German climate record in focus at COP23 / Prelude to Jamaica talks
Die Welt
The upcoming UN climate change conference (COP23), which will take place in Bonn on 6-17 November, will focus the international community鈥檚 attention on the fact that Germany, the poster boy of climate protection, is bound to miss its 2020 targets, writes Steven Hanke in die Welt. 鈥淭he German delegation will get an earful鈥�, because the industrialised nations will have to prove their commitment at the Bonn event. 鈥淭he only hope is an immediate action programme by the new government that becomes reality in the first half of 2018 [鈥 It鈥檚 unlikely to work without a significant reduction of coal power鈥�, says Hanke.
Read the article in German .
Find background in the factsheet When will Germany finally ditch coal?
Bloomberg
Challenging Chancellor Angela Merkel鈥檚 recent promise that Germany will find ways to meet its 2020 climate targets, nine analysts and researchers contacted by Bloomberg have said that the country will probably fail in its efforts, report Mathew Carr, Brian Parkin, and Lars Paulsson. 鈥淢erkel鈥檚 stoic approach to meet the non-binding 2020 goal would most likely come down to how tough the governing coalition is prepared to be on the nation鈥檚 biggest polluters. Plants burning coal still produced about 40 percent of the nation鈥檚 power last year.鈥�
There is no way the goal can be met by improving energy efficiency or encouraging electric car use at the pace required within four years, said Bloomberg New Energy Finance analyst Jahn Olsen. The significant differences in the FDP鈥檚 and the Greens鈥� positions mean that Germany probably will not be able to put together a plan to hit the target during the coalition negotiations, said Deepa Venkateswaran, an analyst in London at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co.
Read the article in English .
For background, read the 威力彩玩法 article Germany heads for "spectacular" 2020 climate target miss - study.
Welt Online
The Free Democrats鈥� (FDP) leader, Christian Lindner, has said his party will strive for 鈥渁 reasonable energy policy鈥� if it is going to be part of Germany鈥檚 next government. The economic liberal FDP could become part of a coalition with Chancellor Angela Merkel鈥檚 conservative CDU/CSU alliance and the environmentalist Green Party, dubbed the 鈥楯amaica鈥� coalition because the three parties鈥� colours - black (CDU/CSU), yellow (FDP), and green (Greens) 鈥� match those of the Caribbean country鈥檚 flag. The FDP would be 鈥渞eady to talk about how this goal can be achieved. But the goal itself is non-negotiable鈥�, Lindner said in an interview with Welt Online. He said the FDP 鈥渨ill only enter a coalition if there鈥檚 a turnaround in German politics鈥�, but would otherwise join the opposition. The FDP head argued that the Green Party needed to resolve an internal dispute between its centrist and left-leaning members before any serious coalition talks can start, adding that 鈥淚鈥檇 welcome if those Greens in favour of political realism gained the upper hand鈥�.
Find the article in German (behind paywall).
See the 威力彩玩法 factsheets Climate & energy stumbling blocks for Jamaica-coalition talks and The long road to a new government coalition in Germany for background.
Hamburger Abendblatt
The German Green Party鈥檚 co-leader, Cem 脰zdemir, has said that climate protection, European integration, and social justice are the topics his party will be most adamant on in a possible coalition with the conservative CDU/CSU alliance and the economic liberal FDP. In an interview with the Hamburger Abendblatt, 脰zdemir said that for the coalition talks to succeed, 鈥渆verybody needs to feel like a winner鈥�, meaning that each party has to make gains in policy areas that they deem particularly important. 脰zdemir said that for talks on a so-called 鈥楯amaica鈥� coalition (CDU/CSU, FDP, and Greens), it was necessary for Chancellor Angela Merkel鈥檚 CDU and its Bavarian sister party CSU to 鈥渞esolve their internal differences鈥� first. The Greens鈥� co-leader said that Germany had to phase out coal-fired power plants and focus on the production of emissions-free cars to maintain its strong position in the automotive sector, adding that the Greens were 鈥渞eady to assume responsibility鈥� in a government coalition, 鈥渂ut not at any price鈥�.
Read the article in German .
See the 威力彩玩法 factsheets Climate & energy stumbling blocks for Jamaica-coalition talks and The long road to a new government coalition in Germany for background.聽
Spiegel Online
The shift to e-mobility means it is now easier than ever before to build a car, as prominent suppliers like Bosch or Schaeffler offer many of the necessary components, reports Christian Frahm for Spiegel Online. New startups 鈥渘o longer need a budget worth billions for development -, they only need an innovative idea鈥�. Suppliers now provide entire engines in their construction kits, which is a fundamental shift in the industry.
Read the article in German .
For background, read the Dossier The Energiewende and German carmakers.
S眉ddeutsche Zeitung
Employees of German utility Uniper fear that the company could be split up after its potential acquisition by Finnish energy group Fortum, affecting many jobs, write Michael Bauchm眉ller and Benedikt M眉ller in S眉ddeutsche Zeitung. Should Fortum become a major shareholder, it could decide to sell business areas which do not correspond to the Finns鈥� strategy of climate-friendly power production, such as gas and coal-fired power plants, Immo Schlepper of trade union Verdi told S眉ddeutsche. 聽
Read the article (behind paywall) in German .
Find background in the 威力彩玩法 news digest entry Utility E.ON in advanced talks to sell Uniper stake to Finnish utility Fortum, the dossier Battered utilities take on start-ups in innovation race, and the factsheet Germany鈥檚 largest utilities at a glance.
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
French President Emmanuel Macron鈥檚 has received mixed reactions in Germany, reports Andreas Mihm in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. German utilities argue that the proposed scheme would put the French power industry at an advantage, because it is largely based on low-emission nuclear power. The industrial location Germany would suffer due to the country's power mix, said utility RWE. The economy ministry cautioned that 鈥渦p until now, there was no majority for [such a CO鈧� price] on a European level鈥�. Scientists and economists have praised Macron鈥檚 proposal and said it would make much more sense economically than national solo efforts, writes Mihm.
For background, read the 威力彩玩法 article Experts call for CO2 price to retain Energiewende鈥檚 credibility.
Overseas Development Institute (ODI) / CAN / Green Budget Germany (贵脰厂)
Germany is demonstrating leadership across the EU in transparently reporting its fossil fuel subsidies, but its subsidies applied through tax deductions in transport and electricity remain very high, write the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), the Climate Action Network (CAN), and Green Budget Germany (贵脰厂) in a report. 鈥淕ermany has also significantly increased subsidies to the use of fossil fuels in industrial processes through tax breaks for energy-intensive industries, which amounted to almost 10 billion euros per year between 2014 and 2016鈥�, write the organisations.
Find the summary report in English , and the brief on Germany in English .
