More Heroics from Germany
Germany has released its plan to close all 84 of its currently operating coal-fired power plants by 2038 and rely primarily on renewable energy.
For decades, Germany has taken bold steps in the direction of renewables, a path that was made even more difficult when it began its rapid phase-out of nuclear energy after Fukushima.
To put all this into perspective, one must realize that the German culture is distinctly risk averse, thus daring moves like this can only be based on a deep-seated feeling of environmental stewardship and sense of duty to humankind.
This is the only thing we’re asking of the United States. It’s not radical, and it’s rooted in decency and common sense. Join the rest of the world, and do what you can to mitigate the environmental collapse that has our scientists begging and screaming at us.
Craig,
Fantastic, or fantasy ? “Heroic or criminal deceipt”
The German government relies upon Green party votes to keep it’s increasingly shaky coalition cobbled together and themselves in power.
Germany is increasingly reliant on Russia to supply crucial energy in the form of natural gas and bio-mass. The bio-mass is harvested by ruthlessly clear felling ancient forests to produce wood pellets for dendrothermal energy.
In a recent convoluted argument the NYT contended Germany wouldn’t become dependent on Russian energy exports once the the $21 billion Nord Stream 2 pipeline was completed.
The Nord Stream 2 pipeline connects Russia directly to Germany by-passing the existing east European pipeline route. The Pipeline is largely financed by secret Russian-German financing, and does include a many EU banks, but the maijor players are the German United Loan Guarantee Programme,Deutsche Bank AG (which is the co-ordinating account bank)), Dresdner Kleinwort (Commerzbank),and the very murky, colossal Unicredit Group.
The Managing Director and CEO, of Nord Stream AG, is Matthias Warnig. Mattias Warnig has done very well for himself putting together deals between Russia and Germany, just as he did during his former employment as a high ranking STASI Officer in the old GDR.
In some mysterious manner, the NYT and Washington Post claim the Russian built pipeline will be infinitely more environmentally friendly than pipelines built in the US !
When complete the Nord Stream 2 pipeline will be the largest pipeline in the world and in an amazing display logical acrobatics, the NYT argues President Trump’s stubborn opposition to the most important export infrastructure undertaken by Putin’s Russia, is evidence of his status as a puppet of Russia and an enemy of NATO !
As if that’s not weird enough, the Washington Post and CNN attacked President Trump for opposing this pipeline on the basis that the President’s only interest was selling Europe American LPG instead of Russian natural Gas. The evidence of this, claim these pundits, is the President’s support for US pipelines which are “evil” if built by the US, but beneficial if built by Russia.
In the same article, CNN attacked the President as being a Russian puppet for opposing a pipeline in which Putin has invest much of his personal wealth and political prestige! Weird, eh?
Then again, perhaps not, when you consider how crazy these media outlets have become.
German claims of a “renewable energy” future are largely a fiction, and as German energy prices rise ever higher, the government propaganda machine is finding it increasingly difficult to hide the cracks.
Russian bio-mass production is creating a colossal and irreparable environmental disaster, in a vast nation which already leads the world in environmental disasters.
The German government was the first to engage with the new Brazilian President with an offer to increase wood chip and pellets import from from Brazil. Brazil which is already exporting far more bio-mass fuel than can be produced sustainably, will now have an extra incentive to increase production by as much as 150% to fulfill these lucrative contracts.
Heroic ? Really ?
Let me see if I understand you correctly. You believe Germany is heroic because it employs the services of an ex-STASI secret policeman, financed by a number of Banks with links to Putin’s personal wealth and acting as clearing houses for Russian illegal transactions, in order to secure an unnecessary Natural Gas pipeline to weaken the Ukraine, Poland and Romania, while encouraging the destruction of some of the most irreplaceable forests in the world.
And you think this is “heroic”?
There are none so blind as those who will not see ! [ Jeremiah 5:21]
Marcopolo, you are writing as though all the displaced coal generation will be replaced by Russian gas and unsustainable biomass whilst this is certainly not the case. Offshore wind in particular is likely to take up a large part of the slack, and is now very close to delivering power at wholesale market prices. True, there will be some increase in natural gas based generation – itself more sustainable than coal, but much of the natural gas generation will see a decline in operating hours over time as wind and solar backed up by short term batteries, and long term pumped storage take up more of the burden!
True, generation times do not always allign with demand, but demand response such as smart charging of electric vehicles together with planned expansions of pumped hydro will allow accommodation of significantly increased intermittent generation contribution.
Germany also has scope to enhance energy efficiency – in spite of high electricity costs, they have been lagging in the widespread adoption of LED lighting to give one example.
Re the “high cost” of renewables, that is largely the result of historic decisions re feed in tariffs when solar panels cost about $4 to $5 per watt and solar was just getting started. Any support for new renewables would be on a far smaller scale with some solar and wind projects likely to be viable on a merchant basis – selling into the market without subsidy in direct competition with other suppliers.
Hi Gary,
Thank you for your reply,
I agree, Germany’s power woes are largely the result of foolish, cowardly and deceitful political decisions, rather than a failure in renewable technology.
Nor should Germany be exploiting domestic low grade, highly pollutant brown coal reserves in ancient, low tech generating plants.
Unfortunately, Germany’s “energiewende” policies are politically motivated and are protected from proper scrutiny and analysis by an immensely complex system of subsidies, agreements, trickery, organized false reporting, and bureaucratic red tape.
Germany’s woes began with closing down the nations perfectly functioning, economically and environmentally viable nuclear power plants die the the accidents of Chernobyl and Fukushima.
The decision was based on an ill-informed estimate of the generating capacity of Wind and Solar, reinforced by a need to satisfy the Left-Green parties in the coalition, as well as pressure from the powerful,huge German corporations manufacturing Wind turbines and infrastructure.
The Russians have also spent a lot of money influencing German dependence on Russian Natural Gas and bio-mass.
German is a highly industrial nation, with an economy requiring “power on demand”. Since Germany lacks high grade coal, or domestic natural gas reserves, German power generation needs advanced Nuclear power installations, or suffer the economic consequences.
Thorium nuclear power would quickly, economically and environmentally solve German energy needs while lowering harmful emissions.
Gary,
We may have spoken too soon.
Germany’s Angela Merkel’s party and Energy Minister announced today the phasing out of coal-fired power stations could be delayed decades beyond 2038.
The phase-out, proposed last Saturday by a commission tasked with mapping out Germany’s transition to a more environmentally friendly low-carbon economy, was based on a quadrupling of German energy prices over the next decade, and acceptance of a lessening degree of security in power supply.
“Energy supply security must be guaranteed,” he told Welt am Sonntag newspaper. “If it is endangered, we should be free to do another round and address that, without abandoning the path we’ve chosen. There’s no reason to be dogmatic about this.”
Ah, the noble art of political backpedaling!