Renewable energies did not exploit their full potential in February 2021. For wind, for example, the yield in Germany was just 78 percent, for solar at least 85 percent. "On the other hand, Italy's solar yield was above target at 101 percent," says Markus W. Voigt, CEO of aream Group. "The target overachievement could have been even higher if the strong wind had not affected the solar plants."

That's because solar plants also rely on wind to function optimally. "The wind helps cool the panels, which is why windy areas in the north, for example, often make good solar sites," Voigt said. Too much wind, however, causes difficulties and thus losses for tracked systems that automatically align themselves with the sun: if the wind blows too strongly, the systems move to a position away from the wind and thus often away from the sun for their own protection. "This reduces the overall electricity yield, but protects the modules from damage," explains Voigt. This was exemplified in Italy, where solar radiation was 17 percent above target. Nevertheless, the systems could only manage a plus of one percent above plan - the wind was too strong.

In Germany, snow cover also hindered the optimal functioning of the solar parks in February. "But all of this, viewed over the year, is still within the recurring bandwidths," Voigt says. "This just shows once again that it's critically important to spread investments in renewables and not focus on a single project." Calculated across the various European locations, solar plants managed a target achievement of 94 percent.