Progress on charging infrastructure + En • Table.Briefings

Dear reader,

As Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Robert Habeck, told journalists on Sunday in Doha, his expectations of the meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, had been exceeded. It had been “magnificently” firmly agreed to enter into a long-term energy partnership. Afterwards, he sent a message to Russian warlord Vladimir Putin: “Even if we might still need Russian gas this year: not in the future, which is just beginning. So he who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Read more about it in the News.

Belgium, on the other hand, is relying on a different strategy to secure its own energy supply: The operating life of two of the country’s nuclear reactors is to be extended. Originally, the plan was to shut down all seven reactors by 2025. It was a decision for safety in uncertain times, Brussels said. More on this in the News.

The EU countries must invest in Europe-wide charging infrastructures for EVs to ensure that the energy and transport transitions go hand in hand. The regulation with national expansion targets (Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Regulation, AFIR) intends to promote this. Amendment proposals could still be submitted until last Friday, and, broadly speaking, there is consensus in the Council and Parliament. However, there is a wide range of opinions on the expansion targets for LNG for trucks. Lukas Scheid analyzes still unresolved details.

In today’s Profile, Europe.Table introduces Anne Gläser, environmental scientist and CO2 pricing officer at the development and environmental organization Germanwatch. She is convinced that the goals of the European Green Deal are still achievable – with a lot of international cooperation.

Your
Lisa-Martina Klein

Charging infrastructure expansion: progress on AFIR dossier

By

Lukas Knigge

The Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) is part of the Fit for 55 package and is intended to drive forward the development of a charging infrastructure for EVs. The EU Commission had proposed that member states must mandatorily add one kilowatt (kW) of charging capacity with each newly registered EV – 0.66 kW for each plug-in hybrid (PHEV). The rapporteur of the lead TRAN committee in the EU Parliament, Ismail Ertug (SPD/S&D), wants to significantly increase the expansion targets and link them to the amount of charging capacity already available (Europe.Table reported).

The deadline for amendments now ended on Friday. Green shadow rapporteur Anna Deparnay-Grunenberg also wants higher expansion targets, but without differentiation between e-car and hybrid:

3 kW per registered EV or PHEV if the share of EVs in the national passenger car fleet is less than 1 percent.
2.5 kW for EV and PHEV share between 1 and 2.5 percent.
2 kW for EV and PHEV share between 2.5 and 5 percent
1.5 kW for EV and PHEV share between 5 and 7.5 percent
1 kW for EV and PHEV share above 7.5 percent

Jens Gieseke, transport policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU group in the EU Parliament and AFIR shadow rapporteur for the EPP, also wants to significantly accelerate the development of the charging infrastructure: 3 kW per new EV, 2 kW per PHEV. However, unlike Ertug and Deparnay-Grunenberg, Gieseke does not envisage any linkage with the existing charging network.

LNG for trucks

In other areas, however, the ideas diverge further. “I cannot understand the deletion of LNG expansion targets for trucks, for example – especially in light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” Gieseke told Europe.Table. LNG is needed as a transitional solution to become more independent. In his draft report, Ertug had called for a halt to LNG expansion for heavy-duty road transport, saying it posed risks for stranded assets and lock-in effects of fossil technologies. Ertug is supported by Green shadow rapporteur Deparnay-Grunenberg.

The Commission and Council envisage that LNG infrastructure will be expanded only “to a limited extent” as zero-emission technologies replace gaseous fuels. Decarbonized gaseous fuels could also rely on existing LNG infrastructure.

Monitoring of AFIR targets

How the expansion in the individual member states is to be monitored is also decisive. By 2024, the member states are to provide information on the current status of the market for alternative fuels and their infrastructure, as well as their future development in the respective countries. They are also to set national expansion targets and present strategies for achieving them.

Subsequently, as the Commission proposes, the countries are to submit independent progress reports on the implementation of their national strategy framework every two years from 2027. Rapporteur Ertug calls for annual progress reports as early as 2026 – publicly available and in “easily readable and understandable form”. Shadow rapporteur Gieseke supports this proposal.

