“Socially acceptable coal exit is possible and can be financed”

A socially acceptable coal exit in Germany is possible and could be financed through the CO₂-emissions trading earnings, according to a report by enervis energy advisors GmbH, commissioned by the German service sector trade union ver.di. “Our proposal does not burden the society,” said union head Frank Bsirske in a press release. The report analyses the social costs of a coal exit, for example salaries for laid-off workers, and how these could be financed. The maximum annual costs would likely stay below 250 million euros, according to ver.di. As an alternative to earnings from CO₂ certificates, a coal exit could also be financed by a surcharge on the electricity price of 0.02 to 0.09 cents per kilowatt hour, writes ver.di. With 2.2 million members, ver.di is one of Germany's largest trade unions.

Read the press release in German here and find the full report in German here.