Geo-Spatial Analysis of Renewable Energy Potential in the European Union Under Consideration of Social, Environmental, and Technical Limitations

The continuous deployment of renewable energy sources (RES) has significant impacts on the environment and, therefore, the expansion is limited by techno-economic, environmental, and social factors. These factors are comprehensively analyzed, with the German energy transition as a reference, and are applied as part of a GIS based geo-spatial analysis of the EU-28. In result, it was found that a total RES generation of approximately 10,600 TWh/a could be achieved. However, each country possesses an individual characteristic regarding future potential generation and RES portfolios.