A reporting period of three years was even circulating in the Council. A compromise proposal by the French Council Presidency last week now also mentions two years.

Commission competence remains unclear

There are also differences in the event that a country fails to meet its targets. The Commission envisages that it can “request” a country to implement appropriate corrective measures as soon as there is a risk that the country will miss the targets. In France’s compromise proposal, this is worded in a much weaker way: If a country has already missed its targets, the Commission may “propose” corrective measures.

Social Democrat Ertug even proposes extending the Commission’s competence if a country fails to take satisfactory action. The Commission would be empowered to take action on behalf of the member state within the framework of its treaties.

Germany concludes energy agreement with Qatar

Germany has agreed a long-term energy partnership with Qatar to break away from Russian oil and gas supplies. German Economics Minister Robert Habeck met the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in Doha on Sunday. According to his ministry, those companies that had traveled with him would now enter into contract negotiations with the Qatari side, Habeck said after the meeting. Habeck was accompanied by around 20 company representatives, mainly from the energy sector.

From the Qatari side, it was initially only said that the Emir and Habeck had discussed ways to expand bilateral relations, especially in the energy sector, but that no contracts had yet been concluded. The Green politician told ARD television that Germany had made itself dependent on Russia and President Vladimir Putin with energy imports. Now, it was necessary to enter into a political exchange with difficult partners and to continue it. The emirate on the Persian Gulf is an absolute monarchy in which Islam as the state religion shapes social life. Critics accuse Qatar of having lower human rights standards than Western states.

“You now have to try to enter into talks with various partners who have their own idiosyncrasies, to also develop a momentum for the better from this,” Habeck said. After all, thanks to pressure from Europe and the international community, there have already been improvements – even if they are “far from meeting German standards”.

Examine short and medium-term options

During his trip, the Green politician wants to explore possibilities for sourcing hydrogen and liquefied natural gas (LNG) together with the business delegation in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. “The goal of the trip is to establish a hydrogen partnership in the medium-term, that is, to flank it politically,” Habeck had said before departing Berlin. He wanted to support companies in examining LNG funding opportunities in the short-term. The companies that ensure the gas supply in Germany should be given a political framework to become independent of Russian gas.

Because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the German government wants to put gas supplies in Germany on a broader basis. Until now, Germany has met around 55 percent of its gas requirements with Russian natural gas. LNG terminals are to be built in northern Germany so that liquefied natural gas tankers can dock there. However, this will take several years. The point is that if Germany builds LNG terminals, it will have supply contracts that could then bring the extra capacity to Europe, Habeck said. The construction of the terminals will take some time. But he hopes that Qatar will be able to provide a little more gas by then. rtr

Belgium extends life cycle of two nuclear reactors

The phase-out by 2025 had been a done deal. With a view to security of supply, the Belgian federal government now wants to keep two nuclear reactors running for ten years longer. In the end, the war in Ukraine accelerated the decision: “We are deciding in favor of security in uncertain times,” said Belgium’s Prime Minister Alexander De Croo on Friday evening. All seven nuclear reactors in the country were supposed to be shut down by 2025. Now, at least two of the reactors are to remain operational for ten years longer.

Belgium’s federal government had been struggling over the decision for several months. The nuclear phase-out had been a done deal since 2003. However, on the condition that security of supply could be guaranteed in another way. This had been disputed in the governing coalition with seven parties from the Flemish and French-speaking parts of the country even before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Against the backdrop of the war, the question marks have become even bigger, and the Minister of Energy, Tinne Van der Straeten, from the Green coalition partner, could no longer ignore the partial phase-out. The energy minister wanted to compensate for the loss of nuclear power by building two gas-fired power plants. One project is to be realized in Flanders, the other in Wallonia. However, the Flemish government has so far refused to give its approval.

1.1 billion for the expansion of renewables

The environment minister from the Flemish nationalists argues with the high nitrogen emissions. Political opponents suspect political calculations because the Flemish nationalists are supporters of nuclear power. The construction of two gas-fired power plants is still being pursued. But regardless of the political games between Flemings and Walloons, in view of the Ukraine war, it no longer seems reasonable to unilaterally increase dependence on gas even further.

