Value of PV energy in Germany benefit from the substitution of conventional power plants and local power generation

The presented study is a detailed assessment of the value of Photovoltaic (PV) energy within the German energy supply structure under consideration of the special attributes of PV: its correlation with actual consumption and local power generation. Contrary to previous statistical approaches a new dynamic approach was developed in this study. The dynamic behaviour of the PV power generation is modelled as a one-year time series. A comparison with the time series of the power demand allows assessing the value of PV energy. The value of PV energy mainly results from its ability to substitute conventional power generation and the benefit of this kind of decentralized power generation for network stability and quality. An evaluation of these aspects is carried out for the year 2005 and a scenario in 2015.