German government reaches agreement on Climate Action Plan 2050
Federal government / Reuters
Chancellor Angela Merkel, economy minister Sigmar Gabriel and environment minister Barbara Hendricks have agreed on the Climate Action Plan 2050, which they had heavily debated in the run-up to the COP22 climate talks in Marrakesh, writes news agency Reuters. The plan is to include CO鈧� emission reduction targets for individual economic sectors, according to a government spokesperson. "Especially the sector targets, included in the climate protection plan, will be subject of a comprehensive impact assessment" and could be adjusted in 2018, said the spokesperson. Federal cabinet approval will be sought over the weekend.
In a separate press release, Gabriel added that the government agreed on establishing a regional fund to create new jobs and added value in the regions affected by structural change resulting from a reduction of coal-fired power generation. 鈥淥nly if we connect climate protection with saving industrial jobs also in the energy industry, will other countries follow us in our very ambitious climate policy,鈥� said Gabriel.
Read the article in German .
Also read the 威力彩玩法 article Coal exit dispute delays Germany鈥檚 Climate Action Plan and the 威力彩玩法 factsheet Germany鈥檚 trimmed-down Climate Action Plan for background.
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The 威力彩玩法 will publish an article on the new agreement shortly.
innogy
German utility RWE鈥檚 green subsidiary innogy reported a 7 percent fall in EBITDA听 in the first nine months of 2016 compared to the same period last year. The decline in profits comes one month after the company鈥檚 stock market debut in October. 鈥淭he results of the first nine months of 2016 were particularly affected by additional expenditure on maintenance of grid infrastructure, especially in Germany,鈥� the company said in a press release. EBITDA was 2.92 billion euros and innogy confirmed its outlook for 2016. It continues to expect EBITDA of 4.1 to 4.4 billion euros.
Read the innogy press release in English .
For background, read the 威力彩玩法 factsheet RWE鈥檚 plans for new renewable subsidiary.
Handelsblatt
Cooperation and the bundling of resources can help local German utilities cope with听 challenges brought on by the energy transition, writes J眉rgen Flauger in the Handelsblatt. Local utilities in Cologne, D眉sseldorf and Duisburg have initiated cooperation talks, for example in joint operation of the power grid, Flauger says, citing company sources. The energy world is becoming 鈥渕ore and more complex 鈥� and one can best respond with partners,鈥� Dieter Steinkamp of Rheinenergie AG in Cologne told Flauger.
Read the article (behind paywall) in German .
For background read the 威力彩玩法 factsheet Small, but powerful 鈥� Germany鈥檚 municipal utilities.
Handelsblatt
German wind turbine manufacturer Nordex said Thursday in its 9-month interim statement that sales in 2016 would be "at the lower end of the previously defined range of 3.35-3.45 billion euros," due to project delays. This "will cause the full-year EBITDA margin to shrink," the company said, to 8.3% instead of the 8.7% originally projected. Franz Hubik in the business daily Handelsblatt wrote that during trading on Thursday, the company's stock price fell by as much as 9%, and is down 40% this year.
Read the article in German and find the interim report in English .
Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht 鈥� Centre for Materials and Coastal Research
Scientists expect an average increase in air temperature in the North Sea region of 1.7 - 3.2 掳C by the end of the century, compared to the period 1971-2000, according to the report 鈥淣orth Sea Region Climate Change Assessment鈥� published by . This was the first comprehensive climate report for the North Sea region, HZG writes in a press release. A rise in sea level of 30-100cm is very likely and climate change is expected to significantly change the different eco-systems in and around the North Sea.
Download the full report in English .