The nuclear reactors Doel 4 near Antwerp and Tihange 3 near Liège are to be given another lifetime extension until 2035. These are the two comparatively youngest reactors, commissioned in 1985 and with a combined capacity of two gigawatts. At the same time, part of the government agreement is a push for renewable energies. With €1.1 billion, the expansion of offshore wind farms, in particular, is to be accelerated. Capacity is to be expanded to 5.8 gigawatts by 2030, about three times more than today and roughly the output of all seven nuclear reactors. The wind turbines are to be created more quickly than originally planned, among other places on an artificial energy island in the North Sea, named after Crown Princess Elisabeth.

The coalition government presented lifetime extensions for nuclear power and a push for renewables as a compromise. Whether the plan will work out, however, is still uncertain for various reasons. Difficult talks with nuclear power plant operator Engie are pending. The French company would have to invest a lot of money again in the notoriously breakdown-prone nuclear power plants to ensure that they meet the latest safety standards. Observers suspect that Engie will demand financial concessions from the Belgian government. But even so, it is questionable whether the adjustments will be completed on time and whether the two nuclear power plants will be able to produce electricity without lengthy interruptions from 2025. sti

Lindner calls for reboot of TTIP talks

In view of Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the economic consequences, German Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) is calling for a new attempt at a free trade agreement with the United States. “We should resume negotiations on a transatlantic free trade agreement. Especially now in the crisis, it is becoming clear how important free trade is with partners in the world who share our values,” Lindner told the German newspaper Handelsblatt. “We should learn from the experience with the TTIP talks in the process.”

The European-American free trade agreement TTIP (“Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership”) was put on hold in 2016. There were massive protests against it, particularly in Europe, partly because environmental and consumer protectionists feared that high EU standards could be watered down.

More trade agreements, more allies

According to Achim Wambach, president of the Center for European Economic Research (ZEW), supply bottlenecks and strategic dependencies argue “for us to conclude more trade agreements as a whole and especially with allies like the US, instead of watching them being torpedoed until they are doomed to fail, as they have been in the past”, he told the Handelsblatt.

In addition to the war in Ukraine, experts fear that China could also become economically detached from the West. Trade economist Vincent Stamer of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) told the newspaper, “If China should break away as a sales market, we must ensure adequate alternatives beforehand. A European-American trade agreement is needed more urgently than ever in these times.”

It is unclear to what extent there is support in Europe for such talks. Some partners have expressed support for a resumption in recent years, while others have been more reluctant. In a statement, the US Embassy in Berlin did not directly address Lindner’s proposal but said an existing US-EU Trade and Technology Council ensures that trade and technology policies support broad-based growth. dpa/rtr

Privacy Shield works after all – in the US

The European Court of Justice declared the Privacy Shield agreement on the transatlantic transfer of personal data invalid in 2020. Since then, intensive negotiations have been underway on a modified new version. But on the other side of the Atlantic, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has now opened proceedings against the former owners of CafePress, in which the Privacy Shield also plays an important role.

Companies that have declared to the US Department of Commerce that they will comply with the Privacy Shield rules violate US law if they do not comply with the resulting data handling obligations. At least, that is what the Federal Trade Commission is now arguing. It has opened proceedings against the former owners of the Cafepress trading platform for inadequate protection of customer data. Among other violations of US law, it explicitly states that the operator misled its customers by claiming to comply with the requirements under the Privacy Shield.

Among other things, the FTC now required the company to notify those affected by a 2019 hack of customer data resulting from the insecure data storage and to pay $500,000 in damages. fst

Russia tells Google to stop spreading threats

After Facebook, Russia now seems to be preparing a block of Google subsidiary YouTube. On Friday, the media regulator Roskomnadzor called on Alphabet subsidiary Google to stop spreading threats against Russian citizens via the video platform. The lives and health of Russian citizens were at stake, it said.

Specifically, the case involves ads promoting disruption of rail service in Russia and Belarus, which Roskomnadzor cites as evidence of an anti-Russian stance by the US tech giant. Google representatives in Russia as well as outside were initially unavailable for comment.

