Industry study says 250 billion euros needed for transport transition

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Germany’s transport sector in line with the country’s climate targets by 40 percent by 2030 might take up to 250 billion euros over the next decade, Daniel Delhaes writes in the Handelsblatt. A study commissioned by the Federation of German Industries (BDI) has found that investments for charging stations and buyer’s premiums for electric cars as well as the development of more efficient engines and alternative fuels all come with considerable costs for German consumers. The emissions reduction target therefore “might lay beyond what consumers are willing to pay,” BDI’s deputy managing director Holger Lösch said. According to the study conducted by consultancy BCG, especially the short time frame until 2030 will boost the price of a transition in the transport sector. “It should not be taboo to ask whether it can be done in the time allotted,” Lösch argued, adding that costs could be reduced significantly by postponing the target date by five years. According to the industry lobby group, the 250 billion euros calculated in the study come on top of investments of up to 2.3 trillion euros Germany will have to make by mid-century to fully comply with the climate targets outlined in the Paris Agreement, as another and widely recognised 2018 study by the BDI found.
The costs of Germany’s energy transition and emissions reduction efforts are a controversial topic and the exact price tag of many measures often remains elusive. The German government last year stated costs associated with the country’s Energiewende are “unknown” to it and cannot be calculated merely by adding up the costs of individual assets, as some costs would also arise without a shift towards a decarbonised energy system.