Last May, Germany’s renewable energy mix of solar, wind, hydropower and biomass generated so much power for a few hours that customers actually got paid for using electricity. The country’s renewable power sources generate 88 percent of total electricity demand, and growing wind power assets alone are expected to make the phenomenon a regular occurrence. When this happens, commercial producers either close power stations to reduce the electricity supply or pay consumers to take it off the grid.

This article appears in the February 2018 issue of Natural Awakenings.