KfW's significant contribution to the energy turnaround: the bank financed 47% of renewable generating capacity installed in Germany in 2015/2016

Frankfurt am Main (ots) - KfW's programmes have a strong impact:

- Germany's greenhouse gas emissions down by 9.5 million tonnes
each year
- EUR 550 million in fuel imports avoided each year
- Around 89,000 jobs secured for a year

KfW's various domestic programmes for the promotion of renewable
energy make a substantial contribution to the transition of energy
supply to renewable sources. In the years 2015 and 2016 the bank
financed some EUR 15 billion in investments in the expansion of
renewable energy with promotional loans totalling EUR 10 billion.
This is the finding of a study conducted by the Centre for Solar
Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Württemberg (ZSW). The
significance of KfW's programmes for the electricity sector is
particularly noteworthy. The bank financed around 47% of new
generating capacity from renewables that was installed in Germany in
the years 2015 and 2016. A particularly high share of onshore wind
energy was financed by KfW (56%).

"KfW's promotional programmes make an important contribution to
climate action. They also have a positive impact on the labour market
and reduce Germany's dependence on energy imports", said Dr Jörg
Zeuner, Chief Economist of KfW Group.

In the past years major progress has been made in expanding the
use of renewable energy in the electricity sector. A high need for
catching up remains in the areas of heating and transport.

"Much of the climate-friendly conversion of energy supply in these
two sectors, however, will have to be based on electricity generated
from renewables. The expansion of renewable energy in the electricity
sector will therefore have to be continued systematically along with
building refurbishment", demanded Dr Jörg Zeuner.

Other key findings of the study:

- The renewable energy systems financed by KfW in Germany in
2015/16 reduce greenhouse gas emissions permanently by a total
of 9.5 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year. A further 0.3
million tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year was avoided by systems
financed abroad over the same period.

- The reductions in greenhouse gas and pollutant emissions brought
about by the projects financed in Germany can prevent an
estimated EUR 960 million in damage caused primarily by climate
change on a global scale each year.

- The energy systems financed in the years 2015/2016 allowed
Germany to avoid energy imports worth a total of around EUR 550
million each year. Across the expected 20-year lifetime of the
system, this will amount to some EUR 11 billion in savings.

- The manufacture and construction of the systems financed and
installed in 2015 and 2016 (excluding offshore wind energy)
secured or newly created around 89,000 jobs in Germany for a
year. Another 2,700 jobs were added each year for system
operation and maintenance.

The study entitled "Evaluation of KfW's domestic programmes for
promoting renewable energy in the years 2015 and 2016" prepared by
the Stuttgart Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research (ZSW) is
available in German at: http://ots.de/1cq1Q8

Contact:
KfW, Palmengartenstr. 5 - 9, 60325 Frankfurt
Kommunikation (KOM), Dr Charis Pöthig,
Tel. +49 (0)69 7431 4683, Fax: +49 (0)69 7431 3266,
E-Mail: Charis.Poethig@kfw.de, Internet: www.kfw.de

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