Renewable energy
Coalition agrees on massive expansion of green electricity
The coalition factions have agreed on the expansion of green energies. Photo: Peter Kneffel/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
Finance Minister Lindner called green electricity “liberation energies” with a view to the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine. After long negotiations, there is now a package with many measures.
With a comprehensive package of laws, the traffic light coalition wants to solve the brakes on the expansion of green electricity from wind and sun. The coalition factions in the Bundestag agreed on numerous measures.
The last differences in the so-called Easter package from Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) were cleared up in the parliamentary process, it said.
SPD faction deputy Matthias Miersch said that a comprehensive package should create the basis for a climate-neutral energy supply in Germany. “In terms of energy supply, we are making ourselves independent of oil and gas imports and thus ensuring greater energy security.” But it will probably be years before there are significantly more wind turbines and solar systems.
The package had previously been passed in the cabinet and discussed in the Bundestag. Above all, the FDP had called for a number of changes.
The FDP overturned Habeck’s originally planned goal that electricity generation in Germany should be almost greenhouse gas-neutral from 2035. This is no longer mentioned in the amendments. The FDP had already made it clear in April that it was unclear how an almost climate-neutral electricity system should be achieved by 2035.
However, the goal remains that by 2030 the share of green electricity should increase to 80 percent. In the first half of 2022, renewable energies covered 49 percent of electricity consumption, according to preliminary calculations by industry associations. How to achieve the goals:
Outstanding public interest
A central lever for the expansion of green electricity should be that renewable energies are in the overriding public interest in the future and should serve public safety. This is intended to speed up the approval process and facilitate court proceedings. Complaints are often filed against new wind turbines. What is new is that the expansion of hydropower should also be in the overriding public interest. The CDU energy politician Andreas Jung, on the other hand, accused the traffic light of deliberately ignoring potential: the focus is on wind and sun, while geothermal energy is being throttled and biomass further capped.
Expansion of wind power
Significantly more wind turbines should play a key role. However, the expansion had faltered in recent years, mainly because there was not enough designated space. That is why the federal government now wants to set legally binding area targets for the federal states. It was initially unclear whether 1.4 percent of the federal area should be available for wind turbines by 2026 or 2027. The goal is clear that by 2032 it should be 2 percent of the area.
Different targets apply to the individual countries because there are different requirements for the expansion of wind energy. So far, most countries have come a long way from the individual area targets. If goals are not achieved, strict rules on the distance between wind turbines and residential areas should be overturned. In addition, the conflict between the expansion of wind power and the protection of species should be resolved through changes in the Federal Nature Conservation Act.
More solar energy systems
The coalition is also planning a boost for solar systems. “We’re unleashing solar energy,” said Green Party Vice-President Julia Verlinden. The goal: Systems are to be installed on many more roofs, as well as on large traffic routes.
EEG surcharge permanently gone
At the beginning of July, the EEG surcharge for the promotion of green electricity via the electricity bill was reduced to zero, now it is to go away permanently. That was also the aim of the federal government. “The financing of renewables via the electricity bill is finally history,” said FDP parliamentary group Vice Lukas Köhler. According to experts, however, the abolition only has a slight price-dampening effect because procurement costs have risen sharply elsewhere.
In the future, green electricity systems are to be subsidized via the federal budget. According to the FDP, no new plants should be subsidized by the state at the latest when the coal phase-out is complete. The traffic light is aiming for an earlier phase-out of coal by 2030, so far it is planned for 2038 at the latest.
Again under pressure from the FDP, Habeck’s planned so-called climate protection agreements, in which the state would assume additional costs for more climate-friendly production methods – until they pay off, should not come. On the other hand, there should now be a concept for an industrial electricity price. This should ensure that the energy-intensive industry has sufficient renewable electricity available for the transformation. But details are open.