Since the start of the Ukraine war, the fronts between Russia and US technology companies have hardened. YouTube has blocked all Russian state media worldwide. While Facebook has already been blocked in Russia for some time, Instagram has now been unavailable since Monday. Previously, Facebook owner Meta had adjusted hate speech rules to give people more opportunities to make their criticism public because of the Ukraine war. In the meantime, Russia has therefore initiated criminal proceedings. rtr

ECB Vice President calls for measures to counter wage-price spiral

ECB Vice President Luis de Guindos calls for measures against a wage-price spiral. The current price shock in energy and commodity prices is making many companies and workers poorer, he told the German newspaper Handelsblatt. “Fiscal policy should help ease the burden through temporary, targeted aid.” This would also reduce the risk of a wage-price spiral.

De Guindos expects that there will be “probably higher inflation in the euro area for a longer period than expected before the war“. In his view, the ECB’s future monetary policy stance depends on the data. “If we continue to underestimate inflation, then we will react. All options are on the table.” According to de Guindos, the key factors are second-round effects and a possible de-anchoring of medium-term inflation expectations. “If we see those, then we will act.”

The ECB Vice President warned that fragmentation in the euro area due to sharply diverging interest rate levels on the bond markets could jeopardize the effect of monetary policy. He does not consider the current risk premiums for government bonds of countries such as Italy and Spain to be a cause for concern. They are currently around the same level as before the pandemic and well below the peaks seen in 2011 and 2014, for example. rtr

Anne Gläser – an optimist to the core

Anne Gläser has a degree in environmental science and is an expert on CO2 prices at the development and environmental organization Germanwatch.

“Yes, I think achieving the goals of the European Green Deal is realistic,” Anne Gläser says with a smile. In a world so threatened by climate change, few people display such confidence. But when Gläser talks about her job, it becomes clear where her optimism comes from. An environmental scientist by training, Gläser contributes on a daily basis to ensuring that the possibility of meeting the targets set remains realistic. She is a CO2 pricing consultant at the development and environmental organization Germanwatch and also an expert on the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).

In doing so, she operates on three levels: first, that of the German national emissions trading system for buildings and transport – called the Fuel Emissions Trading Act. At the EU level, she analyzes the social and climate compatibility of CO2 pricing, with a particular focus on the planned second emissions trading system. At the international level, she considers the foreign policy dimension of emissions trading and also advocates for a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).

There has been a lot of change in society, politics, and the economy in the last ten years, and this will not diminish in the future. At present, it is important that the financial market jumps on the bandwagon, says Gläser. For example, through a sustainable finance system, through loans for climate-friendly projects, but above all through the realization that in the end, inaction will be more expensive than action.

Expert for international climate cooperation

International cooperation, including technology transfers and ambition competition, is also indispensable. Another positive aspect is that nations that do not pull together on climate policy face reputational risks. In this way, a high level of global participation is guaranteed.

Anne Gläser knows a thing or two about international cooperation. She first worked for GIZ in Morocco, where she worked at the interface of climate change and development cooperation. In the years that followed, she collaborated with governments and companies in Tunisia, Indonesia, and Uganda to make industrial production there more sustainable. The deal was that funding was guaranteed if the government and companies promised sustainable production. Among other things, they were to work toward decarbonizing the industrial sector.

Climate money through per capita flat rate

Gläser is also concerned with harmonizing sustainable, ecological political development with social justice. Possibilities for this include a national emissions trading system and, in particular, a progressive design of CO2 pricing through reimbursement in the form of a per capita flat rate.

