Germany Will Use Coal Even After 2030

Germany will struggle to phase out coal in electricity production by 2030, warned Finance Minister Christian Lindner, indicating that there are slim chances of realizing the ‘ideal’ option from the governing coalition agreement.

– As long as it is unclear whether energy is available and affordable, we should stop dreaming about gradually phasing out coal by 2030, said the minister in an interview with the Koelner Stadt-Anzeiger newspaper.

In the coalition agreement, the Social Democratic Party (SPD) of Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the Greens, and Lindner’s liberal Free Democrats (FDP) agreed that in the ‘ideal’ case, they would move the deadline for phasing out coal from 2038 to 2030.

– That deadline will not help the climate much anyway, as, according to European regulations, reduced carbon dioxide emissions in Germany open up space for gradual increases (in other countries – ed.), for example in Poland, said the FDP minister.

The German branch of the environmental organization Friends of the Earth believes that Germany must stop using coal by 2030 to achieve its climate goals.

– Carbon dioxide permits in Germany must be canceled so that they are not emitted in other European countries, said the head of the organization, Olaf Bandt.

The process of phasing out coal by 2030 has already begun, and electricity from coal-fired power plants will soon no longer be needed due to the enormous market dynamics of renewable energy sources, emphasized Bandt.

The Finance Minister, on the other hand, wants Germany to rely more on natural gas from domestic production.

– Domestic gas production needs to be intensified, he emphasized, while simultaneously increasing electricity production from renewable sources.

When asked whether Germany should build new gas power plants to have a backup option, Lindner replied: ‘It will come down to that, but the question is how to do it efficiently enough in a market economy so that electricity prices do not continue to rise.’