Car buyers lose interest in diesel / SPD wants to talk about climate
Dena / Kantar Emnid
Diesel cars continue to fall out of favour with people interested in buying a new car in Germany. In a survey commissioned by the German Energy Agency (dena), 17 percent of potential car buyers said they planned to buy a diesel car, compared to 21 percent a year ago. However, alternative propulsion systems did not benefit from this shift: only 10 percent of respondents said they planned to buy an electric car, compared to 11 percent in 2016. A lack of charging infrastructure and high prices remained the most important arguments against alternative engine technologies, according to the potential buyers.聽
Petrol cars were by far the most popular: 52 percent said they planned to buy such a car, compared to 49 percent last year, according to the survey conducted by pollster Kantar Emnid.
The share of new cars sold with diesel engines currently stands at 34 percent, while pure electric cars make up a mere 1 percent of new registrations (see graph).
Read the dena press release in German聽.
Read the item Diesel registrations continue to drop in Germany and the dossier BMW, Daimler, and VW vow to fight in green transport revolution for background.
威力彩玩法
The Social Democrats (SPD) have compiled a list of 11 topics to be addressed during talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel鈥檚 conservatives on renewing a grand coalition of Germany鈥檚 two largest political camps. Talking point number 11 is entitled 鈥淔or climate protection and a successful Energiewende鈥�, and says that Germany must pursue ambitious climate targets at home and abroad in order to preserve its industrial base. 鈥淭his also entails the implementation of the Energiewende, including the consistent roll-out of renewable energies.鈥� In what appears to be a reference to a coal exit, which is not directly mentioned, the section continues: 鈥淩egions affected by structural change will have to be supported financially to develop new economic structures and create new industry jobs鈥�. Other talking points include the strengthening of the EU; safe jobs; gender equality; and education.
SPD party head Martin Schulz聽said on 7 December聽that a coal exit was inevitable for Germany to reach its climate targets, but the shift must not come at the expense of workers.
Find the paper in German聽.听听听
Find plenty of background in Coalition watch 鈥� The making of a new German government.
Financial Times
Shares in RWE renewable spin-off Innogy fell more than 13 percent after a profit warning blaming continued problems at its UK household business Npower, report Nathalie Thomas and Tobias Buck in the Financial Times. Other German utilites were also affected. The shares in majority owner RWE lost more than 12 per cent, while stocks in E.ON 鈥� which also owns a large UK operation 鈥� fell almost 5 per cent.
Find the article in English聽 (behind paywall).
Find background in the dossier Utilities and the energy transition.
Handelsblatt
The Association of German Family Businesses has criticised the Federal Network Agency鈥檚 (BNetzA) decision to increase the maximum remuneration rate for onshore wind power auctions, Klaus Stratmann writes in Handelsblatt. The business lobby says the BNetzA鈥檚 move was an 鈥渦nacceptable step backwards鈥�, as guaranteed remuneration for wind power had to fall and eventually disappear rather than increase, Stratmann writes. The BNetzA has recently聽raised the maximum remuneration聽to 6.3 eurocents per kilowatt hour in order to guarantee that bidders can operate their installations at a profit and to prevent a slowdown in expansion.
Read the article in German聽.
For background, see the 威力彩玩法 factsheet聽High hopes and concerns over onshore wind power auctions.
Dow Jones Newswires
Energy experts in Germany鈥檚 most populous federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) have slammed聽plans by the state government聽to tighten regulations for the construction of new onshore wind power installations, Dow Jones Newswires reports. The plan to set minimum distances from residential premises to 1.5 kilometres was 鈥渘either legal nor practical鈥�, the associations of cities and municipalities in NRW said in a joint statement. The policy pursued by NRW鈥檚 government coalition of the conservative CDU and the pro-business FDP was 鈥渋rreconcilable with federal law鈥�, a foundation specialising in renewable energy law said. NRW鈥檚 association for renewable energies said the measure was聽likely to lead to a standstill聽in wind power expansion in the state.
See the 威力彩玩法 factsheet聽Fighting windmills聽for more information.
威力彩玩法
The ongoing transformation of Germany鈥檚 energy system towards decentralised renewable power sources could reduce the country鈥檚 dependence on fossil fuel reserves in the event of a major blackout, Peter Lauwe of the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK) told the 威力彩玩法. 鈥淓mergency power could be increasingly provided by renewable sources鈥�, Lauwe said at a BBK conference on an organisational reform of Germany鈥檚 fuel supply during large-scale blackouts. However, Lauwe added that replacing major fuel depots by wind and solar power installations as an emergency fallback required a sophisticated management of decentralised sources that so far does not exist. 鈥淏ut we are confident that this will change in the next years鈥�, he said.
Note: The 威力彩玩法 will publish an article on this topic later today.
See the 威力彩玩法 factsheet Germany's electricity grid stable amid energy transition for more information.