The optimism that resonates in all that Gläser does, plans, and organizes does not subside. On the contrary, it manifests itself in each of the goals and ideas she describes. Her confident attitude stems from the knowledge that her work can address the problems of our time. Whether it’s climate change or social injustice, as long as it’s possible to create possible solutions, pessimism and giving up are not options. Anouk Schlung

EUROPE.TABLE EDITORS

Till
Hoppe

Charlotte
Wirth

Falk
Steiner

Timo
Landenberger

Corinna
Visser

Lukas
Knigge

Eric
Bonse

Sarah
Schaefer

Manuel
Berkel

Lisa-Martina
Klein

Markus
Grabitz

Stephan
Israel

Claire
Stam

Dear reader,

As Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Robert Habeck, told journalists on Sunday in Doha, his expectations of the meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, had been exceeded. It had been “magnificently” firmly agreed to enter into a long-term energy partnership. Afterwards, he sent a message to Russian warlord Vladimir Putin: “Even if we might still need Russian gas this year: not in the future, which is just beginning. So he who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Read more about it in the News.

Belgium, on the other hand, is relying on a different strategy to secure its own energy supply: The operating life of two of the country’s nuclear reactors is to be extended. Originally, the plan was to shut down all seven reactors by 2025. It was a decision for safety in uncertain times, Brussels said. More on this in the News.

The EU countries must invest in Europe-wide charging infrastructures for EVs to ensure that the energy and transport transitions go hand in hand. The regulation with national expansion targets (Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Regulation, AFIR) intends to promote this. Amendment proposals could still be submitted until last Friday, and, broadly speaking, there is consensus in the Council and Parliament. However, there is a wide range of opinions on the expansion targets for LNG for trucks. Lukas Scheid analyzes still unresolved details.

In today’s Profile, Europe.Table introduces Anne Gläser, environmental scientist and CO2 pricing officer at the development and environmental organization Germanwatch. She is convinced that the goals of the European Green Deal are still achievable – with a lot of international cooperation.

Your
Lisa-Martina Klein

Charging infrastructure expansion: progress on AFIR dossier

By

Lukas Knigge

The Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) is part of the Fit for 55 package and is intended to drive forward the development of a charging infrastructure for EVs. The EU Commission had proposed that member states must mandatorily add one kilowatt (kW) of charging capacity with each newly registered EV – 0.66 kW for each plug-in hybrid (PHEV). The rapporteur of the lead TRAN committee in the EU Parliament, Ismail Ertug (SPD/S&D), wants to significantly increase the expansion targets and link them to the amount of charging capacity already available (Europe.Table reported).

The deadline for amendments now ended on Friday. Green shadow rapporteur Anna Deparnay-Grunenberg also wants higher expansion targets, but without differentiation between e-car and hybrid:

3 kW per registered EV or PHEV if the share of EVs in the national passenger car fleet is less than 1 percent.
2.5 kW for EV and PHEV share between 1 and 2.5 percent.
2 kW for EV and PHEV share between 2.5 and 5 percent
1.5 kW for EV and PHEV share between 5 and 7.5 percent
1 kW for EV and PHEV share above 7.5 percent

Jens Gieseke, transport policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU group in the EU Parliament and AFIR shadow rapporteur for the EPP, also wants to significantly accelerate the development of the charging infrastructure: 3 kW per new EV, 2 kW per PHEV. However, unlike Ertug and Deparnay-Grunenberg, Gieseke does not envisage any linkage with the existing charging network.

LNG for trucks

In other areas, however, the ideas diverge further. “I cannot understand the deletion of LNG expansion targets for trucks, for example – especially in light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” Gieseke told Europe.Table. LNG is needed as a transitional solution to become more independent. In his draft report, Ertug had called for a halt to LNG expansion for heavy-duty road transport, saying it posed risks for stranded assets and lock-in effects of fossil technologies. Ertug is supported by Green shadow rapporteur Deparnay-Grunenberg.

The Commission and Council envisage that LNG infrastructure will be expanded only “to a limited extent” as zero-emission technologies replace gaseous fuels. Decarbonized gaseous fuels could also rely on existing LNG infrastructure.

Monitoring of AFIR targets

How the expansion in the individual member states is to be monitored is also decisive. By 2024, the member states are to provide information on the current status of the market for alternative fuels and their infrastructure, as well as their future development in the respective countries. They are also to set national expansion targets and present strategies for achieving them.

