Improving NWP Forecasts for Renewable Energies at Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD)

In 2015 renewable energy sources contributed 32.5 % to the total electric power generation of Germany, and 64 % of the renewables came from the highly variable wind and solar power. Thus, reliable forecasts of wind and radiation are indispensable to guarantee a stable electricity grid. To improve weather forecasting for renewable energies Deutscher Wetterdienst (the German Meteorological Service, DWD) cooperates in several research projects (EWeLiNE, ORKA2, PerduS) with partners from the power industry, such as system operators and service providers. Within EWeLiNE and ORKA2, one main scope is on improving wind speed forecasts at hub heights (100-200 m) for the models COSMO and ICON. Therefore, new observation systems are used, model physics are revised, the ensemble generation and calibration is optimized and new post-processing techniques as well as user specific products are developed. Within PerduS, the aim is on improving PV power forecasts during Saharan dust outbreaks. This contribution will present the modeling system of the DWD and will show current results of the addressed projects.