Schröder and his government kick-started the German renewable energy sector. The nuclear exit was a long term plan that was eventually undone by Merkel, which s

Schröder and his government kick-started the German renewable energy sector. The nuclear exit was a long term plan that was eventually undone by Merkel, which slowed down Germany's progress in this regard. It's like the current coal exit: 20 years is enough time to replace coal with renewable energies. If, however, the next government decides to rely on coal for many more years and then hastily ditches it from one day to the next, the alternatives won't be environmental friendly either. That said, the percentage that nuclear energy contributed to Germany's electricity production has been completely replaced by renewable energies. Gas plays a negligible role there, although it's usage has been growing slightly over the past 20 years. Lastly, people who claim that Germany relies too much on Russian oil and gas imports like to ignore just how much the Russian economy relies on oil and gas exports.