Next government plans “coal foundation” to ensure earlier phase-out

Germany’s future coalition government is planning the implementation of a “coal foundation” to ensure an earlier coal phase-out. “The establishment of a foundation or company that organises the dismantling of coal-fired power generation and renaturation is being examined,” reads the coalition agreement that was presented by the SPD, the Green Party and the FDP on Wednesday. According to industry information obtained by newspaper Handelsblatt, the coalition plans a swap deal in which mining operators and power plants would lose control over their assets, but would also get rid of the burdens of the coal phase-out. Such a foundation or company would not only facilitate an earlier phase-out of coal-fired power production, but would also ensure in the long term that the lignite mining areas in the Rhineland and East Germany are responsibly dismantled and recultivated, Handelsblatt writes.

The three parties planning to form the new German government have agreed on a coalition treaty that includes pulling forward the country's coal exit, "ideally" to 2030 from 2038.