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By Vera Eckert PRENZLAU, Germany (Reuters) - Germany's solution to a large part of its energy dilemma may lie in a muddy field in desolate, windswept flatlands in the northeast. In an area 75 miles north of Berlin that until now has attracted more birdwatchers than cutting-edge industries, start-up Enertrag AG, with the help of partners Vattenfall, Total and Deutsche Bahn, is operating one of the first plants to generate wind power and convert it into hydrogen. Politicians and utilities are looking to the new technology's potential as Germany withdraws from nuclear power and turns to green power to reach 35 percent of its electricity mix by 2020 and 80 percent by 2050, from 20 percent today.

Japan's Fukushima disaster did more than just ravage the surrounding area with radiation; it also freaked out every other country that relies on nuclear power. Germany's reaction was perhaps the strongest--the country is now working without three quarters (16 GW) of its nuclear power while plants undergo safety reviews (some plants are offline for maintenance outages). How is the country faring