Subsequently, as the Commission proposes, the countries are to submit independent progress reports on the implementation of their national strategy framework every two years from 2027. Rapporteur Ertug calls for annual progress reports as early as 2026 – publicly available and in “easily readable and understandable form”. Shadow rapporteur Gieseke supports this proposal.

A reporting period of three years was even circulating in the Council. A compromise proposal by the French Council Presidency last week now also mentions two years.

Commission competence remains unclear

There are also differences in the event that a country fails to meet its targets. The Commission envisages that it can “request” a country to implement appropriate corrective measures as soon as there is a risk that the country will miss the targets. In France’s compromise proposal, this is worded in a much weaker way: If a country has already missed its targets, the Commission may “propose” corrective measures.

Social Democrat Ertug even proposes extending the Commission’s competence if a country fails to take satisfactory action. The Commission would be empowered to take action on behalf of the member state within the framework of its treaties.

Germany concludes energy agreement with Qatar

Germany has agreed a long-term energy partnership with Qatar to break away from Russian oil and gas supplies. German Economics Minister Robert Habeck met the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in Doha on Sunday. According to his ministry, those companies that had traveled with him would now enter into contract negotiations with the Qatari side, Habeck said after the meeting. Habeck was accompanied by around 20 company representatives, mainly from the energy sector.

From the Qatari side, it was initially only said that the Emir and Habeck had discussed ways to expand bilateral relations, especially in the energy sector, but that no contracts had yet been concluded. The Green politician told ARD television that Germany had made itself dependent on Russia and President Vladimir Putin with energy imports. Now, it was necessary to enter into a political exchange with difficult partners and to continue it. The emirate on the Persian Gulf is an absolute monarchy in which Islam as the state religion shapes social life. Critics accuse Qatar of having lower human rights standards than Western states.

“You now have to try to enter into talks with various partners who have their own idiosyncrasies, to also develop a momentum for the better from this,” Habeck said. After all, thanks to pressure from Europe and the international community, there have already been improvements – even if they are “far from meeting German standards”.

Examine short and medium-term options

During his trip, the Green politician wants to explore possibilities for sourcing hydrogen and liquefied natural gas (LNG) together with the business delegation in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. “The goal of the trip is to establish a hydrogen partnership in the medium-term, that is, to flank it politically,” Habeck had said before departing Berlin. He wanted to support companies in examining LNG funding opportunities in the short-term. The companies that ensure the gas supply in Germany should be given a political framework to become independent of Russian gas.

Because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the German government wants to put gas supplies in Germany on a broader basis. Until now, Germany has met around 55 percent of its gas requirements with Russian natural gas. LNG terminals are to be built in northern Germany so that liquefied natural gas tankers can dock there. However, this will take several years. The point is that if Germany builds LNG terminals, it will have supply contracts that could then bring the extra capacity to Europe, Habeck said. The construction of the terminals will take some time. But he hopes that Qatar will be able to provide a little more gas by then. rtr

Belgium extends life cycle of two nuclear reactors

The phase-out by 2025 had been a done deal. With a view to security of supply, the Belgian federal government now wants to keep two nuclear reactors running for ten years longer. In the end, the war in Ukraine accelerated the decision: “We are deciding in favor of security in uncertain times,” said Belgium’s Prime Minister Alexander De Croo on Friday evening. All seven nuclear reactors in the country were supposed to be shut down by 2025. Now, at least two of the reactors are to remain operational for ten years longer.

Belgium’s federal government had been struggling over the decision for several months. The nuclear phase-out had been a done deal since 2003. However, on the condition that security of supply could be guaranteed in another way. This had been disputed in the governing coalition with seven parties from the Flemish and French-speaking parts of the country even before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Against the backdrop of the war, the question marks have become even bigger, and the Minister of Energy, Tinne Van der Straeten, from the Green coalition partner, could no longer ignore the partial phase-out. The energy minister wanted to compensate for the loss of nuclear power by building two gas-fired power plants. One project is to be realized in Flanders, the other in Wallonia. However, the Flemish government has so far refused to give its approval.

