Tenant power splits opinions / 'End of a black smoker'
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
The tenant electricity draft law introduced by Germany鈥檚 economy ministry (BMWi) is an 鈥渦tterly wrong鈥� policy approach that turns the principle of 鈥渃ompetition instead of allocation鈥� upside down, Andreas Mihm writes in an opinion piece for Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Paying tenants a premium for buying home-generated solar power ultimately constituted 鈥渟pecial support for the pv industry鈥�, Mihm says. And since tenants who bought power from their roofs no longer had to pay fees for the public grid, 鈥渢hese costs will have to be split between fewer users鈥�. The draft law therefore was 鈥渁n outright erosion of solidarity鈥� which parliament should reject, Mihm argues.
tageszeitung (taz)
The tenant electricity draft law by the German economy ministry (BMWi) is 鈥渁n overdue step towards more equality鈥� among the country鈥檚 power consumers, Bernward Janzing writes in a commentary for taz. It allowed tenants not to pay the entire renewable energy surcharge if they buy electricity directly from solar panels their landlords have installed on the building鈥檚 roof 鈥� much in the same way as house owners with pv installations already do, Janzing says. But it does not make sense to only allow tenants to purchase power that comes from their own roof 鈥� 鈥渋t would make more sense to expand the concept to entire districts鈥�, Janzing argues. This would make new solar projects more profitable and motivate apartment building owners to invest in the expansion of solar power, he writes.
Read the commentary in German .
Nordwest-Zeitung
Nowhere in Germany are the effects of the energy transition more visible than in the Northwest, the centre of the country鈥檚 wind power industry, writes Volker K眉hn in Nordwest-Zeitung. 鈥淲ith wind power鈥檚 stormy expansion on and offshore, the region has become the Energiewende鈥檚 centre, in a good and in a bad sense,鈥� K眉hn says. Wind power creates jobs, bolsters the local municipalities鈥� budgets, and provides clean energy 鈥� 鈥渢hereby blemishing the nature it is supposed to rescue鈥� he argues. But a cap on wind power expansion in the region due to lagging grid adjustment and the switch to auctions for the support of new projects could turn the tide in the Northwest. The job boom might only be sustained if German wind power companies manage to expand their activities abroad, K眉hn writes.
Bloomberg
The German environment ministry (BMUB) has called suggestions by U.S. energy secretary Rick Perry to renegotiate the Paris Climate Agreement 鈥榓bsurd鈥�, report Joe Ryan and Brian Parkin for Bloomberg. The agreement already lets nations adjust their own emissions targets, making it pointless for the U.S. to reopen talks in hopes of winning more favourable terms, ministry spokesman Michael Schroeren told Bloomberg. 鈥淭hat is, in the first place absurd, and secondly from the U.S. point of view, completely unnecessary,鈥� Schroeren said.
Read the report in English .
Montel
Germany鈥檚 approval of Vattenfalls Moorburg coal-fired power plant was in breach of EU environmental rules because its cooling system endangers protected fish species, according to a ruling by the European Court of Justice, reports Montel.
Find the Montel report in English .
Find background on the plant in the 威力彩玩法 article聽 Moorburg power plant 鈥� Last of a dying breed, or the future of coal in Germany?
Die Welt
The Moorburg ruling by the European Court of Justice probably implies that 鈥淕ermany鈥檚 most important economic hub鈥� is powered by a plant which is operated illegally, writes Olaf Preu脽 in a commentary in Die Welt. If the plant has to go offline for legal or economic reasons, Hamburg would have to be supplied with lignite or nuclear power. But no established political party in Hamburg is prepared to stick up for the plant, writes Preu脽. The local government coalition of Social Democrats and Greens hopes to win time so Hamburg can be supplied mainly with wind power in the coming decade, according to Preu脽. 鈥淣o one considers any longer the possibility of integrating Moorburg in an ecologically optimised way into the structural transformation of the German energy system.鈥�
Read the Welt commentary in German .
tageszeitung (taz)
The Moorburg ruling means the plant will have to stop using river water for cooling, and instead run with its cooling tower only - making it dirtier and less efficient, writes Sven-Michael Veit in a commentary for left-wing newspaper tageszeitung (taz). 鈥淭his would turn the fossil climate killer conclusively into a prime example of how to use the maximum amount of money and resources to generate as little power as possible, and a lot of dirt,鈥� writes Veit. 鈥淭here is a chance that the ruling will hasten the closure of this coal monster from primeval times.鈥�
Read the commentary in German .
