4 ms·

Switching back to coal, great move.

leipert 4y ago
Yeah, what’s even more hilarious: Conservatives made the decision to shut down the nuclear plants and also destroyed the German renewable sector at the same time. But voters have a short term memory and will blame it all on the current administration.
- awaythrow98765 4y ago
  2 of the 3 currently governing parties made up the coalition that first decided to end nuclear back in 2001. The later conservative Merkel government just first extended reactor life-times just to go back on its word and shorten them again when Fukushima happened. But all the big parties and their politicians had a hand in the current desaster, people are quit right to blame all the last 25 years' governments.
- kken 4y ago
  The entire concept of the "Energiewende" was implemented without putting the right constraints in place. The conservatives later fumbled it instead of adding the right changes. What happened is that the subsidies for renewable energy in Germany mostly led to a buildup of a huge photovoltaic industry in China after an initial goldrush in Europe. When they changed the incentive scheme, the German photovoltaic industry crumbled and the chinese one was kept afloat with local subsidies. For a while, the equipment suppliers in Europe still profited from the boom in China, but where eventually replaced by Chinese ones. In effect, now both the photovoltaic industry and the equipment industry in Europe largely disappeared. And to add insult to injury, China is considering to limit photovoltaic exports (potentially as a means to counter the semiconductor sacntions): https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3208206/chinas-proposed-export-curbs-key-solar-technologies-could-backfire-hurt-domestic-giants-analysts-say https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3208206/chinas-propose...
  - HyperSane 4y ago
    Nuclear is the ONLY gigawatt scale dispatchable very low carbon source of electricity humans have at the moment, other than hydroelectric damns but we have used up pretty much all available capacity. If you refuse to use it then you are going to have to burn coal or gas instead. That is why Germany emits 6 times more CO2 per KWh than France. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1291750/carbon-intensity-power-sector-eu-country/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/1291750/carbon-intensity...
- johnchristopher 4y ago
  > But voters have a short term memory and will blame it all on the current administration. Which for some countries means blaming the greens in the current government even though they were absent from previous governments from the last 15 years.
jillesvangurp 4y ago
Which in Germany is on track to be shut down by the early 2030s.
- pantalaimon 4y ago
  2038
  - stkdump 4y ago
    No, 2030. Lignite is West Germany also in 2030. Lignite in East Germany is set for 2038, but currently in discussion to also move forward to 2030.
- timmg 4y ago
  How much faster could they do it if they kept the nuke plants in service?

Yeah, what’s even more hilarious: Conservatives made the decision to shut down the nuclear plants and also destroyed the German renewable sector at the same time. But voters have a short term memory and will blame it all on the current administration.

awaythrow98765 4y ago
2 of the 3 currently governing parties made up the coalition that first decided to end nuclear back in 2001. The later conservative Merkel government just first extended reactor life-times just to go back on its word and shorten them again when Fukushima happened. But all the big parties and their politicians had a hand in the current desaster, people are quit right to blame all the last 25 years' governments.
kken 4y ago
The entire concept of the "Energiewende" was implemented without putting the right constraints in place. The conservatives later fumbled it instead of adding the right changes. What happened is that the subsidies for renewable energy in Germany mostly led to a buildup of a huge photovoltaic industry in China after an initial goldrush in Europe. When they changed the incentive scheme, the German photovoltaic industry crumbled and the chinese one was kept afloat with local subsidies. For a while, the equipment suppliers in Europe still profited from the boom in China, but where eventually replaced by Chinese ones. In effect, now both the photovoltaic industry and the equipment industry in Europe largely disappeared. And to add insult to injury, China is considering to limit photovoltaic exports (potentially as a means to counter the semiconductor sacntions): https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3208206/chinas-proposed-export-curbs-key-solar-technologies-could-backfire-hurt-domestic-giants-analysts-say https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3208206/chinas-propose...
- HyperSane 4y ago
  Nuclear is the ONLY gigawatt scale dispatchable very low carbon source of electricity humans have at the moment, other than hydroelectric damns but we have used up pretty much all available capacity. If you refuse to use it then you are going to have to burn coal or gas instead. That is why Germany emits 6 times more CO2 per KWh than France. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1291750/carbon-intensity-power-sector-eu-country/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/1291750/carbon-intensity...
johnchristopher 4y ago
> But voters have a short term memory and will blame it all on the current administration. Which for some countries means blaming the greens in the current government even though they were absent from previous governments from the last 15 years.

jillesvangurp 4y ago

Which in Germany is on track to be shut down by the early 2030s.

pantalaimon 4y ago
2038
- stkdump 4y ago
  No, 2030. Lignite is West Germany also in 2030. Lignite in East Germany is set for 2038, but currently in discussion to also move forward to 2030.
timmg 4y ago
How much faster could they do it if they kept the nuke plants in service?