Economy ministry urges next German gov't to rethink renewables targets, allow carbon capture

Germany's economy ministry (BMWK), which is currently run by the Greens, who will likely not be part of the new coalition government, has presented proposals for future policy priorities, including a call to reconsider renewable expansion targets by taking into account lower estimates of future electricity consumption, Tagesspiegel Background reported. The paper, which could be seen as a handover plan, also suggested the rapid adoption of a law that would allow for the storage of CO2 under the carbon management strategy.

The economy ministry under outgoing minister Robert Habeck also expressed scepticism over the future government's plans to launch tenders for 20 gigawatts (GW) of gas-fired power plants. The conservative CDU/CSU alliance and Social Democrats (SPD) outlined those plans in a paper that formed the basis for ongoing formal coalition negotiations, put together after exploratory talks following February’s snap election. The draft of the existing Power Plant Security Act, which would have led to the construction of 12.5 GW of gas-fired power plants to be later run on hydrogen, was only agreed to by the European Commission after two years of negotiations, the paper noted.

Financing for the climate-friendly conversion of heating networks should also be revised, as current frameworks "do not meet the challenges of the heating transition" and municipal companies struggle to raise sufficient capital for investments, the economy ministry said.

Germany's next government will have to tackle many climate and energy challenges, some of which will be inherited from the outgoing government, while others become more urgent as the deadline for the country's 2030 targets grows closer. Key challenges include providing backup capacity for the German electricity system amid the transition to renewable power, and providing industry with clarity on carbon capture and storage.