Grid Poet — 16 July 2026, 10:00
Solar leads at 38.7 GW under overcast skies; brown coal holds 9.6 GW as wind collapses to 1.1 GW.
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Grid analysis Claude AI
At 10:00 on a mid-July morning, solar dominates generation at 38.7 GW despite full cloud cover, reflecting the strength of diffuse irradiance across Germany's large installed PV base—the 274 W/m² direct normal irradiance suggests intermittent cloud breaks boosting output. Wind contributes a negligible 1.1 GW combined, consistent with the near-calm 2.0 km/h surface winds. Conventional baseload remains substantial, with brown coal at 9.6 GW, hard coal at 3.9 GW, and gas at 4.1 GW, collectively providing 17.6 GW—thermal plants likely held online for evening ramp security given the poor wind forecast. The system shows a modest net export of 2.4 GW, yet the day-ahead price of 118.3 EUR/MWh is elevated for a summer mid-morning, likely reflecting high gas and carbon costs feeding through to the merit order given the large thermal dispatch required to backstop absent wind.
Grid poem Claude AI
A veiled sun pours its milky fire across ten million glass faces, while ancient coal breathes its dark patience beneath the overcast, awaiting the windless evening to come. The grid hums in uneasy balance—abundance and obligation married under pewter skies.
Generation mix
Wind onshore 1%
Wind offshore 0%
Solar 62%
Biomass 6%
Hydro 2%
Natural gas 7%
Hard coal 6%
Brown coal 15%
72%
Renewable share
1.1 GW
Wind (on + offshore)
38.7 GW
Solar
62.8 GW
Total generation
+2.4 GW
Net export
118.3 EUR/MWh
Day-ahead price
21.6°C / 2 km/h
Temp / Wind speed
Open-Meteo, Kassel (51.3°N 9.5°E) · surface estimate from 100 m wind
100.0% / 274.0 W/m²
Cloud cover / Radiation
204
gCO₂/kWh
Image prompt
Solar 38.7 GW dominates the right two-thirds of the scene as vast rolling fields of aluminium-framed crystalline silicon PV panels stretching to the horizon across gentle green farmland; brown coal 9.6 GW occupies the far left as a massive lignite power station with four hyperbolic concrete cooling towers emitting thick white steam plumes; hard coal 3.9 GW appears as a smaller coal plant with tall chimneys and conveyor belts just left of centre; natural gas 4.1 GW is rendered as two compact CCGT units with slender exhaust stacks and modest heat shimmer beside the coal plant; biomass 3.8 GW appears as a timber-clad biomass plant with a rounded wood-chip silo and thin white exhaust near the centre; hydro 1.6 GW is a small concrete dam with a green reservoir nestled in the mid-ground; wind onshore 0.9 GW shows just two or three distant three-blade turbines on lattice towers standing completely motionless on the far horizon. The sky is entirely overcast with a heavy, uniform blanket of pale grey-white stratus clouds, yet strong diffuse daylight illuminates everything with flat, bright, shadowless mid-morning light. The atmosphere feels oppressive and heavy, hinting at the high electricity price—humid summer air pressing down. The temperature of 21.6°C shows in lush midsummer vegetation: tall green wheat, wildflowers, dense leafy deciduous trees. No wind motion anywhere—flags limp, grass still, turbine blades frozen. Highly detailed oil painting in the tradition of 19th-century German Romantic landscape painters—Caspar David Friedrich meets industrial modernity—rich colour palette of sage greens, steel greys, cream whites, and coal blacks, visible confident brushwork, deep atmospheric perspective with haze softening the distant cooling towers, meticulous engineering accuracy on every turbine nacelle, PV cell grid pattern, and cooling tower ribbing. No text, no labels.
Grid data: 16 July 2026, 10:00 (Berlin time) · Generated 2026-07-16T08:20 UTC · Download image