Aspects of primary production of solar thermal and photovoltaic energy in European Union

Marian Zaharia,Aurelia Pătraşcu,Aniela Bălăcescu,G Grebenisan

doi:10.1051/matecconf/201712604002

Abstract

The green energy production is an imperative of the sustainable development. In this context, the energy production based on solar radiation is an important alternative. Taking into account these aspects, the paper analyses the evolutions of primary productions of solar thermal and solar photovoltaic energy between 2000 and 2015 both in absolute values and in per capita values. The results of the analyses emphasize the exponential development of the productions of these types of energy. They also highlight the existence and even the emphasizing of the Europe Union productions concentration in some states like Spain and Germany that have produced 73.96% of the primary production of solar thermal energy in 2015, respectively Germany and Italy that have produced 62.2% of the primary production of solar photovoltaic energy, in the same year.

Highlights

In the last decade of the last century the primary renewable energy production has had a general growth trend that, in relative values, have surpassed the primary energy production from classical sources, the real boom of renewable energy production has occurred after 2000
During the period from 1990 and 2000, there have been increases in the volume of primary production of both types of energy sources, in 2000, the share of solar thermal energy at European Union (28 countries) level (EU-28) level has represented 0.4093% of the total primary renewable energy and the share of solar photovoltaic energy has been of 0.0098%
The annual growth rates of primary production from the two sources based on solar energy have overtaken the growth rates of most renewable energy production obtained from other sources since 2000

Summary

Introduction

In the last decade of the last century the primary renewable energy production has had a general growth trend that, in relative values, have surpassed the primary energy production from classical sources, the real boom of renewable energy production has occurred after 2000. If in 2000 the primary renewable energy production has represented 11.06% of the total primary energy production, in 2005 it has reached to 14.13% and in 2015 to 28.34%. The thermal energy production was only 149.1 Thousand tonnes of oil equivalent (TOE) at European Union (28 countries) level (EU-28), in 1990, representing less than 0.02% of total primary energy production. The photovoltaic energy was practically inexistent in 1990, its primary production volume being of only 1.1 TOE. It has recorded an explosive growth since 2000. These aspects are the results of the significance given to the renewable energy production at EU level, K.

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Conclusion