 1 % respectively and consumption of aviation fuel rose by just under 4 %. Sales of light heating oil grew by 9 % compared with the first six months of the previous year.

Natural gas consumption increased by just under 7 %. This impressive rate of growth was caused mainly by the increased use in electricity production and the cooler weather conditions in January, March and April. Industrial consumption of natural gas was roughly the same as the previous year.

Consumption of coal in the first half of 2016 was just under 2 % lower than in the same period the previous year. Although its use in electricity production fell by roughly 3 % in favour of renewable energies, consumption in the steel industry remained virtually unchanged. Consumption of lignite fell by 1.6 % compared with the first six months of the previous year. Electricity produced from lignite abated by a similar magnitude as a result of reduced power station availability.

Nuclear energy saw a decline of around 15 %. Renewable energies’ contribution to overall energy consumption in the first half of 2016 rose by 2.8 %. Wind energy increased by 8 %, whereas solar energy registered a decline of 4 %. Biomass saw an increase of 2 %. (AGEB/Si)