City of Berlin exits coal / Siemens may cut fossil power jobs
dpa / Handelsblatt
The city of Berlin has decided to exit coal power generation by 2030 to protect the climate. The state coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), the Left Party, and the Greens has passed a corresponding law, according to a news report by press agency dpa carried by Handelsblatt. The city has already stopped using brown coal for power production a few months ago, but it still operates three hard coal power plants. 鈥淐oal must be reserved for BBQs in Berlin鈥�, commented the Greens鈥� climate spokesperson, Georg K枚ssler.
According to the Berlin daily taz, the new emission limits could lead to an even earlier coal phase-out.
Read the report in German .
For background, read the 威力彩玩法 factsheet When will Germany finally ditch coal?
Reuters
Siemens mulls axing thousands of jobs in its power turbine business because the global growth of renewable energies dampens demand for coal and gas plants, according to a source familiar with the matter, Irene Preisinger reports for Reuters. The company鈥檚 division reported a 41 percent drop in orders in the quarter that ended in June.
Read the article in English .
威力彩玩法
The upcoming UN climate conference (COP23) in Bonn will be an important milestone on the way to creating a rulebook for the implementation of the Paris Climate Agreement, Germany鈥檚 chief UNFCCC negotiator Karsten Sach said at a briefing in Berlin. 鈥淚f Paris was the constitution," Sach said, the conference held in Bonn "is about the fine print." Germany now had to do its part and strengthen last year鈥檚 Climate Action Plan 2050 鈥� the country鈥檚 long-term decarbonisation roadmap 鈥� with concrete measures. 鈥淭his is sure to become one of the core topics for the negotiations鈥� to form a new federal coalition government, said Sach. The talks began on 18 October and will likely last until the end of the year. However, this will not impede the German COP negotiators鈥� ability to act in Bonn, said Walter Lindner, state secretary in the foreign ministry. 鈥淭he change of government has nothing to do with Bonn鈥�, as all the parties promote climate protection, said Lindner. 鈥淲e all pull in the same direction鈥�, he added.
See the 威力彩玩法 article COP23 鈥� Heartland of coal and renewables hosts climate summit for more information.
Automobilwoche
The shift to electric mobility has become unstoppable even if e-car sales are still low, writes Michael Gerster in an analysis for the car industry publication Automobilwoche. He argues that major car companies are now so committed to the technology that 鈥�the era of diesel and petrol cars is nearing its end. It鈥檚 almost impossible to imagine a return鈥�. Half a million orders for the Tesla Model 3 are an impressive proof that demand is picking up; the range of e-cars on offer grows quickly while prices fall; charging infrastructure is growing rapidly; efforts to improve local air quality and the climate are on the rise; and e-cars are more fun to drive, writes Gerster. The question 鈥榃hy should I buy an e-car?鈥� is about to turn into 鈥榃hy should I not buy an e-car?鈥�, Gerster quotes John Gartner, senior analyst at Navigant Research, as saying.听
Read the article in German .
Frankfurter Rundschau
The pro-business FDP and the environmentalist Green Party have held their first meeting on forming Germany鈥檚 next coalition government together with the conservative CDU/CSU alliance, Markus Decker reports in the Frankfurter Rundschau.听 The two smaller partners to what could become a so-called 鈥楯amaica coalition鈥� agreed on not wanting 鈥渢o follow the trodden path of the conservatives鈥�, who have governed the country in varying constellations for the past twelve years, Green party secretary Michael Kellner says. Both parties see common ground in areas such as civil rights, but differences persist especially with regard to energy and Europe policy, Decker writes.
See the 威力彩玩法 factsheets Climate & energy stumbling blocks for Jamaica coalition talks and Campaign quotes on the Energiewende by the FDP & Greens.听
Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung
The Prime Minister of Germany鈥檚 most populous federal state North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), Armin Laschet, will represent Chancellor Angela Merkel鈥檚 conservative CDU party in the areas of climate, energy, and transport in the 鈥楯amaica coalition鈥� talks, the Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (WAZ) reports. In the talks with the pro-business FDP, the environmentalist Green Party, and the CDU鈥檚 Bavarian sister party CSU, Laschet is expected to particularly advocate for NRW鈥檚 interests. The economy of his state is greatly dependent on heavy, energy intensive industries, and on coal-fired power production. According to the article, in the past Laschet has repeatedly lashed out against a 鈥渂anning mentality鈥� with regard to coal and combustion engines - policies that the Green Party adamantly pursues.
Laschet鈥檚 government in NRW has recently caused a stir among renewable energy proponents by passing legislation that makes wind power expansion in the federal state much more difficult.
Find the article in German .
See the 威力彩玩法 factsheet The long road to a new government coalition in Germany for background.
Welt Online
The federal state of Saxony deliberately blocks the expansion of wind power on its territory, the German Wind Energy Association (BWE) says in a press release. 鈥淭he sole focus of Saxony鈥檚 energy policy is on romanticising lignite in Lusatia, and this needs to stop鈥�, says regional BWE head Martin Maslaton. Wind power expansion was being made 鈥渋mpossible by false and aggressive planning鈥� in Saxony鈥檚 interior ministry, the lobby group head said. According to the BWE, neighbouring states Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia are far more engaged in boosting the share of wind power than the government in Dresden.
Read the article in German .
See the 威力彩玩法 dossier Onshore wind power in Germany for background.
The eastern German coal mining region of Lusatia should receive 100 million euros in public funds per year from 2019 on to facilitate the 鈥渟tructural development鈥� of the local economy that is currently centred on lignite production, think tank Agora Energiewende* says in a press release. Lusatia鈥檚 economy, civil society, infrastructure, and research institutions ought to be 鈥渁ssisted in a gradual phase-out of lignite鈥� by providing each access to a quarter of the annual sum, which the respective representatives could then use for whatever purpose they deem appropriate, the think tank says. 鈥淭he ultimate aim is to promote 21st century structural development鈥� in a region more affected by the shift to renewable energies than others, Agora Energiewende head Patrick Graichen says.
Find the press release in German .
See the 威力彩玩法 factsheet When will Germany finally ditch coal? for background.
*Like the 威力彩玩法, Agora Energiewende is a project funded by Stiftung Mercator and the European Climate Foundation.
S眉ddeutsche Zeitung
The four parties that currently negotiate whether to form Germany鈥檚 next coalition government must adopt a programme designed to break the 鈥渧icious cycle鈥� of energy prices, Michael Bauchm眉ller writes in an op-ed for the S眉ddeutsche Zeitung. A drop in demand for fossil fuels caused by an increased use of renewable energy sources and electric cars is likely to lead to falling oil prices, 鈥� with in turn could have grave consequences on ambitions to decrease the use of oil, Bauchm眉ller says. A new German 鈥楯amaica coalition鈥檊overnment of the conservative CDU/CSU alliance, the pro-business FDP, and the environmentalist Green Party could counter this trend 鈥渂y reducing power taxes and increasing the taxation of climate-damaging transport and heating fuels鈥�, he argues. 鈥淚f markets fail to give the signal as a low oil price cements the status quo, it will fall on policy to change the course鈥�, Bauchm眉ller says.
Read the article in German .
See the 威力彩玩法 factsheets Germany鈥檚 dependence on imported fossil fuels and Germany ponders how to finance renewables expansion in the future for more information.
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