Germany: As much new solar power as 3 large coal or nuclear plants

Germany leads the world in solar installation, according to Erik Kirschbaum in Reuters 23 Nov 2009:
Germany, the world’s leader in photovoltaic which turns sunlight into electricity, had 5.3 GW installed at the end of 2008, including a previous record 1.6 GW added in 2008.

That was about a third of the world’s total of 15 GW. Three GW installed this year would produce as much power as three large coal-burning plants or three nuclear power plants.

Remember, Stuttgart gets about as much sunlight as Pittsburgh. And that’s in the sunny south of Germany. Georgia gets as much sunlight as Cyprus in the Mediterranean or Algiers in Africa.