How to exit coal / Energy policy "reminiscent of GDR"
鈥淗ow the exit from coal power generation by 2040 can be managed鈥�
Germany can exit coal by 2040 without significant effects on power prices or supply security, and the government should start to organise the phase-out immediately, modelled on the country鈥檚 experience with forming a broad consensus on exiting nuclear, argues energy think tank Agora Energiewende*. 鈥淯tilities have a right to planning security and reliability. If politics continues to bury its head in the sand on the subject of the decarbonisation of the power sector, it creates maximum insecurity,鈥� says Agora director Patrick Graichen in a press release.
The think tank sketches a concrete path for the coal exit, aiming to minimise costs. The government should convene a discussion as soon as possible. Stakeholders should aim for a fair agreement in 2016, followed by a law about a coal exit supported by a broad majority of parliament. According to the proposals, old generating capacity of 3 GW - equivalent to three to four large plants - should be decommissioned per year initially, starting in 2018. No more open-cast lignite mines should be opened and federal funds need to support the transition in mining areas. 听鈥淭he decarbonisation of the power sector can only succeed in a fair and balanced social consensus,鈥� according to Graichen.
Find the press release and study in German .
Read the 威力彩玩法 article 鈥淧aris deal fuels German coal exit debate, stirs industry concerns鈥� here.
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S眉ddeutsche Zeitung
鈥淩esidual terms鈥�
The timing of Agora鈥檚 proposals for a coal exit is no coincidence, writes Michael Bauchm眉ller in S眉ddeutsche Zeitung. 鈥淭he Paris climate summit has increased the pressure on coal domestically, and environment minister Barbara Hendricks wants to publish a long-term plan to protect the climate by the summer,鈥� according to Bauchm眉ller. He says energy minister Sigmar Gabriel said a year ago that he wanted a consensus about coal, but has become much quieter on the issue. 鈥淗e is still rattled by the trouble caused by his proposal for a climate levy for old lignite plants.鈥� 听
Find the article in German .
Read a 威力彩玩法 article about the climate levy debate here.
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Der Tagesspiegel
鈥淒ecision time in Lusatia鈥�
Swedish utility Vattenfall will open its books to potential buyers of its lignite operations in eastern Germany in January, Alexander Fr枚hlich reports for the Tagesspiegel. The sale shall be officially completed by the middle of 2016. Three Czech energy companies are among the interested parties, Fr枚hlich writes. It is unclear among Vattenfall insiders if the company will be able to sell for the estimated value of its lignite operations of 2-4 billion euros , the author says. Producers of lignite power are under pressure in Germany, even more so after the Paris climate agreement. Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks wants to accelerate a coal phase-out in Germany and even the Social Democrats in Brandenburg, traditionally a stronghold for coal workers, have this week tentatively agreed to such a policy, Fr枚hlich writes.
Find a 威力彩玩法 factsheet on Vattenfall's assets for sale here.
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Der Tagesspiegel
鈥淭his energy policy reminds me of the GDR鈥�
Germany鈥檚 government should make sure that its future energy policy does not harm the country鈥檚 energy-intensive industries, Michael Vassiliadis, head of trade union IG BCE told Der Tagesspiegel in an interview. The Paris climate summit had not changed anything about the German climate targets for 2050, nonetheless 鈥渟ome climate fundamentalists are now [鈥 proclaiming the immediate end of coal鈥�, Vassiliadis said. A coal-exit debate, including definite dates with some charitable ideas for the affected regions and workers, would not make sense, he said. The large utilities were suffering badly from the government鈥檚 politically motivated interferences into the market. 鈥淭his almost reminds me of GDR-planned economy,鈥� Vassiliadis said.
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taz 鈥� die Tageszeitung
鈥淲e need renewables faster鈥�
The Paris Agreement means that German climate targets have to be taken seriously and that the country must tackle the coal exit, state secretary Jochen Flasbarth, from the Ministry of Environment, told the taz in an interview. Renewable development had to be accelerated, he added.
Talking about a phase-out of coal power as suggested by the environment minister, Flasbarth said he thought it was wrong of opponents to 鈥渁lways evoke economic doom鈥�. But, equally, it was wrong to ignore the worries of the people and workers affected.
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klimaretter.info
鈥淕ermany saves more greenhouse gas 别尘颈蝉蝉颈辞苍蝉鈥�
Germany鈥檚 CO2 emissions have dropped by 4.6 percent between 2013 and 2014, Nick Reimer reports on klimaretter.info. The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) had previously estimated the drop to be 4.3 percent but more detailed calculations found the difference to be larger. Emissions in 2014 were 27.9 percent lower than in 1990, amounting to 901.9 million tonnes CO2 equivalents.
Read the article in German .
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S眉ddeutsche Zeitung
鈥淧ower on demand鈥�
About 25,000 German households have installed large batteries to store renewable energy - and market researchers expect that number to rise to 170,000 by 2020, writes Ralph Diermann in S眉ddeutsche Zeitung. The batteries could become an important buffer for the power grid, which is currently insufficient to absorb peak wind power production. The idea is being tested in various pilot projects in Germany, where IT platforms combine many batteries to form virtual large-scale storage systems.
Read the article in German . 听听
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Handelsblatt
鈥淕rid operators are fighting over projects鈥�
The government鈥檚 ambitious plans to extend the power grid have led to arguments amongst the operators about who is in charge of the investments worth billions of euros, writes Klaus Stratmann in business daily Handelsblatt. The Federal Grid Agency has already intervened and told the operators to find a compromise, Stratmann learned. According to sector specialists, the issue has revealed holes in the corresponding laws, and increasing the number of projects under management increases the clout of operators.听
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MLex
鈥淕erman renewable energy bill faces new EU court challenge鈥�
German energy companies RWE, Vattenfall and Mibrag have taken action against the European Commission鈥檚 approval of the reformed Renewable Energy Act (EEG) in 2014, MLex reports. 鈥淢ibrag鈥檚 lawsuit targets the commission鈥檚 classification of national provisions for auto-generators [of power] as state aid,鈥� the article by Karoline Soldon and Lewis Crofts says.
Read the article (behind paywall).
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*Like the 威力彩玩法, Agora Energiewende is a project funded by Stiftung Mercator and the European Climate Foundation.
