The German government’s Climate Action Program is due to be presented in four weeks – yet five million metric tons of CO₂ reductions are still unaccounted for, along with several billion euros in required investment. Policymakers remain divided over which sectors must deliver the most substantial emission cuts. And then there is the issue of the Building Energy Act.
By Bernhard Pötter
Thermal batteries convert renewable electricity into storable heat and steam, enabling the replacement of fossil fuels in industrial processes. Pilot projects in the chemical, food and cement industries have demonstrated the technology’s significant potential.
By Nico Beckert
The Climate Union is represented on the CDU’s Executive Committee for the first time: Wiebke Winter was elected to the party’s top leadership body with 67% of the vote. The climate policy motion, which had been highly controversial in the run-up to the vote, was adopted in a significantly watered-down form and with little debate.
By Malte Kreutzfeldt
Ottmar Edenhofer, head of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), aims to make carbon dioxide removal commercially viable using clean-up certificates. PIK has now quantified the potential benefits of the instrument – but experts have voiced criticism of the concept.
By Kai Schöneberg
Electrified process heat is already cost-competitive with fossil fuel-based heat in many low-temperature applications. A new study finds that for medium-temperature processes, electricity prices must fall further while CO₂ prices need to rise to achieve broad competitiveness.
By Nico Beckert
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine generated 75 million metric tons of CO₂ equivalents last year alone. War-induced landscape fires rose sharply once again. Ukraine now intends to seek compensation for the resulting social cost of carbon.
By Kai Schöneberg
A mandatory green gas quota for the heating sector is set to form part of the German government’s amendment to the Building Energy Act (GEG). According to the Association of the Electrical and Digital Industry (ZVEI), the measure would undermine core elements of the heating transition, weaken Germany’s industrial competitiveness and dilute climate action efforts.
By Sebastian Treptow and Mark Becker-von Bredow
Environmental organizations accuse German Environment Minister Carsten Schneider of pursuing the wrong approach with his call to extend free CO₂ allowances. The minister, however, aims to ease the burden on the chemical industry by adjusting the benchmarks that determine their allocation under the EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS).
By Lukas Knigge
The Trump administration describes the lifting of the “endangerment finding” as a reduction in bureaucracy and a help for the economy. However, uncertainty is growing in the automotive and energy industries, and a wave of lawsuits threatens from federal states and NGOs.
By Umair Irfan
Chancellor Merz faces a balancing act on his trip to China. Germany is heavily dependent on green tech. At the same time, the German economy is experiencing a China shock and is calling for more protection in order to gain room to maneuver for the transformation.
By Nico Beckert
