Promise to abolish heating law set to turn into communication challenge for German conservatives

An election promise by German conservative alliance of the Christian Democrat Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union (CSU) to abolish parts of the country’s Building Energy Law is turning into a communication challenge for the party of chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz, reported Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. In its election manifesto, the CDU/CSU alliance had vowed to undo passages of the law that deal with the replacement of fossil fuel-based heating systems with climate friendly alternatives, especially heat pumps. The law, which was championed by outgoing Green Party economy minister Robert Habeck, is considered crucial for Germany to reach its emission reduction targets in the building sector. However, it was the source of much controversy as it was introduced, especially over uncertainties about potential additional costs for homeowners.

Senior CDU policymaker Jens Spahn, who during the campaign said his party would “abolish Habeck’s law”, now says that only very specific aspects of the law would be ditched, and not its general aim to slash emissions. After performing a U-turn from its campaign positions on fiscal policy by adopting Germany’s massive new spending package, the CDU/CSU could be forced to backtrack on another key policy, which might alienate many voters, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said.  

In its coalition negotiations with the Social Democrats (SPD), the conservative alliance calls for “affordable, technology-open” solutions to reducing heating emissions, while the SPD wants “more flexible and simple” rules in the sector. However, negotiators within the SPD want to stop short of fully abolishing the existing legislation over fears that this could lead to further uncertainties in the heating industry, which has spent the past two years preparing for a roll-out of heat pumps and other new technologies in line with the Building Energy Law adopted by the outgoing government led by the SPD.

According to newspaper Merkur, the negotiating parties could aim for a new approach for measuring building emissions, with the focus shifting from annual energy demand to life-cycle emissions, meaning this would include emissions from construction, renovation, and demolition of a building. NGO BUND said the planned changes away from ordering technology replacements could be “fatal” for emission reduction in the sector, where three quarters of buildings still use fossil-based heating systems.