1.1 billion for the expansion of renewables

The environment minister from the Flemish nationalists argues with the high nitrogen emissions. Political opponents suspect political calculations because the Flemish nationalists are supporters of nuclear power. The construction of two gas-fired power plants is still being pursued. But regardless of the political games between Flemings and Walloons, in view of the Ukraine war, it no longer seems reasonable to unilaterally increase dependence on gas even further.

The nuclear reactors Doel 4 near Antwerp and Tihange 3 near Liège are to be given another lifetime extension until 2035. These are the two comparatively youngest reactors, commissioned in 1985 and with a combined capacity of two gigawatts. At the same time, part of the government agreement is a push for renewable energies. With €1.1 billion, the expansion of offshore wind farms, in particular, is to be accelerated. Capacity is to be expanded to 5.8 gigawatts by 2030, about three times more than today and roughly the output of all seven nuclear reactors. The wind turbines are to be created more quickly than originally planned, among other places on an artificial energy island in the North Sea, named after Crown Princess Elisabeth.

The coalition government presented lifetime extensions for nuclear power and a push for renewables as a compromise. Whether the plan will work out, however, is still uncertain for various reasons. Difficult talks with nuclear power plant operator Engie are pending. The French company would have to invest a lot of money again in the notoriously breakdown-prone nuclear power plants to ensure that they meet the latest safety standards. Observers suspect that Engie will demand financial concessions from the Belgian government. But even so, it is questionable whether the adjustments will be completed on time and whether the two nuclear power plants will be able to produce electricity without lengthy interruptions from 2025. sti

Lindner calls for reboot of TTIP talks

In view of Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the economic consequences, German Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) is calling for a new attempt at a free trade agreement with the United States. “We should resume negotiations on a transatlantic free trade agreement. Especially now in the crisis, it is becoming clear how important free trade is with partners in the world who share our values,” Lindner told the German newspaper Handelsblatt. “We should learn from the experience with the TTIP talks in the process.”

The European-American free trade agreement TTIP (“Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership”) was put on hold in 2016. There were massive protests against it, particularly in Europe, partly because environmental and consumer protectionists feared that high EU standards could be watered down.

More trade agreements, more allies

According to Achim Wambach, president of the Center for European Economic Research (ZEW), supply bottlenecks and strategic dependencies argue “for us to conclude more trade agreements as a whole and especially with allies like the US, instead of watching them being torpedoed until they are doomed to fail, as they have been in the past”, he told the Handelsblatt.

In addition to the war in Ukraine, experts fear that China could also become economically detached from the West. Trade economist Vincent Stamer of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) told the newspaper, “If China should break away as a sales market, we must ensure adequate alternatives beforehand. A European-American trade agreement is needed more urgently than ever in these times.”

It is unclear to what extent there is support in Europe for such talks. Some partners have expressed support for a resumption in recent years, while others have been more reluctant. In a statement, the US Embassy in Berlin did not directly address Lindner’s proposal but said an existing US-EU Trade and Technology Council ensures that trade and technology policies support broad-based growth. dpa/rtr

Privacy Shield works after all – in the US

The European Court of Justice declared the Privacy Shield agreement on the transatlantic transfer of personal data invalid in 2020. Since then, intensive negotiations have been underway on a modified new version. But on the other side of the Atlantic, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has now opened proceedings against the former owners of CafePress, in which the Privacy Shield also plays an important role.

Companies that have declared to the US Department of Commerce that they will comply with the Privacy Shield rules violate US law if they do not comply with the resulting data handling obligations. At least, that is what the Federal Trade Commission is now arguing. It has opened proceedings against the former owners of the Cafepress trading platform for inadequate protection of customer data. Among other violations of US law, it explicitly states that the operator misled its customers by claiming to comply with the requirements under the Privacy Shield.

Among other things, the FTC now required the company to notify those affected by a 2019 hack of customer data resulting from the insecure data storage and to pay $500,000 in damages. fst

Russia tells Google to stop spreading threats

After Facebook, Russia now seems to be preparing a block of Google subsidiary YouTube. On Friday, the media regulator Roskomnadzor called on Alphabet subsidiary Google to stop spreading threats against Russian citizens via the video platform. The lives and health of Russian citizens were at stake, it said.

Specifically, the case involves ads promoting disruption of rail service in Russia and Belarus, which Roskomnadzor cites as evidence of an anti-Russian stance by the US tech giant. Google representatives in Russia as well as outside were initially unavailable for comment.

Since the start of the Ukraine war, the fronts between Russia and US technology companies have hardened. YouTube has blocked all Russian state media worldwide. While Facebook has already been blocked in Russia for some time, Instagram has now been unavailable since Monday. Previously, Facebook owner Meta had adjusted hate speech rules to give people more opportunities to make their criticism public because of the Ukraine war. In the meantime, Russia has therefore initiated criminal proceedings. rtr

ECB Vice President calls for measures to counter wage-price spiral

ECB Vice President Luis de Guindos calls for measures against a wage-price spiral. The current price shock in energy and commodity prices is making many companies and workers poorer, he told the German newspaper Handelsblatt. “Fiscal policy should help ease the burden through temporary, targeted aid.” This would also reduce the risk of a wage-price spiral.

De Guindos expects that there will be “probably higher inflation in the euro area for a longer period than expected before the war“. In his view, the ECB’s future monetary policy stance depends on the data. “If we continue to underestimate inflation, then we will react. All options are on the table.” According to de Guindos, the key factors are second-round effects and a possible de-anchoring of medium-term inflation expectations. “If we see those, then we will act.”

The ECB Vice President warned that fragmentation in the euro area due to sharply diverging interest rate levels on the bond markets could jeopardize the effect of monetary policy. He does not consider the current risk premiums for government bonds of countries such as Italy and Spain to be a cause for concern. They are currently around the same level as before the pandemic and well below the peaks seen in 2011 and 2014, for example. rtr

Anne Gläser – an optimist to the core

“Yes, I think achieving the goals of the European Green Deal is realistic,” Anne Gläser says with a smile. In a world so threatened by climate change, few people display such confidence. But when Gläser talks about her job, it becomes clear where her optimism comes from. An environmental scientist by training, Gläser contributes on a daily basis to ensuring that the possibility of meeting the targets set remains realistic. She is a CO2 pricing consultant at the development and environmental organization Germanwatch and also an expert on the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).

In doing so, she operates on three levels: first, that of the German national emissions trading system for buildings and transport – called the Fuel Emissions Trading Act. At the EU level, she analyzes the social and climate compatibility of CO2 pricing, with a particular focus on the planned second emissions trading system. At the international level, she considers the foreign policy dimension of emissions trading and also advocates for a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).

There has been a lot of change in society, politics, and the economy in the last ten years, and this will not diminish in the future. At present, it is important that the financial market jumps on the bandwagon, says Gläser. For example, through a sustainable finance system, through loans for climate-friendly projects, but above all through the realization that in the end, inaction will be more expensive than action.

Expert for international climate cooperation

International cooperation, including technology transfers and ambition competition, is also indispensable. Another positive aspect is that nations that do not pull together on climate policy face reputational risks. In this way, a high level of global participation is guaranteed.

Anne Gläser knows a thing or two about international cooperation. She first worked for GIZ in Morocco, where she worked at the interface of climate change and development cooperation. In the years that followed, she collaborated with governments and companies in Tunisia, Indonesia, and Uganda to make industrial production there more sustainable. The deal was that funding was guaranteed if the government and companies promised sustainable production. Among other things, they were to work toward decarbonizing the industrial sector.

Climate money through per capita flat rate

Gläser is also concerned with harmonizing sustainable, ecological political development with social justice. Possibilities for this include a national emissions trading system and, in particular, a progressive design of CO2 pricing through reimbursement in the form of a per capita flat rate.

The optimism that resonates in all that Gläser does, plans, and organizes does not subside. On the contrary, it manifests itself in each of the goals and ideas she describes. Her confident attitude stems from the knowledge that her work can address the problems of our time. Whether it’s climate change or social injustice, as long as it’s possible to create possible solutions, pessimism and giving up are not options. Anouk Schlung